Finding the low point of this Ottawa Senators season is tricky, given all the options.
But who says no to this recent rock-bottom candidate?: Falling to the Arizona Coyotes, losers of 14 straight games, playing on the road in the second half of a back-to-back scenario.
The Senators can complain all they want about calls or missed calls, the Coyotes deserved their 5-3 win (the last goal was into an empty net) on Friday.
Don’t look now but the Sens are tied with those Coyotes with 53 points on the season, Arizona holding down 28th in the league because of two more games played. The Senators are in 27th place after 58 games played.
What a place to be with the trade deadline just six days away.
Watching this debacle unfold in front of another strong crowd at the Canadian Tire Centre (17,734), new general manager Steve Staios will have to resist any impulsive urge to trade away his roster in bunches.
This, too, shall pass. One day.
There is talent here. But the lineup needs work. At every position.
As usual when the Sens bottom out, there is an injury scare.
Last game it was centre Josh Norris, with an undisclosed (but apparent shoulder) injury that could keep him out for the rest of the season.
Friday night, it was captain Brady Tkachuk, who left the game after getting hit by Logan O’Brien midway through the third period. Tkachuk slowly skated to the bench, put his head down and after a chat with trainer Domenic Nicoletta, walked to the dressing room. He did not return to the game.
This game got chippy and Tkachuk was in the middle of most of it.
At least there was some good news on this front. On Saturday morning from Philadelphia, interim head coach Jacques Martin said that Tkachuk is OK and will be in the lineup versus the Flyers on Saturday night.
The health news on Ottawa’s goaltenders is not as promising (see below).
Sleepy start
Ottawa has a habit of falling behind by two or three goals and then trying to rally from the deficit. In previous losses to Nashville and Washington, the Sens were quickly behind 2-0. Verus the ‘Yotes, it was a 3-0 hole that they eventually overcame, but then eased off again when the score was 3-3, only to have Arizona take it to them in the third period.
The Senators sleepwalked through most of the first period, which the Coyotes were only too happy to exploit in their quest to stop their 14-game losing streak. The supposedly tired Coyotes outshot the Sens 18-11 over the first 20.
Holding possession in Ottawa’s end for the bulk of the opening minutes of the game, the Coyotes put their first puck past Senators goaltender Anton Forsberg at 7:31 of the first.
Forsberg wasn’t supposed to start but stepped in when Joonas Korpisalo was a late scratch due to illness.
If Forsberg didn’t expect to face a 19-shot barrage from lowly Arizona in the first period, he soon got used to the idea, making several big stops to keep his team in it early.
J.J. Moser made the score 2-0 at 12:39, just before recent AHL recall winger Zack MacEwen took a four-minute high-sticking penalty that put an exclamation mark on the crappy start.
While trying to kill off the double minor, Ottawa took another penalty, a tripping call to Ridly Greig that provided the visitors a lengthy 5-on-3 advantage.
Nick Schmaltz buried his 17th of the season on that two-man advantage, at which point there were audible groans among the cowboy-hat wearing crowd on western night at the CTC.
That third goal seemed to annoy the Senators bench. The Sens immediately put pressure on backup goalie Karel Vejmelka, and Vladimir Tarasenko wired a shot that beat Vejmelka on the short side, just inside the post.
The comeback was well underway. Two Ottawa goals in the second period, by Drake Batherson and Shane Pinto, on the power play, tied the game at 3-3.
Batherson, the Senators best player on the night, now has 21 goals on the season, just one off his career high of 22 set last season over 82 games.
In a rare show of frustration, coach Martin expressed displeasure with the officiating.
“They got two power-play goals, I thought there were some calls that were questionable,” Martin said. “We didn’t get any calls. I thought that was the difference in the game.”
There’s always room to question the referees, but Arizona had just one extra power play, four to Ottawa’s three. The Senators have had many games this season where they have enjoyed two or three more power plays than their opponent.
Far more concerning than any call or non-call was the effort by Ottawa in the third period. Even during a power play halfway through the period, the Sens accomplished little.
The Coyotes scored on their advantage earlier in the period, on yet another Greig penalty.
“I thought the guys worked hard,” Martin said. “We need to have a better start.”
Fans didn’t like the finish, either, booing the Sens off the ice as the seconds ticked down and Ottawa was stuck in its own zone, having already surrendered an empty net goal.
Forsberg said he learned just 25 minutes before the warmup that he would be starting.
Yes, it was a curve ball. But surprise starts are part of the game, Forsberg said, beating himself up on the winning goal by Dylan Guenther.
“I’ve got to make that save because it gives us a chance to win,” he said.
To be fair, that was a group effort. Arizona had an easy entry on its power play, Guenther was alone in the high slot and he ripped a shot high to the stick side.
Goaltender shuffle: Forsberg, Korpisalo out
While the news on Tkachuk was encouraging, now Ottawa’s goaltenders are both out.
Martin told Senators colour man Gord Wilson in Philly that Forsberg picked up an injury Friday night (lower body) and did not make the trip to Philadelphia. Korpisalo is still sick, and also stayed back in Ottawa. That means the kids are playing: Mads Sogaard has been called up and will start against the Flyers. Leevi Merilainen was also recalled from Belleville to back up Sogaard.
Because defenceman Thomas Chabot, who was dealing with an issue from the Nashville game, remains a question mark, defenceman Max Guenette was also recalled. Chabot was in the lineup against Arizona.
Tarasenko’s last game in Ottawa?
Tarasenko scored a beauty on home ice in this loss. Will it be the last goal he scores in front of Senators fans? A pending free agent, the veteran winger is the top trading chip Ottawa has to offer at or before Friday’s trade deadline.
“We’ll see what happens,” Tarasenko said, in a post-game scrum. “We have a game (Saturday). I told you before, I’m just preparing for each game. I like the group of guys and hanging around them. Tomorrow is a new day and we’ll see what’s going to happen.”
from Sportsnet.ca
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