Game Day 5: OTT at NJD

1. The set up:

It's the second of three match ups between these Eastern Conference opponents with the Devils winning the first meeting 6-2 back at Canadian Tire Centre on Dec. 29. Both sides have avoided elimination from playoff contention down the final stretch of the season however the runway is running short for both.

The Senators are 18 points behind Detroit and with just 14 games remaining the odds are not in their favour. After three tough losses the Senators will look to get back in the win column and play a bit of a spoiler for this Devils team that is also on the outside looking in and needs to make up points in a hurry.

The Devils currently sit six points behind the Red Wings for the final Wild Card spot and seven points behind the Flyers for the final Metropolitan Division spot. With just ten games to go, every point matters at this stage. The Devils have some amount of control over their destiny with two games remaining against the Islanders who are one point ahead of them in the Metropolitan Division and one game against the Flyers remaining. That said it all starts tonight as they will need a win to stay in the fight.

2. Roster report:

The Senators have recalled forward Angus Crookshank and in a corresponding move they re-assigned Zack Ostapchuk to Belleville. The Senators did not hold a morning skate today so we will look for an update on starting goaltender when interim head coach Jacques Martin speaks with the media this afternoon. Below is how the Senators lined up against the St. Louis Blues:

3. Who to watch:

Back in the Senators line-up for the first time since wrapping up his debut stint on Jan. 4, be on the lookout for Angus Crookshank to be a spark here tonight. In his first crack at the NHL it didn't take him long to put his stamp on things scoring his first NHL goal in just his second game and finishing with two points in seven games.

In 50 games in the AHL, Crookshank has looked to be the best player on the Senators most nights. Leading the Belleville Senators in goals (24) and points (46), while sitting in third in assists (22), there aren't many nights that Crookshank doesn't have a direct impact in the outcome of the game. With 17 points in his last 14 games including a current seven-game point streak, expect Crookshank to look to carry some of that momentum into this stint with the Senators.

4. History of Sens vs Devils:

Tonight will be 107th regular season match up between the Senators and Devils with the Devils owning a narrow edge in the series as the Senators have a 39-46-16 with five ties against New Jersey. While there have been back and forth stretches of success between the two, the Devils have controlled this series over the last two seasons, winning all four meetings since the beginning of the 2022-23 NHL season. 

Of course these two have some playoff history as well meeting three times overall. In the 1998 playoffs they met in the first round where the Senators emerged victorious winning 4-2. The next meeting was in 2003 when the Devils beat the Senators by one goal in game seven in the Eastern Conference Finals to advance to the Stanely Cup which they won that season. Most recently they met in the 2007 Eastern Conference semi-finals where the Senators made light work of them winning 4-1 en route to their first Stanley Cup finals appearance.

5. Where to watch:

Tonight's game can be found live on CITY in English and TVAS in French. Additionally, TSN1200 and Unique FM 94,5 have you covered on the radio with the English and French calls.