By Ken Hawkins (a.k.a. khawk)
There are many ways to win games in the NHL, but rarely is that the outcome when a team is outshot 39-11 on the road, and blows a 2G lead in the 3rd period. However, such was the case in chapter 22 of the Senators’ 2024/25 season, which continues to be defined by relentless inconsistency. Of course, scoring goals on 2 of your first 3 shots makes a big difference, and this is exactly what Adam Gaudette and Josh Norris were able to do. Tyler Kleven then added to the lead in the 2nd period with the first goal of his career, and Adam Gaudette finished it off with a clutch goal late in the 3rd period after San Jose got the score back to 3-3. Bizarrely, Gaudette now has a 35.5% shooting% and is tied for the team-lead with 11 goals, despite his $775K salary and limited ice time (10:26/GP).
OTT 4 - SJS 3 (NHL Game Highlights)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6U2tqH1I478/
Post-game interviews are known for their generic banality, but there were some unexpected comments made after this game like “we knew if we stuck to our game plan it would work out”, and “we out-competed them”. One of the reporters even suggested that “you couldn’t ask for a better start for this road trip”. You couldn't? It’s one thing to steal a game you have no business winning and escape with 2 points, but quite another to misrepresent reality. And the reality is that if this game was replayed 100 times with that level of effort they would probably have lost the next 99 straight. So yes, getting 2pts is better than not getting 2pts, but it was objectively NOT a good start to the road trip... anyone claiming otherwise should be benched for the weekend games on principle.
The Good - Linus Ullmark flat-out stole this game for the Ottawa Senators. His 0.923 s% included 36 saves, and he was basically under siege for the majority of this game. Hopefully, it’s the start of better things for him, as they will need solid goaltending if they’re going to move back up the Atlantic Division standings. Adam Gaudette gets a major nod for his 2G night, which included the always-important first goal and the game-winner. Tim Stutzle and Brady Tkachuk had 3A/2A respectively, and their line certainly led the way offensively. Tyler Kleven also gets a nod for his first career goal, which on this night also came with 1 hit, 2 blocks, and a +1 rating in over 16min played.
The Bad - Outside of the top line, the rest of the Senators team accounted for just 6 shots on goal for the entire game… two of which actually went in, which brings us to MacKenzie Blackwood. He’s actually had a decent start to the year for the Sharks, but allowing 4 goals on just 11 shots is the stuff of goaltender nightmares. Less easy to account for were the 60 minutes of persistent defensive breakdowns by the Senators that allowed the Sharks to hold a 12-4, 12-6, and 15-1 shot advantage across the 3 periods. Virtually every pass in the defensive zone seemed to miss the target, clearing attempts were repeatedly stopped, puck battles were lost all over the ice, and the attention to detail was just nowhere to be found.
The Ugly - You would think that a team with playoff ambitions that just won a big game after a painful 5-game losing streak would be hungry to build on that success. Instead, the Senators came out and made a draft lottery team look like the real playoff contender. On any other night, an effort like this could easily have deteriorated into a STL-game type loss. Even with the win, they somehow looked worse than they did in any of the 5 games they lost during their recent tailspin. It really feels like they’re playing with fire right now in terms of lacklustre performances, and it’s only a matter of time before GM Steve Staios does something about it.
Still, the win does improve the Senators’ record to 10-11-1 on the season - but they remain 1 point behind their pace of 11-11-0 from last season. Their road trip in California will continue with a Saturday night match-up vs. LAK, followed by a back-to-back game vs. ANA on Sunday. Given the performance of Ullmark in this game, you can expect him to start vs. LAK, but we’ll likely see Forsberg play vs. ANA. It’s the first of 6 different pairs of back-to-back games OTT will have between now and Jan. 3rd, due in large part to Ottawa hosting the World Junior Hockey Championships. So quick turn-around games on the road is something they’re going to have to learn to deal with, regardless of who’s in goal.
What did you think of the Senators win vs. the Sharks? Please leave your comments below, and as always thanks for reading!
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