Road Trip Struggles

After what looked to be a turn for the better on Tuesday against St. Louis, the Senators have lost two straight to the Panthers and Lightning while continuing their road trip. It has been a tough situation for the team as we've seen management trying to send a message to the players that they need better results. Over the past few three games Milan Michalek and Zack Smith have been scratched once, while Mika Zibanejad was scratched for two consecutive games, returning to the lineup last night against Tampa Bay.

What is the answer to a better hockey club?

This road trip has brought to light the struggles of the top two forward lines. Kyle Turris and his line have struggled to bring consistent points while the third line (Legwand, Neil, Condra) have combined for seven points in three games. It looks as though after being a go-to scratch, Condra got the message. His play has significantly improved.

There is some good news for Ottawa, though. Goaltending is the farthest thing from an issue. Anderson (9.32 SV%) and Lehner (9.14 SV%) have been the ones keeping the Senators afloat. They have worked as a tandem quite well for the team, and the starts have been split evenly, with a slight tip to Anderson.

Ottawa continues to patiently wait for defenseman Marc Methot to return from injury. There was some speculation that he would be available for the game in Sunrise, but that didn't happen. Struggling defensively, the Senators average 35 shots against per game which puts a lot of pressure on the goaltenders. Although Anderson and Lehner have responded well to the high shot count, Methot is a much needed piece to the puzzle to help that shot count go down, which will effectively give the team more time to develop in the offensive zone.

The bad news, however, does unfortunately keep coming for the Sens. Bobby Ryan left the game early on Friday due to a hand injury which later was determined to be a broken finger. There is no timeline for Ryan, Maclean stated.

“We're anticipating we'll know something by Monday. If he can't practice Monday then we'll probably have some kind of answer at that time.”

The Senators are hoping to see him in the lineup against the Islanders on Tuesday night.

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Pesky Returns

Last season, the Senators developed a name for themselves due to their unrelenting perseverance that had them making several late third period comebacks in games that seemingly looked over. The name, or hashtag, rather, was referred to as the Pesky Sens.

After suffering a 3-2 loss in an afternoon game to St. Louis on Saturday, the Sens visited them Tuesday night with the loss still lingering in their minds. Revenge seemed to be the motivating factor as they pushed through penalties and some questionable disallowed goals to tie the game up at two with 41 seconds left. Since overtime solved nothing, the game went to the shootout where Bobby Ryan scored to win the game for Ottawa. With the win, the Senators proudly reclaimed their title as the Pesky Sens.

Overall, this was one of the best games we've seen from Ottawa all season. Prior to the game, MacLean announced the lineup which brought Condra and Greening in, scratching Michalek and Zibanejad. The scratches certainly took many by surprise, but when asked about the lineup changes after the game, MacLean addressed the situation by referring back to one of his most repeated phrases.

“The best players play”

Although many fans were upset with the lineup, it did look like the Sens had a good group of players in against St. Louis.

Bobby Ryan had a terrific game defensively, and played in a manner that showed he was not going to let the game slip away. Ryan had three shots against St. Louis, and they all seemed to be well generated scoring chances. Hearing the sound of the post seemed to be enough motivation for him to put the game away with his shootout winner.

Erik Condra was brought in after consistently being a healthy scratch, and after his performance, Sens fans should expect to see more of him, especially on this current road trip. As a team that struggles with staying out of the box (suffering eight penalties against St. Louis), they need a penalty killer like Condra in the lineup. He was excellent on the penalty kill, as well as scoring a shorthanded goal that was disallowed. For only recording 9:20 of ice time that night second lowest on the team), he played a terrific game and you couldn't help but notice when he was on the ice.

Another key component in the win against St. Louis was Robin Lehner. Facing 29 shots, he made some key saves for the Senators and kept a levelled head over what turned out to be quite a physical game. In the shootout, he showed lots of patience, stopping all three shots he faced against what is a very talented lineup. The goaltending tandem continues to bring success for Ottawa, as Anderson stands second in the league with a .932 SV%, and Lehner continues to give quality starts.

This game was also the first of the season that they won while outshooting their opponent(33-29). A great confidence booster for the team as they continue a stretch of four away games out of their next five.  

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Curtis Lazar to Stay, Who Goes?

Early on into the season, many NHL teams are forced to make some hard decisions with their rookie players. After nine games of play, the management has to ask themselves a question. Do they stay, or do they go? For some, the answer puts them down to their AHL affiliate, where lies an opportunity to be called back up to the big league if they are playing well enough. For others, they are sent back down to junior where they will remain for the rest of the season. Then, there is the lucky few that are told to stay with their respective teams.

In the case of Ottawa Senators, centre Curtis Lazar was given the normal nine game period to impress the Senators management, and prove he is ready to play in the NHL. In the nine game period, Lazar was scratched two times, so on Tuesday night, the eleventh game of the season for Ottawa was his last chance to prove himself to the organization. In his nine games, Lazar recorded three assists including his assist to the game-winning goal on Tuesday night. On Wednesday, the Senators announced that Lazar is going to stay with the team for the year.

Lazar has been a fan favourite so far this season. At just nineteen years old, he has shown his readiness to match the speed and physicality of the NHL. Although he has yet to score his first career NHL goal, the rookie shows lots of promise and the choice the Senators made to keep him has been very well received. With the chemistry building on the “young line” with Lazar, Hoffman, and Stone, he seems to have found his place in the organization as a strong fourth line centre. This gives Lazar a comfortable way to enter into the NHL, especially with the rotating scratches to be expected between Erik Condra, Colin Greening, and himself. It seems as if the coaching staff wants to ease him into the league rather than putting him in the lineup every night. Which, for the nineteen-year-old, is a good way to get him started.

Who Goes?

There's no doubt that Lazar staying for the season is a success story for the Senators. However, while Marc Methot is still injured with no news of a return date in sight, there lies more decisions to be made. Once Methot is able to return, the Sens will have one extra man on their roster. Someone will either have to be sent down to Binghamton, or a trade will have to be made.

With the coaching staff showing signs of favour in the young guys, we have seen the tables turn on two veteran Senators forwards, Colin Greening, and Erik Condra. Both players have not seen many games so far this season with out of the eleven games played, Condra has played five and Greening merely two. The two players, however, find themselves in different situations. Condra is in the last year of his contract and becomes a UFA on July 1, while Greening is in the first year of a three year deal worth $7.95 million. In a recent article, Ottawa Sun's Bruce Garrioch commented on Colin Greening's situation,

“Ottawa doesn't want him making that kind of coin sitting and sooner or later the situation will be addressed through waivers or a trade because there is interest in Greening.”

A valuable penalty killer like Condra isn't someone the Sens are likely to move, especially after finishing dead last in penalty minutes last season. But as for Colin Greening, we might see him moving in the coming weeks. 

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