Ottawa Senators Postgame: Tim Stützle the Overtime Hero

In a crucial game against a bad hockey team, the Ottawa Senators certainly didn’t make it look easy. They struggled defensively and gave up a third period goal to send this game to overtime. With every point so important right now, someone needed to step up to secure the win. Enter Tim Stützle. Riding a 12 game point streak, Stützle made a good play in the neutral zone, drove the net hard, and ended this game in the Senators favour. Let’s dive into the details.

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Batherson’s Bounce Back Game

It’s been a rough couple of months for Batherson. His scoring has cooled off majorly since partway through December. More recently, his defensive play has been a struggle. Let’s hope tonight was a sign of things to come. Batherson played with confidence, using his size to his advantage and registering two assists, including a beauty on the Josh Norris goal. At times, it’s easy to forget that Batherson is 6’3″, 205 lbs. He also has really good hands. It seems like he sometimes relies more on the hands than the size. When he combines them, like he did tonight, he’s a great player.

Defensive Woes Continue

Make it eight straight games giving up at least three goals for the Ottawa Senators. It certainly didn’t help that Thomas Chabot left the game early with an illness. That caused the likes of Hamonic and Matinpalo to play too much. It was Matinpalo who was dangled by Pat Maroon right before the Blackhawks third goal. The defensive miscues went on all game long, though, and by a number of Senators. Linus Ullmark made a poor choice on the first goal, pushing the puck away from Sanderson, with Ryan Donato converting a couple of seconds later. There was also the Blackhawks power play goal, where the Senators continue to struggle down low.

It’s time to bare down defensively. Go put on the tape of the Florida Panthers game seven win in the Stanley Cup Finals last year. Attention to detail, all hands on deck, and relentless effort are required to win when it matters most. Right now the Ottawa Senators are lacking in those areas.

Additional Notes

It was a bit of a weird game for Sanderson. He scored two assists, but was also on for all three goals against. Nonetheless, what a stretch it’s been for him offensively. Since returning from the 4 Nations Face-Off, he’s scored seven points in five games. Two guys that the Senators need to get scoring both scored tonight- David Perron and Josh Norris. It’ll be interesting to see if Steve Staios is able to add some forward help at the deadline. There are a few very quiet players playing down in the lineup right now.