Sens Lose 5-2 to Columbus BUT STILL CLINCH A PLAYOFF SPOT!!!!
PLAYOFFS PLAYOFFS PLAYOFFS
Even when they lose, they still win.
This was not a high-stakes game. It was, potentially, a very exciting game, but the Sens did not need to win it. They went into tonight with their playoff chances so good that missing the playoffs could only happen if they somehow lost all of their remaining games, Detroit won all of theirs, and Montreal won just enough to pass Ottawa. Almost impossible. All they needed to make it was one win or one Red Wings loss. But there's still something about getting that confirmation that they're in.
It would have been nice to clinch it with a win, but I can't say I care that much. They played a game. It was bad. They still made the playoffs. Go Sens Go.
It was pretty clear from the start that the Sens were in “we’re basically in the playoffs so let’s just try not to get injured” mode. Nevermind that the sooner they clinched their spot, the sooner they could actually sit these games out; this team has decided that they do not care about the regular season anymore.
Thankfully, the Blue Jackets are not a good enough team to really dominate the play. The Sens held their own just fine, outside of a few defensive breakdowns that forced Forsberg to make big saves. Nothing too dangerous happening on either end of the ice. Of course, Columbus eventually drew first blood. 1-0 Columbus.
The Sens got a powerplay, but didn’t do anything with it, and eventually after returning to even strength another defensive breakdown gave the Blue Jackets another goal. 2-0 Columbus.
The second period was a lot better. The Sens were engaged physically, and they did a much better job of hanging on to the puck. Things also got a but chippy, with Perron especially mixing it up with the Columbus players.
Finally, the Sens did get a goal, and it was a huge one. Fabian Zetterlund broke through with his very first goal as a Senator. He’s been playing very well but getting unlucky, so that one was long overdue. 2-1 Columbus.
Got the monkey off the back and we've one goal game! 🐒#GoSensGo pic.twitter.com/9oTMMWzU0Z
— Ottawa Senators (@Senators) April 9, 2025
Unfortunately, the comeback attempt ended there. The Sens played pretty well but not with enough urgency to actually score. With just a few seconds remaining in the second period, the Blue Jackets scored again to make the score 3-1 Columbus.
Ottawa went into the third period well positioned to come back and at least push it to overtime, and man did they not care one bit. They were so much worse. Disorganized and lazy, clearly a team that knew they had nothing to play for. I guess it’s nice to watch games that are meaningless for a different reason than usual.
Sean Monahan scored early in the third period, beating Forsberg with an excellent shot and essentially shutting down any remaining hope of a comeback. 4-1 Columbus.
The Sens were just going through the motions by that point. Columbus made it 5-1 about halfway through the third period.
Chabot got the last goal of the game, following up a beautiful breakaway attempt by Batherson. 5-2 Columbus is hardly an exciting score, but there's something fitting about Chabot, the longest tenured Senator, the first player to commit long term to the team, scoring the last goal of this game. Probably would have felt more significant if they'd won.
Cha-BUT!#GoSensGo pic.twitter.com/CmuYXRUb9Y
— Ottawa Senators (@Senators) April 9, 2025
Anyways, the Sens lost, but the Habs defeated the Red Wings in regulation, which clinched the Sens' playoff spot. That's all that matters.
PLAYOFFS, BABY!
Game Notes:
- The Kleven-Matinpalo pairing was hot garbage. The second Columbus goal was all on them. Not going to judge anyone on this team too harshly for their performance in a game that nobody really cared about, but it would be nice to be able to rely on our third pairing a bit more.
- Thomas Chabot, on the other hand, was one of the best players on the team. I'm so happy for him.
- You never want your goaltender to give up five goals, but I don't think anyone can blame Forsberg for that game. He looked fine. The team played some very sloppy defense in front of him. We probably won't see him in the playoffs unless something goes very wrong, anyways.
- I've liked Ridly Greig's game lately. He made a few defensive mistakes, but he was aggressive on the forecheck and generally being his usual shit disturber self.
- Congrats again to Fabian Zetterlund on getting the monkey off his back. He's been great.
- I don't think there's any need to panic about the team's play today. They clearly weren't trying that hard. They just need to rest up and get ready for the playoffs. And not let Montreal pass them in the standings.
