The Senators will be hungry for a win tonight, having lost their past two games. Most recently, they fell to the St. Louis Blues by a score of 4-0 on Friday.
Following two lengthy road trips while Canadian Tire Centre played host to the World Junior Championships, the Senators returned home to practice at the Sensplex yesterday.
Defenceman Jacob Bernard-Docker went down with an injury during yesterday’s practice and will be unavailable to the Senators for tonight’s’ game. Following Travis Hamonic’s injury sustained during the team’s game against St. Louis, he will also be unavailable tonight.
The Senators made two roster moves yesterday, when the team recalled forward Jan Jenik and defenceman Nikolas Matinpalo from the team’s AHL affiliate in Belleville. Matinpalo recently played with the Senators on December 29 in the team’s 3-1 win over the Minnesota Wild. Matinpalo has skated in 24 games with the Belleville Senators this season, during which he has recorded two goals and six assists for eight points. Jan Jenik has played in 13 games with Belleville this season, during which he has tallied four goals and three assists for a total of seven points.
Additionally, the Senators made one more roster move this morning as the team recalled defenceman Max Guenette from the Belleville Senators. In 27 games with Belleville this season, Guenette has recorded nine points in the form of three goals and six assists. He ranks third in points on the team amongst defencemen.
The Detroit Red Wings enter tonight’s game red hot, as the team is currently riding a four-game winning streak. Most recently, they defeated the Winnipeg Jets by a score of 4-2 on Saturday.
In their previous meeting with the Red Wings, at home on December 5, the Senators came away with a 2-1 victory. Josh Norris scored twice for the Senators while Linus Ullmark made 19 saves for a .950% save percentage.
Just as they will play each other four times this season, the Senators and Red Wings faced off on four occasions over the 2023-24 campaign. The Senators won the season series 3-1, which included a 5-4 overtime victory in Stockholm, Sweden as part of the NHL’s 2023 Global Series. Forward Tim Stützle scored the overtime winner for the Senators in dramatic fashion when he batted the puck out of midair for the victory.
With a strong rivalry and a hot opponent, the Senators will have their work cut out for them tonight in what promises to be a lively game.
