Game Day 5: Sens @ Panthers
by Craig Medaglia @craigmedaglia / Ottawa Senators
We've got 5 things before the Sens kick off their 3-game road trip against the Panthers tonight in Florida.
1. Starting Goalies
With tonight's start in goal, Mike Condon will have appeared in every game for the Sens in the months of December and January which is nuts. That's 25 games in a row. Since being acquired from the Penguins, Condon has ammassed a 14-7-5 record and provided the Sens with a quality starter in the absence of Craig Anderson and Andrew Hammond.
#Sens HC Guy Boucher has confirmed to media that @Condibear1 will start in goal tonight @FlaPanthers. Neil also returns in place of Lazar.
- Sens communications (@Media_Sens) January 31, 2017
At the other end of the rink, it was supposed to be James Reimer but he's on baby watch so Roberto Luongo gets the start for the Panthers. Luongo is 13-13-6 this season.
2. Projected line-up
As noted above, Chris Neil will return to the line-up tonight in place of Curtis Lazar. Neil was a healthy scratch for the Sens' last game against the Flames and when asked the coach said he liked Neil's toughness against a rugged Panthers team on the road. Mark Borowiecki won't return tonight after battling the flu for the past week or so which means Fredrik Claesson, who has played extremely well in his absence, stays in against Florida.
Here's how the lines and pairings are shaping up...
Here's a look at the #Sens projected line-up for tonight's game against the Panthers: pic.twitter.com/vfn6DpGRNH
- Ottawa Senators (@Senators) January 31, 2017
3. Previous meeting
Let's take it back to December 3rd, 2016 when Mike Condon stopped all 24 shots he faced to blank the Panthers 2-0 in Ottawa. Erik Karlsson and Derick Brassard provided the offence for the Sens and helped the team back into the win column after dropping their previous two games.
Full highlights from that game below...
Video: Condon, Senators blank Panthers, 2-0
4. From the coach
On carrying more players in the second half of the season:
I'm a real big believer that hockey is a question of intangibles. For me, it's not about numbers and stats and all that stuff...it's people, relationships, chemistry, leadership and all that so I tend to keep the smallest amount of players because I like to have chemistry which has worked terrifically since the beginning of the year. Now we're at the part of the year where it's all about NHL depth and at any moment someone is going to get hurt or sick again. Instead of bringing a guy up from the American League, we have guys here that are ready to go.
#Sens Head Coach Guy Boucher speaks to media about line-up changes ahead of tonight's game vs. the Panthers. pic.twitter.com/GuUDUffmGp
- Ottawa Senators (@Senators) January 31, 2017
5. Broadcast
We've got ourselves a 7:30 p.m. start in Sunrise tonight and it's another one of those TSN5 and RDS@ nights so tune in for literally the best Sens coverage available.