Three Thoughts: Depth scoring and penalty kill highlights win in Sunrise

Simply put, the Ottawa Senators were sensational Tuesday night in Sunrise.

Opening a three-game road trip, the Senators thumped the Florida Panthers 8-2 on the back of an outstanding penalty kill and some depth scoring, as Three Thoughts examines.
Emphatic victory for Sens who have won five of six
Tuesday marked the 18th time in franchise history the Sens have scored eight or more goals in a game.
It was also the first time since April 3, 2008, they had achieved that feat on the road. And they just happened to do it against a Florida team that entered the game 14-1-0 at home.
"There's a real good feeling in that room right now but we have to make sure we stay on the pedal," Sens head coach D.J. Smith said.
Last night's dominant display comes on the heels of the Sens shutting out the two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Tampa Bay Lightning Saturday 4-0. In the Sens' last two games, the team has scored 12 combined goals against two teams that have combined for 36 wins. On the other hand, they've limited the opposition to just two goals, incredibly against a pair of teams that combine for just under seven goals per game.
"I think [confidence] comes from the defensive end of things," Dylan Gambrell said. "We're playing the right way in the D zone and that's leading to our offence overall."
Over the Sens' last six games, they've scored 26 goals and have collected 10 points after wins over the Hurricanes, Avalanche, Devils, Lightning and Panthers with their lone loss coming to the Islanders. The Senators are currently riding a three-game winning streak away from home after consecutive victories over Carolina, New Jersey and Florida. The Sens visit Tampa Bay Thursday.
"We knew starting this road trip that we needed this first one," Nicholas Paul said. "Our team played well, we played together, we played hard, we played the right way and the outcome showed it."
Depth scoring highlighted as Gambrell line contributes
The Senators scored eight goals Tuesday and got it from seven different goalscorers.
Josh Norris had two goals but Gambrell, Paul, Drake Batherson, Tim Stützle, Brady Tkachuk and Austin Watson all found the back of the net in a dominant victory.
Crucially, three of the goals came from the Gambrell, Paul and Watson line.
"That Gambrell line was really good," Smith summed.
The Sens jumped all over the Panthers in the opening six minutes, outshooting the hosts 10-1 and grabbing a 1-0 lead on Watson's second of the season as he banged in a rebound after Spencer Knight couldn't handle Paul's tip off of Thomas Chabot's point shot. Watson would also set a career high with six shots during Tuesday's contest, five of which came in the opening frame.
"We knew that they had a tough trip coming back from Colorado that they might be a little slow out the gate so we wanted to jump real hard on them and we did," Smith said.
Gambrell grabbed his first goal with the Sens 90 seconds into the second period as he scored short-handed on a breakaway to give Ottawa a 2-1 lead. He became the eighth player in franchise history to score his first goal with the team short-handed and the first in more than a decade after Zach Smith on Jan. 16, 2010.
Paul would complete the scoring for the Sens as he scored the team's eighth goal during a 5-on-3 power play.
"We're a line that can matchup with anyone," Paul said. "We're going to play the same way. We're going to be really hard in the o-zone, grinding them, forechecking them and in the d-zone we're going to be very detailed, make sure they don't give up a lot of shots against and be that energy line.
"Whatever we need whether it's a big hit, shots on net, good cycles, we're going to try and do it."
Penalty kill shines as power play converts again
The Senators haven't conceded a power play goal in four games now but Tuesday really highlighted their improvements in that category.
Short-handed six times, the Sens never bent, killing off every penalty against a dangerous Florida power play unit.
"We've been putting a good emphasis on that and it's been building in the right direction the past few games and it showed tonight," Gambrell said, who played 2:54 on the penalty kill.
Just three of Anton Forsberg's 33 saves Tuesday came on the penalty kill highlighting the Sens' exceptional effort in that department.
"Special teams has been really good," Smith said. "We've found a little bit of a rhythm there with some units … it certainly helped us here tonight."
Entering the team's game against New jersey on Dec. 6, the Sens penalty kill was working at a 72.9 per cent success rate. After Tuesday, that percentage has now jumped to 77.1.
"We've been working on that a lot," Paul said of the team's short-handed work. "For the kill to come up big and kill off some penalties that are much needed and keep us in the game, it means everything.
"I think the kill has been doing a really good job and it's been a good turning point in our game."
The Sens also got offensive special teams too with a pair of 5-on-3 power play goals late in the third courtesy of Tkachuk and Paul. The Sens now have five power play goals in its last three games.
"We knew that once we got a couple of wins under our belt that we'd get this thing rolling," Paul said. "Right now we're focusing on playing as a team, playing the right way and detailed hockey."