AFTER THE BUZZER: Sens stymied by Hurricanes

Returning home hoping to turn the tides in their first round series with the Carolina Hurricanes, the Ottawa Senators were greeted with a crowd of more than 18,750 guiding them onto the ice.

Logan Stankoven struck first for the Canes, opening the scoring just over five minutes into the game. From there, Ottawa and Carolina played to a stalemate until late in the second period, when Nick Cousins found Drake Batherson all alone with a saucer pass. It was Batherson’s second goal in as many games.

Under two minutes later, Jackson Blake regained the lead for the Canes, finding a wide open net off of a defensive breakdown by the Senators. That lead would hold until the final buzzer despite a flurry of chances by the Sens in the third period.

Other thoughts, storylines, and observations

Jake Sanderson left the game in the second period after taking a high hit from Taylor Hall, which resulted in a two-minute minor for an illegal check to the head. Travis Green confirmed after the game that he left due to the hit.

Linus Ullmark continued a dominant stretch in goal for the Senators. Ullmark now holds a .933 save percentage and 2.02 goals-against average this postseason.

Last postseason, the Senators faced an identical 3-0 deficit and clawed back to win two straight games against the Leafs. Ullmark backstopped the Senators to a 4-3 overtime win in Game 4 and shut the Leafs out in Game 5.

Four NHL teams have overcome a 3-0 series deficit and come back to win a series: the 1942 Toronto Maple Leafs, the 1975 New York Islanders, the 2010 Philadelphia Flyers, and the 2014 Los Angeles Kings. Six others have forced a Game 7 and lost.

What were they saying?

“Just not good enough. Simple as that. Lots of penalties, our power play was awful, and that’s it.” — Thomas Chabot on the loss and specifically the power play, which went 0-for-5

“I just don't understand how there’s not a five-minute major called on a hit to the head, it’s a blatant hit to the head, the kind of hit to the head you don’t want to see. It’s ridiculous there wasn’t a review.” — Travis Green on the hit on Jake Sanderson

“Yeah, it was pretty frustrating, but we’ve got to find a way. Things don’t go your way, and we’ve never quit all season, just got to step up to the occasion.” — Brady Tkachuk on the frustration of the loss

“Obviously we battled back a little bit and won two, we know we can do it, if there’s one thing this group has done all year it’s not give up on anything. We stick with it and it’s not going to change. As frustrating as it is right now, you’ve got to turn it off and throw it in the garbage and focus [on] Saturday’s afternoon game.” — Thomas Chabot on drawing parallels to winning two straight after facing a 3-0 deficit last postseason.

What were the stats saying?

Shots on goal: OTT 22, CAR 27

Faceoffs: OTT 45.9%, CAR 54.1%

Power plays: OTT 0/5, CAR 0/4

Penalty minutes: OTT 8, CAR 10

Hits: OTT 46, CAR 30

Blocked shots: OTT 18, CAR 18

Giveaways: OTT 15, CAR 21

Takeaways: OTT 4, CAR 3

High-danger chances for (5v5): OTT 5, CAR 7

Expected goals-for (5v5): OTT 1.41, 2.3

Expected goals-for (all situations): 1.67, CAR 4.14

\*Advanced stats courtesy of Natural Stat Trick\*

What’s next for the Senators?

The Senators will host the Hurricanes again in Game 4 on Saturday afternoon at 3 p.m. You can catch Thursday’s game on Sportsnet and TVAS. The Senators will also be hosting watch parties at Canadian Tire Centre for every game in the first round.

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