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Alex Burrows Honoured as Senators Drop 5-2 Decision to Canucks |
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The Ottawa Senators continued their Western Canada road trip in Vancouver last night. While the final score would suggest otherwise, they actually looked fairly good in their matchup against the Canucks. A combination of unlucky deflections and sloppy play in the first period thwarted an ultimately acceptable effort from the Senators, resulting in a 5-2 defeat. Before the team takes to the ice in Edmonton against the Oilers tonight, here are last night’s thumbs:
Thumbs Up: The Entertainment Value
The pre-game blog highlighted that these two teams had the potential to deliver supreme entertainment, and they did exactly that. Even with the Sens falling behind big and early, watching the game didn’t feel like a chore. Thomas Chabot, Brady Tkachuk, and Anthony Duclair were all flying. J-G Pageau carried his scorching hot November into December. Young Canucks like Elias Pettersson and Quinn Hughes were just as good as advertised. The combination of those things, among others, made staying up late worth it.
Thumbs Up: Alex Burrows and the Ring of Honour
Alex Burrows may not go down in history as a particularly great Ottawa Senator, but it was still really neat to see his name and number go up in Vancouver’s Ring of Honour in front of the only two NHL teams he played for in his career. His time in Ottawa was relatively short, but who can forget the instant impact he had after being acquired?
Last night’s ceremony was a well-deserved recognition for a player who delivered so many monumental memories in Vancouver’s hockey history. Whether he was snapping a losing streak with a big breakaway goal or slaying the dragon in a Game 7, Burrows always seemed to have a knack for showing up when it counted most.
Thumbs Down: Erik Brannstrom
As mentioned, the Senators actually played pretty well after the first period on Tuesday night. The difference between winning and losing was that initial frame and the early turnovers that occurred within it. Brannstrom, for his part, got the turnover party started with a play that just can’t happen at the NHL level:
It’s not that one turnover is the reason Brannstrom should probably be playing in the AHL right now, but that single giveaway is indicative of the larger issue. Brannstrom is a prized prospect within Ottawa’s system, and he’s looked lost on too many nights and occasions this season. He should be playing major minutes down in Belleville, gaining confidence and getting used to the North American ice surface. He can be a huge part of this team’s rise to prominence; the organization just has to be comfortable with the fact that said rise isn’t going to happen today. Let him develop properly such that a Cody Ceci v2.0 situation is avoided. Mark Stone was too high of a price to pay for that.
Thumbs Up: J-G Pageau, Scoring Machine
Make it 15!
Thumbs Down: Anders Nilsson
Nilsson wasn’t particularly good when he played for the Vancouver Canucks, but he’s been great for the Ottawa Senators. The common denominator between Nilsson and bad play is quite clearly anything and everything to do with Vancouver. The Senators allowed just over one expected goal in all situations during the first period of last night’s game, but walked into the intermission facing a 4-0 deficit. Sure, there were deflections and defensive breakdowns, but the Sens needed their goalie to make the big save or two that he’s been making for them all year. It didn’t happen.
Marcus Hogberg entered the game in relief, and once again turned in a nice performance to close out the game. His rebound control looked better than it did against the Calgary Flames, and he kept the Senators in it as they were looking to claw their way back into the game.
Thumbs Up: Tkachuk and Duclair
How good did Brady Tkachuk and Anthony Duclair look last night? Exceptionally good. Forming a line with Pageau, the two helped the Senators control 65% of the shot attempts and generate 78% of the expected goals at five-on-five when their line was on the ice, as per Natural Stat Trick. They were dominant, they were all over the Canucks, and they looked like a bona fide first line.
Thumbs Down: The Offside Challenge Rule
It's the equivalent of challenging balls and strikes. Get rid of it.
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The Senators are right back in action tonight, taking on Connor McDavid and the Oilers at Rogers Place. Playing in the second half of a road back-to-back, Ottawa will need to pay particular attention to McDavid and Leon Draisaitl if they want to have any chance at winning this hockey game. That might be tough with tired legs.
As always, thanks for reading.
Ottawa Senators Blogger • 
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