Game Day 5: DET vs OTT

The set up:

Well the time has finally arrived, the Sens have been in Sweden since Money and the Global Series is upon us! The Senators vs Red Wings match up will kick off the events here in Sweden as Avicii Arena is set to host four games in the next four days.

In this their second meeting of the season, the Senators will look to get even after Detroit took the first match up of the year at Canadian Tire Centre 5-2, the Senators first loss at home.

Things look a little different this time around, as Detroit’s special teams play has levelled out. During their first meeting, Detroit boasted a whopping 46.2% conversion on the power play and it showed as they went three for five with the man advantage on the day. Now a much more civil, though still good, 22.2% the Senators will look to contain Detroit’s power play. Easier said than done with elite talents like Alex DeBrincat and Dylan Larkin who have 17 and 15 points respectively, not to mention Lucas Raymond with an additional 11 points.

The test is tough but the Sens are dialed in and it has shown in practice since arriving in Stockholm. The battles around the net and in the corners have been intense, and everyone seems to be locked in for this business trip. The team will look to their leadership group to set the tone early here tonight, led by Brady Tkachuk, Claude Giroux and Tim Stützle (in Thomas Chabot’s absence), who have combined for 44 points in just 13 games. On the back end look for Jake Sanderson and Artem Zub to set the tone as the teams shutdown pairing.

Roster report:

Below is how the Senators skated at morning practice at Avicii Arena:

Ahead of the trip to Sweden, the Senators recalled defenceman Jacob Larsson as well as brought Mads Sogaard from Belleville under the third goaltender exemption for games played outside of North America.

Who to watch:

Being one of our resident Swedes on the team, playing his first NHL game in Sweden, keep your eyes on Erik Brannstrom tonight as someone looking to make some noise. Brannstrom is in familiar territory having played parts of three seasons in the Swedish top league where he tallied 21 points and established himself as a good skating defenceman who had an ability to break the puck out in transition. With family in tow tonight look for Brannstrom to be locked in as the Senators look to put on a show for the fans here in Stockholm.

Sens in Sweden:

To kick off the third trip to Sweden, tonight marks the sixth game the Senators have played here. They first came in 2008 for the 2008 NHL premiere, in which they first stopped in Gothenburg to play Alfie’s youth club, Frölunda Gothenburg whom they beat 4-1. They followed that up by splitting a series with the Pittsburgh Penguins with Pittsburgh taking the first game 4-3 in overtime, before the Sens won the second game 3-1.

The second trip to Sweden saw the Sens face-off in a two-game series against the Colorado Avalanche. Much like when they faced Pittsburgh they split the series with Ottawa taking the first game 4-3 in overtime before Colorado won the second 4-3 in regulation.

All-in-all the Sens boast a 3-2 record in Sweden, however they are 2-2 against NHL opponents. Look for the Senators to try to take a winning record back to Ottawa.

Where to watch:

It will be an early start today with the Global Series games. Fans can catch the game on TSN 5 with the English broadcast, and RDS has you covered in French. Additionally, TSN1200 and Unique FM 94,5 have the radio call tonight in English and French respectively.