Senators score three straight to beat Wild

If the Ottawa Senators were tired following their game in Winnipeg last night, they didn’t show it. The Senators answered the Minnesota Wild’s opening goal with three of their own to secure a 3-1 victory. Ridly Greig, Josh Norris, and Claude Giroux all scored for the Senators, while goaltender Leevi Meriläinen made 30 saves for the win.

After a largely scoreless first period, the Wild opened the scoring in the game at 17:19 into the first frame. It was Declan Chisholm with his second goal of the season that gave the Wild a 1-0 lead.

Chisholm’s goal was the lone marker of the first period, as the Senators headed into the intermission down by one. After the opening 20 minutes, the two teams were tied 9-9 in shots.

Just into the second period, forward Ridly Greig scored his second goal in as many games to tie the game 1-1. Picking up a loose puck as it bounced out from behind the net, Greig made no mistake burying his fifth goal of the season. Brady Tkachuk and Travis Hamonic both picked up assists on Greig’s goal.

The Senators opened the second period with a strong offensive press to accompany Greig’s goal. Less than four minutes in, the Senators already matched their shot total from the first period.

After their quick goal to open the period, the Senators were held scoreless for the remainder of the second frame. As were the Wild, who faced a barrage of shots from the Senators. Without another goal, the teams headed into the final period tied 1-1.

A pair of back-to-back power play opportunities gave the Senators a push of momentum in the third, and forward Josh Norris buried his 14th goal of the season with the man advantage. Norris’ goal, which came at 12:42 into the third, put the Senators up 2-1 with under eight minutes to play. Jake Sanderson and Drake Batherson each received an assist on the go-ahead goal.

The Wild pulled the goaltender and put the Senators under pressure as they fought to tie the game, but it was no use. With 43 seconds remaining in the game, forward Claude Giroux scored into the empty net from deep within the Senators’ end. It was an individual effort that began with a shot block and ended with a takeaway that gave the Senators a 3-1 lead.

A last-minute push from the Wild saw the Senators stand tall and walk away with a 3-1 victory following three straight goals to counter the Wild’s opener.

Goaltender Leevi Meriläinen turned away 30 of the 31 shots he faced to help the Senators secure the win. The Finnish goaltender recorded a .968% save percentage and a 1.01 goals against average.

The Senators head to Dallas next, where they will take on the Dallas Stars next year — on Thursday, at 8:00 p.m. ET. Tonight’s game marked the Senators’ last in 2024 and was an excellent way to close out the year.

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