Hoffman one-timed a pass from Erik Karlsson, who had two assists.
"Karlsson shot the puck a lot today and I thought he was going to try and go through the legs there and shoot it," Lehner said. "And Hoffman didn't seem like a threat; he was at a bad angle. Good pass, good one-timer, I want to try and get there though. It was tough."
Brassard tied the game 2-2 with 31 seconds left in the third period off a pass from Gaborik, who was acquired by Ottawa on Tuesday in a four-player trade that sent defenseman Dion Phaneuf to the Los Angeles Kings.
"Everybody knows what he's been in the NHL," Senators coach Guy Boucher said of Gaborik. "He got the opportunity to play with good players like Duchene, who's been on fire for a long time now, and [Hoffman]. I think those guys have done a good job together.
"I really like the fact that at the end, he made a big difference on a really smart play. Not a lot of guys would've had the poise there to dish it to [Brassard]. There's a lot of experience there, so we definitely benefited from his experience tonight and we're looking forward to more of it, for sure."
Gaborik deflected a point shot from Karlsson past a screened Lehner to tie it 1-1 at 5:15 of the third.
