Forsberg makes 19 saves, Senators shut out Blackhawks 

OTTAWA -- Anton Forsberg made 19 saves for the Ottawa Senators in their fourth straight win, 2-0 against the Chicago Blackhawks at Canadian Tire Centre on Thursday.

“The last three or four games here, we’ve played really well both offensively and defensively,” Forsberg said. “And tonight, I mean, it was kind of a perfect game there. We created a lot of scoring chances, didn’t [give] up a lot.”

Claude Giroux and Parker Kelly scored for the Senators (32-36-4), who had lost three straight before starting their current winning streak.

“We got saves when we needed it,” Ottawa coach Jacques Martin said. “And got a short-handed goal to start it, and then again some production from different people. I thought we had a pretty good game, competed well and a good result.”

Petr Mrazek made 32 saves for the Blackhawks (21-47-5), who had won two in a row.

“We just didn’t match their intensity,” Chicago coach Luke Richardson said. “I think they were a step ahead of us everywhere, and unfortunately, we paid the price. Petr kept us in and gave us a chance to get back in the game, but our power play that has been very good for us lately, tonight, was a little sloppy.

“Credit to Ottawa, they outskated us and outworked us and they were the team that played and traveled last night, and we just didn’t match that. I think we started to play a little bit in the second period and the third period, but we had a hard time getting on the inside. I just thought they had a little more determination than we did tonight.”

Blackhawks rookie forward Connor Bedard had two shots and was minus-2 in 19:55 of ice time in his first trip to Ottawa.

“We know what he’s trying to do," Forsberg said of the scouting report on Bedard. "He’s trying to come at defensemen and kind of toe drag the guy and shoot between the legs. I think [our defensemen] did a really good job at keeping the stick on him so he didn’t really get any really dangerous shots. They did a really good job.”

Giroux gave the Senators a 1-0 lead 36 seconds into the first period with a short-handed goal. He took a centering pass from Jacob Bernard-Docker on a 3-on-2 rush and beat Mrazek with a wrist shot from the slot.

“The first period was the difference. It’s as simple as that,” Chicago forward Nick Foligno said. “We’ve had trouble with our starts. I don’t know what it is. Obviously, they were excited coming back to a sold-out rink, and we just didn’t have the same energy and compete that we needed.”

Kelly made it 2-0 at 6:08. He kept in a clearing attempt from Bedard and sent a wrist shot on goal from above the left face-off circle that deflected in off Blackhawks defenseman Nikita Zaitsev’s glove.

“Really good start, kind of set the tone for the rest of the game,” Kelly said. “Thought we did a pretty good job of just keeping them at bay, getting pucks behind them and not really letting them in our zone. Really liked our game tonight, a full 60.”

Ottawa defenseman Tyler Kleven had two shots and one hit in 14:07 of ice time in his first game since Nov. 9, 2023. He was recalled from Belleville of the American Hockey League on Thursday.

“The young kid, Kleven, gave us a good game,” Martin said. “I really like how he handled himself. He showed good poise, smart, you know, he looked before getting to the puck, finding what options he had for breakouts. I thought he kept his game simple but effective.”

NOTES: Zaitsev did not return for the second period. Richardson said the defenseman has been dealing with an illness recently and he's also "been battling for the last little bit with an upper-body injury." … Giroux’s goal was the fourth-fastest short-handed goal to start a game in NHL history (since 1933-34). … The Senators ended an 11-game winless streak against the Blackhawks dating back to Dec. 20, 2016.