Ottawa Senators Postgame: Sens Overcome Sleepy Start, Win 2-1

Another day, another game, another win! After the thrilling 6-5 shootout win by the Ottawa Senators yesterday, today’s game against the New Jersey Devils wasn’t nearly as exciting, but the Sens were able to come away with the crucial two points. The Senators certainly looked tired to start the game, but Anton Forsberg kept them in it long enough for the rest of the players to find their legs as the game went on. Let’s dive into the details!

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Forsberg’s Strong Showing

Let’s face it, Forsberg needed a game like this to work his way back into the Senators plans. Linus Ullmark is looking to return soon, and Leevi Merilainen has been playing great.  If Forsberg had another poor start, he very well could’ve been the odd man out in the Senators goalie group. It’s tough to say what will happen when Ullmark returns, but Forsberg earned back some trust with his great game today. He made 26 saves with 16 of those coming in the first period as the Senators were badly outplayed. His .962 save percentage is his highest in a game since his shutout against the Kraken in early November.

Ostapchuk’s First Career Goal

In his 39th NHL game, Zack Ostapchuk was finally able to score his first goal! For the most part, Ostapchuk has been competent fourth line player. He works hard, plays physical, and he’s responsible defensively. Inevitably, though, when you’re a forward who’s not scoring goals, you might find yourself out of the lineup. That makes this goal a big one for Ostapchuk, who has seen extremely limited minutes recently. It was also a big one in the game, with the Senators struggling to create any type of offense to that point.

Additional Notes

For as sleepy as the Ottawa Senators started this game, they did a great job closing it out. They limited the Devils to just three shots in the third period. The entire team showed a commitment to the defensive side of the ice, including Drake Batherson. While he hasn’t been good enough offensively lately, Travis Green has given him important defensive opportunities, like closing out the game with the Devils trying to score the equalizer. He made a strong defensive play to finish this game off.

One guy who did not have his legs tonight was Tkachuk. He’s now been held pointless for seven straight games. Having Zub back has been huge for this team. Sanderson’s playing a whole lot better with Zub as his partner, and Zub will always remind you that he has more offensive ability than you might think. Of course, that was shown today in the form of the game winning goal.