Senators top Devils in shootout for third win in row

The Ottawa Senators won their third straight game, 3-2 in a shootout against the New Jersey Devils at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey, on Monday.

"We trailed twice and stayed with it," Ottawa coach D.J. Smith said. "There wasn't a ton of room out there tonight. We stayed disciplined, which was huge. We didn't [allow any power plays]. We played within our systems. And in every guy, you could see some confidence. Earlier in the year, we don't win that game. We would've found a way to make a mistake or guys would've panicked a little bit."
Drake Batherson and Brady Tkachuk each had a goal and an assist, and Anton Forsberg made 22 saves for the Senators (7-15-1).
"[Forsberg] made the saves he had to make," Smith said. "The second [goal], I think, is tipped. [Forsberg] wins three in a row for us, so the guys are obviously playing for him. His work ethic is second to none. And we did a good job of blocking shots and clearing the front of the net as well."

Damon Severson and Nathan Bastian scored, and Mackenzie Blackwood made 21 saves for the Devils (9-9-5), who have lost four in a row (0-3-1) and six of seven (1-4-2).
"We have to focus on what's ahead of us. We have to take the point," New Jersey coach Lindy Ruff said. "Disappointed it's only one point, but again, if you look at zone time, you look at some of the work we did … I thought we got better at trying to get dirty pucks coming off the walls, getting some bad angle shots and getting people there. And sometimes you get rewarded with bounces, and we had a couple near misses off of those. We just didn't take advantage."
Severson scored 35 seconds into the first to give New Jersey a 1-0 lead, beating Forsberg through a screen with a wrist shot from the right point.
"I think we deserved a little better tonight," Severson said. "We played well compared to our last few. Worked hard, battled hard."
Batherson tied it 1-1 at 7:15 of the second with a shot over Blackwood's right shoulder from the left circle.
"I think we're just maturing as a team," Batherson said. "We're [more than] 20 games in now. We know how to play. We've been successful in getting these three wins, and it's huge for our confidence. We're just going to keep rolling."

Bastian put the Devils back in front 2-1 at 8:20 of the second on a redirection of P.K. Subban's point shot.
Tkachuk one-timed a pass from Batherson from behind the net to tie it 2-2 at 12:42. Jesper Bratt and Dougie Hamilton each gave the puck away in New Jersey's zone before Tkachuk tied it.
"We probably have to, when it's 2-1, not make the plays we did," Ruff said. "The puck management part again, where we put the puck, the errant pass by our defenseman, that allowed them that opportunity. It ended up biting us.
"That's probably a game you have to win 2-1."
Tim Stutzle and Josh Norris scored in the shootout for Ottawa. Forsberg stopped Andreas Johnsson to clinch the victory in the third round.
"I thought we played a good road game," Norris said. "A lot of good things. I thought [Forsberg] was great again. Three in a row for him, which is huge. We just did a lot of good things."