Game Day Notes: Sens @ Capitals

The Sens will see a pair of new forwards debut tonight in Washington and we've got a look at how that will impact their line-up against the Capitals.

New Acquisitions

Following several deals leading up to the NHL's Trade Deadline, the Sens were able to add several players, draft picks and prospects to the organization and two of them are set to make their debuts with their new club tonight in Washington.
"It's good to meet all my new teammates," said Oscar Lindberg. "It was a pretty hectic day yesterday so it was nice to get a practice in today and play tonight."
Both Lindberg, who was acquired from the Vegas Golden Knights along with top prospect Erik Brannstrom and a 2020 second round pick in exchange for Mark Stone, and Brian Gibbons, who was dealt from the Anaheim Ducks for Patrick Sieloff, joined the Sens for their morning skate earlier today in Washington as they being the process of getting acclimated to their new squad.
"I'm excited," said Gibbons about joining the Senators. "Obviously there's been some turnover here so there are new faces for everyone. I think sometimes that can be good and bring some new energy in the room."

Projected Line-up

With Lindberg and Gibbons both confirmed for tonight, Sens head coach Guy Boucher also shared his thoughts on crafting his line-up against Washington. With an influx of new players, which also includes Anthony Duclair who made his Senators debut on Sunday, the coach has begun the process of sorting out his forward combos.
According to the line rushes this morning, it looks like Duclair will slot into Stone's spot on the right side with Colin White and Brady Tkachuk while established trios of Zack Smith, Jean-Gabriel Pageau, Bobby Ryan and Rudolfs Balcers, Chris Tierney and Mikkel Boedker appear to have remained in tact. The biggest question mark for this evening surrounds the return of Mark Borowiecki who will play his first game since suffering a foot injury on February 12th against the Hurricanes.
"I have to double check with a defenceman," said Boucher. "It's Borowiecki's first game back so we'll see if everything is ok. I think it is but if not we may want to have an extra on defence so we'll see."
The coach also praised the other defencemen's play of late and shared that it's difficult to scratch any of them with Borowiecki's return so it's likely that we'll see him roll with 11 forwards and 7 defencemen against the Capitals.
"Normally I'd like to go 12 and 6 today but it will be a tough one," Boucher said. "First because of Borowiecki's return and because there's nobody else that deserves to be taken out so I'll probably have to pull a forward out of the line-up after warm-up."
Here's how the lines and pairings looked at this morning's skate:
Tkachuk - White - Duclair
Smith - Pageau - Ryan
Balcers - Tierney - Boedker
Paajarvi - Lindberg - Gibbons
Chabot - DeMelo
Wolanin - Ceci
Borowiecki - Jaros
Harpur

In Goal

The Sens will turn to Anders Nilsson (10-15-1) in goal tonight against the Capitals as the 28-year-old looks to snap the team's current 4-game losing skid. Nilsson has allowed 4 goals in each of his last two games, as well as in his start against Washington earlier this year while a member of the Vancouver Canucks, and is looking to bounce back and secure his first decision since a 4-3 win against Winnipeg 10 days ago.

Where to Watch

It's a 7 p.m. start time in Washington and if you're looking for a spot to catch tonight's game be sure to head to Sens House where they'll be serving up tall cans of Molson Canadian for just $6 or a bucket of 3 for $17.50.
Click here
to make a reservation.