ABOUT THE SENATORS:
• Ottawa has lost three games (0-2-1) in a row, including a 4-3 overtime defeat at Vegas on Sunday ... Thomas Chabot is leading the Sens and ranks third in scoring among NHL defensemen with 13 points (three goals, 10 assists) ... Matt Duchene has scored four goals in his past four games ... Ottawa will be short-handed after defenseman Mark Borowiecki was handed a three-game suspension by the NHL on Monday for an illegal check to the head of Vegas's Cody Eakin ... The Sens also will play minus rookie Brady Tkachuk who is sidelined because of a torn ligament in his leg ... Ottawa is struggling to kill penalties; it ranks 29th in the NHL in penalty-killing percentage at just 69.4 and has allowed at least one power-play goal in five consecutive games ... Backup goalie Mike Condon will make just his second start of the season.
'YOTES QUOTES:
•"We're not getting too high. We know it's a long season with tons of ebbs and flows, so we don't want to get too high or too low at any point. The key is to keep an even keel. We have a tough test in Ottawa. We know they are going to come out hard and we have to be ready." -- Jordan Oesterle
• "The puck has been bouncing our way the last five games compared to the first five when we really had to fight for every goal that we got. I also think we're doing a better job overall of creating traffic in front of the other team's net, and our goalies have been unbelievable for us. Our team defense has been pretty good, too. There's still room for improvement, but we're off to a great start in that aspect." -- Niklas Hjalmarsson
•"I like guys having fun and feeling good about themselves, but in saying that, we can't take anything for granted. We're 5-5. We're there, but we're still .500, and I think that more than ever you've got to stay with the system and make sure you do your proper things on and off the ice ... We can't take anything for granted. It's a tough league and I think it's going to be a fast-paced game tonight." -- Rick Tocchet
