Coach MacLean post-game - 4.27.2013
by Chris Lund / Ottawa Senators
With a playoff spot in the bag, the Ottawa Senators went out on Saturday night with the intention of climbing the Eastern Conference standings for the best seed possible. However, another performance that included drastically outshooting the opponent wasn't enough as they came out on the wrong end of a 2-1 decision.
With a back and forth beginning and the Flyers grabbing that all-important first goal of the game, the Sens took control and dominated possession for the vast majority of the remaining two and a half periods. The Sens outshot the Flyers 14-5; 15-10; and 15-10 over three periods but couldn't solve Steve Mason beyond a Kyle Turris goal in the second. The power play misfired once again on home ice, going 0-for-5 with eight shots on goal.
Coach MacLean said the team simply needs to be better going forward. The typically strong-at-home Sens have now dropped three games at Scotiabank Place despite controlling possession in each of those games.
The playoff picture has become equally more clear and muddled for Ottawa after the loss. A regulation win in Boston on Sunday night and they will take on the Montreal Canadiens; an overtime or shootout win in Boston and they will face the Bruins; a loss and they will face the Pittsburgh Penguins. Game 48 will have big implications for the Sens beginning next week.
Here's a Twitter rundown of what Coach MacLean had to say after the game...
Thoughts from Coach MacLean coming up...
— Ottawa Senators (@NHL_Sens) April 28, 2013
Coach: Tonight is a negative. We've lost our last three home games.
— Ottawa Senators (@NHL_Sens) April 28, 2013
Coach: We didn't play hard enough. They found a way to get more goals than us. We need to play harder.
— Ottawa Senators (@NHL_Sens) April 28, 2013
Coach on tomorrow's game: We're going in to win a game against a team we haven't beaten all year.
— Ottawa Senators (@NHL_Sens) April 28, 2013
Coach on the seeding: We're just going to play our 48th game and see where we end up.
— Ottawa Senators (@NHL_Sens) April 28, 2013
Coach on tomorrow's lineup: We're going to play the best roster to help us win a game.
— Ottawa Senators (@NHL_Sens) April 28, 2013
Coach: Frustration is a useless emotion. We just need to be better.
— Ottawa Senators (@NHL_Sens) April 28, 2013
For those of you who are more audio inclined, you can listen to Coach MacLean's full post-game press conference here on this page.