Senators stay hot, hand Maple Leafs 7th straight loss in regular-season finale

OTTAWA -- James Reimer made 19 saves for the Ottawa Senators, who defeated the Toronto Maple Leafs 3-1 at Canadian Tire Centre on Wednesday.

It was the final game of the regular season for both teams.

Drake Batherson, Warren Foegele and Dylan Cozens scored for the Senators (44-27-11), who went 6-1-1 in their final eight games. Claude Giroux had two assists.

“I think we're happy we got two points, and now we're focused on the fun stuff,” Foegele said. “The stuff that every kid dreams about doing is getting an opportunity to chase a Stanley Cup. And, you know, that's where our mindset is right now.”

Ottawa, which will face the Carolina Hurricanes in the Eastern Conference First Round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, rested several veteran players for the second game in a row, including forwards Brady Tkachuk, Tim Stutzle and Michael Amadio, as well as defensemen Thomas Chabot and Jake Sanderson.

“They play fast, they play aggressive,” Foegele said of Carolina. “They're in your face, and you know, they're an experienced team. They've been there now for, this will be eight years.”

William Nylander scored the lone goal for the Maple Leafs (32-36-14), who lost seven straight (0-6-1) to close out the regular season. Dennis Hildeby made 35 saves.

Toronto has already been eliminated from playoff contention.

“It’s disappointing this season,” Maple Leafs coach Craig Berube said. “I guess that’s the focus, really, looking at everything. Didn’t live up to expectations.” 

Toronto forward Easton Cowan said: “Obviously, it’s not fun. You want to be playing hockey at the end of the year here when the weather gets nicer, so it (stinks). But we did it to ourselves, so we got to have a good summer here, everyone come to training camp ready to buy in and have a better year.” 

Batherson gave the Senators a 1-0 lead with a power-play goal at 6:04 of the first period. Giroux fed a pass from the right face-off circle to Batherson in front, where he redirected the puck to the short side past Hildeby.

“The game doesn’t really mean much, obviously,” Batherson said. “I mean, it’s already solidified to a point. So it’s a little tougher to get up for.

“I think since we found out we're playing first round, I think most of us are just thinking about that to be honest. Obviously, you want to go out there and play well, but it's tough, tough when knowing this weekend you're playing Game 1."

Foegele made it 2-0 at 18:32 of the second period while on a power play, burying a long-distance snap shot low to the glove side.

Ottawa outshot Toronto 26-12 over the first two periods.

“As a coach and a player, you go through adversity in your career no matter what,” Berube said. “And it was a tough year. But at the same time, you keep grinding, and you keep trying to find different ways to get out of the situation you’re in. Which we did. We tried to do a lot of different things this year, and it didn’t work out.” 

Nylander cut the deficit to 2-1 at 8:11 of the third period. Jacob Quillan carried the puck into the offensive zone and forced Reimer out of position before his centering pass deflected off the stick of Senators defenseman Cameron Crotty in front. The puck then bounced to Nylander, who backhanded it off Reimer's blocker into the net for his 30th goal of the season.

“It's a tough finish, but I guess kind of relieved a little bit,” Maple Leafs forward Nicholas Robertson said. “I mean, we were in the thick of it after the break. You know, it was just frustrating hockey. And just got to regroup here and kind of forget about, I mean, take away what we can, but just kind of put this behind us.”

Cozens scored an empty-net goal at 19:54 to secure the 3-1 final.

“Everyone's excited,” Foegele said. “We got an opportunity to chase the Stanley Cup. And first thing I kind of said when I got here is, you just got to get into the dance. And let's see how the dance goes.”

NOTES: The Senators finished their regular season at 44-27-11 (99 points), marking their highest point total since 2016-17 (98 points), a campaign that finished with a run to the Eastern Conference Final. ... Batherson has seven points (four goals, three assists) in his past five home games. ... Nylander reached the 30-goal plateau for the sixth time in his career and fifth straight season. Only Mats Sundin (10), Auston Matthews (nine), Darryl Sittler (eight) and Rick Vaive (seven) have as many 30-goal seasons for the Maple Leafs.