GAMEDAY 5: Senators vs. Devils, Feb. 7
The set-up
The Sens (14-22-4) dropped a 4-1 decision to the New York Islanders Feb. 1 in their final game before the break.
New Jersey (15-25-5) have lost six straight dating back to Jan. 23. In their last outing, they were beaten 7-1 on home ice by Toronto on Feb. 1.
The Sens power play has scored just twice over its past eight games and without Drake Batherson and Josh Norris in the lineup, Sens head coach D.J. Smith has been tinkering with his units. The team's penalty kill continues to shine though, and despite giving up a power play goal against the Islanders, they have the third best penalty kill in 2022 at 88.3 per cent.
Both teams have had difficulty scoring recently with the Senators burying seven goals in its last four games while the Devils have one more goal over the same stretch. However, the Devils concede the most first period goals in the NHL with 54 while the Sens' 31 third period goals are the fewest in the league.
Eleven of Ottawa's 14 wins this year have come when they score first while a third of the Devils victory's have come in overtime or a shootout.
The Devils have lost six straight road games and have not won away from the Prudential Center since a 4-3 overtime win over Washington on Jan. 2. Ottawa is 7-11-1 at Canadian Tire Centre.
Roster notes
The Sens remain with Batherson and Norris but reinforcements are on the way as Connor Brown, Dylan Gambrell and Nikita Zaitsev are extremely close to a return.
Smith wouldn't confirm their involvement this morning but all three have been skating with the team. Smith confirmed that Matt Murray, who is 4-0-2 with a 1.95 GAA and .939 save percentage over his last six starts, will get the nod in goal.
Furthermore, Ottawa recalled Mark Kastelic from Belleville this morning. The Arizona native, who made his NHL debut Jan. 29, had a goal in three games with Belleville during the NHL All-Star break. He is pointless in three career NHL games thus far.
Previous history
Tonight marks the 101st all-time meeting between the two teams. Ottawa is 37-44-15 with five ties over the first 100 meetings and on home ice have won 19 of the 50 contests.
Ottawa won 3-2 in overtime in New Jersey on Dec. 6 as Batherson and Brady Tkachuk each had a goal and an assist.
Thomas Chabot has two goals and seven points in eight career games against New Jersey while Nicholas Paul has three points and a +4 rating in four games.
The two teams will meet again April 26 in Ottawa.
Who to watch
Tkachuk comes off his second career NHL All-Star appearance riding a two-game point streak where he notched three points (all assists).
The Senators captain has 12 goals and 30 points in 37 games this year although he has gone 14 games without a goal. Tkachuk's 30 points ranks second on the team.
He also leads the team in faceoff percentage (54.6%), hits (130) and shots (132).
Where to watch
Monday's game can be seen live on Sportsnet ONE and RDS at 7 p.m. Fans can also tune into the radio call on TSN 1200 and Unique FM 94,5.
