Brannstrom and Holden pair up
Erik Brannstrom and Nick Holden paired up during Thursday's 5-4 overtime win in Montreal and frankly, were impressive.
But it wasn't actually the first time they've played together. The two skated as a pair during some preseason games with the Vegas Golden Knights in 2018.
"We were joking around when I first got here that 'we're coming back together,'" Holden said. "When we got paired yesterday we were both excited. I thought we did a good job. He's such an elite-skater and puck mover and I thought we gelled well together.
"We tried to be as clean as possible and get some chemistry back from the few games we had played in preseason before."
As for Thursday, Brannstrom played 20:03 while Holden saw 17:36 of ice-time. The Swedish d-man also added an assist.
"When you have a puck-mover and an older guy that's constantly talking to you, it makes the game so much easier," Sens head coach D.J. Smith said. "Our management group did a good job of bringing him in with a young 'D' and certainly when [Holden] played with Brannstrom, Brannstrom played really well, and not taking anything away from him, but an older defenceman sometimes can make you feel more comfortable out there."
Ennis signs one-year deal
Signed to a professional tryout days before training camp opened, Tyler Ennis penned a one-year deal with the Senators Thursday, a day after his 32nd birthday.
Ennis has drawn praise from Smith throughout camp and preseason and the former Senator will now suit up for his second stint in the nation's capital.
"He's an NHL player, been in the league a long time and can create offence," Smith said. "He's a pure confidence player ... I think he's played really well here. He's good on the power play and I believe he can provide us some offence."
In four preseason games, the 26th overall pick in 2008 has one assist, four shots on goal and two penalty minutes. In his first stint with Ottawa, the Edmonton native tallied 14 goals and 33 points in 61 games.
Power play comes to life
In one evening, the Senators power play scored more goals than it had in its previous five preseason games.
The Senators went 2-for-7 Thursday thanks to two Josh Norris goals after going a combined 1-for-20 in its previous five contests.
"It's one thing they've been wanting me to do more is shoot the puck," Norris said. "When Chabot puts it right in my wheelhouse 10 out of 10 times, it's pretty easy when you have a guy like that out there."
The Senators ranked 26th in the NHL last year with a 15.5 power play percentage.
"Just more desperation," Smith said of the team's power play success Thursday. "We really put a lot more time into it this week. We also won faceoffs. You win a faceoff to start the power play, it makes a big difference. You have the puck and don't have to go 200 [feet] every time. We were just a little more dialed in."
