Game Day Five: Senators at Penguins, Mar. 20
By
Daniel Chisholm
Hockey Content and Social Media Specialist
The set-up
Tonight's battle between the Senator and Pittsburgh could well set the scene for how the playoff race will shake out. Ottawa sits just seven points back of Pittsbugh in the final 13 games of the season, a win tonight would go a long way toward grabbing that final spot.
Ottawa comes into tonight having dropped five straight, though the last two have shown the true character of this group. After falling behind 5-2 to Colorado after a truly odd goal, the Senators mounted a comeback and with the net empty at 5-4 in Colorado's end, there wasn't one person in the stadium that thought the Senators didn't have a chance to pull off the comeback against the reigning Stanley Cup champs. They followed that up with a second comeback against Toronto in which Brady Tkachuk tied the game with just 10 seconds to play. After nine rounds of the shootout Toronto walked away with the win, but the Senators showed true grit for the full 65 minutes plus shootout.
Pittsburgh enters tonight on a three game skid. However, this group led by Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang has been a mainstay in the playoffs for the last decade and a half. Crosby and Malkin lead the way as point per game players with 83 and 72 points respectively, add in Jake Guentzel's 62 points and this team can score in bunches.
One thing is for sure, with both of these teams hungry for the playoffs and a lot on the line, this game will surely be a wire to wire battle exciting the whole way through!
Roster notes
Yesterday afternoon the Senators re-assigned goaltender Kevin Mandolese to Belleville and in a corresponding move recalled goaltender Dylan Ferguson from Belleville. Below is how the Senators lined up at morning skate at PPG Paints Arena:
Forwards:
Tkachuk - Stützle - Batherson
DeBrincat - Greig - Giroux
Brassard - Pinto - Gauthier
Brown - Gambrell - Watson
Kastelic
Defense:
Sanderson - Zub
Chychrun - Hamonic
Chabot - Brannstrom
Holden
Playoff push
With 13 games remaining the Senators have their work cut out for them but are still firmly in the race for the final playoff position. Below are the updated Wild Card standings as of today:
Team: Points | Games remaining
New York Islanders: 80 | 11
Pittsburgh Penguins: 78 | 13
Florida Panthers: 77 | 13
Washington Capitals: 73 | 11
Buffalo Sabres: 72 | 13
Ottawa Senators: 71 | 13
Detroit Red Wings: 69 | 14
Who to watch
Shane Pinto didn't skip a beat early this season when asked who his favourite player was growing up when he said "Sidney Crosby." Well it took Pinto just 50 minutes to score on his favourite player during their first match up before the Senators took it in overtime. Pinto is on the verge of the 20-goal plateau for the first time of his career, with 18 in his 69 games played this season. Be on the lookout for Pinto to add to that tally and help the Senators in their quest for the playoffs here tonight.
Where to watch
Monday's game can be seen live on Sportsnet and RDS. Fans can also tune into the radio call on TSN 1200 and Unique FM 94,5.
