The Senators will look to use the good fortune of a new year to turn the page and get back to their winning ways when the Washington Capitals arrive for a New Year’s Day matinee on Thursday afternoon.
“It’s a big one, so it’s an opportunity for us to get off on the right foot,” said Brady Tkachuk after the team practiced on Wednesday morning. “There’s definitely a lot in [the loss to Columbus on Monday] that we’re going to learn from and be better because of it.”
“It’s been pretty good, I think we’ve handled that pretty well just by letting that go and not thinking about it too much,” said Leevi Meriläinen about how the team has regrouped after that loss.
“The next game comes so fast you have to forget. You have to learn from the past games for sure, but just let that go and move on.”
Travis Green described Wednesday’s practice as important as the Senators look to end a three-game losing streak. “Yeah, it was a good practice, lot of good energy, good puck touches, guys were sharp,” said Green. “Did some system play as well.”
Looking ahead, like the Senators have emphasized the past couple of days, spells a familiar opponent for Ottawa. The Senators travelled to Washington in late October and came away with a 7-1 win.
“There’s a lot of time spent in the coach’s room watching tape,” said Green about revisiting that game. “But it’s one game, they played the night before. It’s a long time ago too.”
