Ottawa Senators Postgame: Sens Fall to the Ducks in a Shootout

The Ottawa Senators lost their first shootout of the season, falling 4-3 to the Anaheim Ducks. Let’s face it, the shootout is a crapshoot; there’s a reason the NHL made the move to three on three in overtime, with the hope of having less games end in the shootout. Nonetheless, this made it back to back losses for the Senators this weekend, as they finished their California road trip with a mediocre 1-1-1 record. Let’s dive into the details.

READ MORE: Looking Into the Incredible Start From Adam Gaudette

Big Game From Brady Tkachuk

There have been some shenanigans lately about a part of the fanbase getting on Tkachuk. Travis Green even felt the need to defend his captain a few days back.  First of all, you can expect fans to show frustration or anger when a team loses as much as the Senators have over the last several years. As great as Tkachuk has been, he’s not above criticism. Having said that, Ottawa Senators fans realize how valuable he is. Could he work on his defensive game? Absolutely, but most of his teammates have the same defensive zone issues.

Anyway, he was fantastic tonight. He had another ridiculous box score statline: 19:11 time on ice, two goals, and 12 shots,  which ties his career high. Oh, and he hit the post, too. He’s now on pace for over 40 goals and over 90 points, all while continuing to be one of the most physical players in the league.

Bad Penalties, Bad Penalty Kill

After finishing last season with the fourth worst penalty kill in the league, the hope was for the new coaching staff to help fix that. The new goalie was supposed to help, too. So far, it’s another year of shaky penalty killing. Tonight, it was Vatrano scoring from the high slot on the Ducks first power play of the game. The Ottawa Senators have now given up a goal on the penalty kill in five straight games. They have a bottom 10 unit in the league, at around 76%.

One potential solution is to try to avoid the penalty kill altogether. That’s not exactly realistic, every team takes their share of penalties. It’s the type of penalties the Senators took in this one that bothered me. Noah Gregor took a tripping penalty all the way down in the Ducks zone. Ridly Greig took a silly roughing penalty that was easily avoidable. Last night was even worse, with the Senators getting called for two too many man penalties. Those types of penalties paired with a mediocre penalty kill is a recipe for disaster.

Additional Notes

Nick Cousins had himself a great game. There’s a reason Travis Green gave him more minutes tonight than any game in November. From the greasy goal to tie it at three, to the big hit of Radko Gudas, and then the willingness to drop the gloves right after that big hit. That’s the type of fire he needs to play with. I think Steve Staios needs to actively be looking for defensive help. Zub’s hurt, Hamonic is being way overplayed, and Kleven has been struggling lately. Since returning from injury, Shane Pinto has been held pointless in 10 straight games. He’s been way too quiet in most of those games. Looking ahead, the Senators have a very winnable stretch of games coming up. They’re also out of November, a month that has ruined them for years now. Thursday’s game against the Detroit Red Wings will be a big one.