Game Day Five: Blue Jackets vs Senators, Jan. 3
By
Daniel Chisholm
Hockey Content and Social Media Specialist
The set-up
As head coach D.J. Smith has hammered home all season long, the parity is at an all-time high in the NHL, any team can beat any team on any given night. An important message to take into tonight's game against Columbus, who on paper may look like an easy opponent with an 11-22-2 record on the season, however if you dive a little deeper you realize they cannot be slept on. The Blue Jackets are set to return Patrik Laine to the line-up tonight, to join Johnny Gaudreau and Kent Johnson. A top line that stacks up among the top lines across the league. Patrik Laine has tallied 50-point seasons in all but one season of his career, and has been just shy of a point per game players over the last two seasons with 72 points in 76 games. Gaudreau of course is one of the most prolific players in the league, scoring a career best 115 points last season and already averaging over one point per game this season.
The Senators come into this game riding the high of a big win over Buffalo, halting their win streak at six games. It took Tim Stützle only 47 seconds to open the scoring against Buffalo and the Senators never looked back winning the game 3-1 after Stützle put away the empty net goal to seal the deal. What was inevitably the game winning goal was provided by forward Jake Lucchini, the first of his young NHL career and a complete energy boost for this Senators team.
In the month of December, the Senators went 8-4-2 to make up some ground in the playoff race. D.J. Smith has echoed that if they are able to do that again in January it will really put them in striking distance of the playoff race heading toward the all-star break. The Senators have five 30-point skaters, the second team in the NHL to hit that mark, while also boasting six 10-plus goal scorers in Claude Giroux, Tim Stützle, Brady Tkachuk, Alex DeBrincat, Drake Batherson and Shane Pinto. With a well rounded attack like this the Senators will be threatening from all angles tonight as they look to stay undefeated in 2023.
Roster notes
D.J. Smith announced that defenceman Erik Brannstrom will return to the line-up tonight. In a corresponding move the Senators re-assigned Jacob Bernard-Docker to Belleville yesterday. Below is how the Senators lined up this morning during practice at Canadian Tire Centre:
Forwards:
Tkachuk - Stützle - Giroux
DeBrincat - Pinto - Batherson
Kelly - Gambrell - Lucchini
Brassard - Kastelic - Watson
Norris
Defense:
Chabot - Zub
Sanderson - Hamonic
Brannstrom - Holden
Past history
This series is about as even as a series can be when looking at this all-time history of these two clubs. Tonight marks the 36th time they will face-off against each other with the Senators owning a narrow lead in the series 17-16 with two ties as well. The last time these two faced each other Ottawa walked away with the 2-1 win following the shootout, after Tim Stützle potted the game winner in the second round.
Who to watch
Defenceman Erik Brannstrom makes his return to the line-up tonight after sitting out with injury since the Senators played Winnipeg on December 20th. Brannstrom has answered every call that D.J. Smith has asked of him this season. Playing in all situations, even-strength, on the power play and on the penalty, while also playing up and down the line-up whenever injuries have occurred.
Brannstrom came into this season with a new sense of confidence, and it shows every time he hits the ice. Though his offence hasn't hit the marks he thought they would as he seeks his first goal of the year, we all know what he's capable of on that side of the ice. On the defensive side he is closing out pucks, playing more aggressive on the forecheck and breaking out pucks in transition whenever he can. Look for Brannstrom to get right back into his rhythm and maybe tack on that elusive first goal of the season tonight.
Where to watch
For those not at Canadian Tire Centre, Tuesday's game can be seen live on TSN5 and RDS2. Fans can also tune into the radio call on TSN 1200 and Unique FM 94,5.
