The Senators capped off 2024 and a successful month of December with a 3-1 win over the Minnesota Wild on Sunday. Despite coming on the second half of a back-to-back, the Senators showed no signs of fatigue as they scored three straight goals for the victory. Ridly Greig, Josh Norris, and Claude Giroux all scored for the Senators. Goaltender Leevi Meriläinen made 30 saves for his second career NHL win.
Tonight will be the first of two meetings between the Senators and Stars this season — and this month. The Stars will come to town on Sunday, January 12, at 5:00 p.m. ET (tickets can be found HERE). Last year, the Senators split their two-game season series against the Stars 1-1.
The Stars come into tonight’s game having won their past two games. Most recently, they defeated the Buffalo Sabres by a score of 4-2. The Senators, on the hunt for their second-straight win, will be looking to stop the Stars from making it three consecutive wins.
All three goaltenders that made the trip with Ottawa (Leevi Meriläinen, Mads Sogaard, and Anton Forsberg) were on the ice for practice this morning. Forsberg has been sidelined with an injury since he was expected to start against the Pittsburgh Penguins on December 14. Defenceman Artem Zub has also resumed practicing with the Senators. Zub has not played since November 23 against the Vancouver Canucks, also sidelined by an injury.
Following this morning’s practice, head coach Travis Green announced that Zub would return to the Senators’ lineup while Anton Forsberg would serve as backup. Leevi Meriläinen will get the start in net tonight.
Pregame availabilities:
