The Ottawa Senators will get a chance to rebound from Tuesday’s 7-3 loss in Chicago on Thursday night when the 2-8-1 Calgary Flames come to town.
Before the loss to the Blackhawks, Ottawa had won three straight. The Sens will draw on reinforcements to the lineup — in the form of Kurtis MacDermid and Jordan Spence — in an effort to get back to their winning ways.
“I’m always going to try and bring the offensive game, but I just want to be solid defensively,” said Spence when asked what he’s looking to bring back to the lineup after spending five games out of it.
“Just make the simple play, give the puck to the forwards as fast as possible, and obviously if I’m in the offensive zone, I’ll try to take the opportunity and try to score or make plays, that’s what I’m going to try and bring tonight.”
The Flames are a team that Spence is familiar with, with his former Los Angeles Kings being divisional rivals with Calgary. “They’re going to be hungry to win a game,” said Spence.
Those who spoke after practice Thursday morning all touched on a similar sentiment of an opponent looking to make up for a slow start.
“I don’t think their game totally reflects how they’re playing,” said Travis Green. “I’m expecting a very hard game tonight, a team that’s going to play with a lot of desperation. I think they do, in general. I think they’re a hard-working team, a close group. We’re going to have to be ready to play tonight.”
“They had a tight one the other night against Toronto, so we expect a good one tonight,” said Drake Batherson, who echoed Green’s view of the Flames being a hard-working team.
