Win warms Senators before they take it outside

OTTAWA -- In addition to whatever cold weather gear they might choose for the 2017 Scotiabank NHL100 Classic on Saturday, the most important thing the Ottawa Senators might wear is a smile.
The mood around the Senators warmed considerably heading into the outdoor game at Lansdowne Park against the Montreal Canadiens (7 p.m. ET; NBCSN, CBC, SN, TVA Sports, NHL.TV) after they ended a five-game losing streak with
a 3-2 win against the New York Rangers
at Canadian Tire Centre on Wednesday.

Ottawa's 2-10-2 record in their past 14 games has been weighing heavily on the Senators, and the win against the Rangers will be a boost for Saturday, defenseman Cody Ceci said.
RELATED: [Complete NHL 100 Classic coverage]
"[It's] very important. We haven't been playing well lately," said Ceci, who has scored in back-to-back games. "To play well [Wednesday] leading into a really big game, the outdoor game, that's big for us. We can take a little bit of a breath. Lately it's been pretty chaotic on the road, going around, losing games, hearing all the talk, the mood has been pretty down, so hopefully this picks it up a little bit."
Senators forward Bobby Ryan, who had a goal and an assist against the Rangers, agreed.
"You have little less weight on your shoulders going into that game," Ryan said. "You try and separate game by game, but when you're in a rut, whatever you want to call this, like we've been, to get one before you're going into [the Scotiabank NHL100 Classic] means a lot. It's going to be a different feeling."

Senators forward Zack Smith scored the winner against the Rangers eight seconds into the third period on Wednesday.
"It's nice to get a win right before going into a really fun time like the outdoor game," he said. "It'll be nice to have a confidence boost for that game especially, because it's a division rival, too."
Ceci, who grew up on the outdoor rinks of Orleans, a suburb of Ottawa, said the game is going to take him back to his childhood.
"I played a lot on outdoor rinks," he said. "We had one in our backyard that my mom would take care of. There were a bunch all around Orleans that I would play on. This will be a cool experience to play on one in Ottawa and play an NHL game. That's pretty awesome, so I'm looking forward to it."

Ryan, who was born in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, said he is eager for his first real outdoor experience. He moved to California as a youngster and doesn't remember playing outdoors.
"Like everybody, I think I started on [an outdoor rink], in New Jersey, but not like the Canadian guys, nothing like that, especially because I was in California for so long," he said. "I was always roller hockey outdoors. This will be a first for me."
Senators general manager Pierre Dorion was a member of the Canadiens management team when they played the Edmonton Oilers in the first NHL outdoor game, The Heritage Classic, at Edmonton's Commonwealth Stadium on Nov. 22, 2003.
"All I know is the first outdoor game I was working for Montreal and it turned their season around, so maybe it can do the same for us," Dorion said.
The Canadiens were 8-10-1 with one tie going into the game, defeated the Oilers 4-3 and went 33-20-3 with six ties the rest of the way to finish 41-30-4 with seven ties. They qualified for the Stanley Cup Playoffs and defeated the Boston Bruins in seven games in the first round before being swept by the Tampa Bay Lightning, who went on to win the Stanley Cup, in the second round.