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Hello, Toronto: Ottawa Sinks Buffalo, Grabs Piece of Second Place

December 20, 2011, 10:10 PM ET [ Comments]
Travis Yost
Ottawa Senators Blogger • RSSArchiveCONTACT
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The Ottawa Senators weren't ever expected to be a factor in the playoff race, but after their latest 4-1 victory over the Buffalo Sabres on Tuesday night and subsequent jump into the (temporary) playoff picture, teams around the league will be forced to take them seriously.

For the majority of the night at Scotiabank Place, the Ottawa Senators looked very much the team that had bought numerous assets in order to chase down a playoff spot in the off-season. The Buffalo Sabres, on the other hand, looked like a dejected team stuck in rebuilding mode, and I'd be lying if I didn't think that they didn't lay down on the road tonight.

The irony, of course, is that the script is reversed. For whatever reason, Paul MacLean's coaching has inspired this team to bust it on every single night. Lindy Ruff's boys - as banged up as they are - have not responded in a similar manner.

Ottawa jumped on the board first with a goal from Zack Smith, beating Ryan Miller on some dirty work right outside of the crease. Honestly, I didn't need to write a post-game blog to tell you that Zack Smith played a pivotal role in tonight's game, but I just include this tidbit for some sort of self-gratification.

Buffalo's lone goal did even up the game at 1-1 when Jordan Leopold beat Craig Anderson on the power play, but that'd be it in terms of offense for a Sabres team that failed to generate much offensive zone time all night. Credit to Ottawa for bottling up the attack.

The Senators and Sabres moved into the third locked at one, but a barrage of late game scoring - coming from the hands of Erik Condra(2x) and Erik Karlsson pushed the final margin to three. It's probably worth noting that Condra's first tally came on some beautiful two-man work with Kyle Turris, who earned his first point as an Ottawa Senators with the assist.

Said Turris of the play:

"It's just something to build off. But come Thursday, I'll be ready to go with a bit better timing."


Said Turris of his first game with the club:

“I can be a lot better. It felt really good. I’d like to thank everybody for the support. It felt like home.”


You can break this game down a million ways, but there's one undeniable truth stemming from tonight's performance. One team was hungry; one team was not. One team wanted this game; one team was not. One team is angling for the playoffs; one team looks like they're limping to the finish line.

As mentioned previously, the aforementioned was supposed to write the story of playoff-bound Buffalo and cellar-dweller Ottawa, but the story has played out in the complete opposite manner as we near the halfway mark of the regular season. Bizarre? Maybe. Regardless, it's a welcomed change for an Ottawa fan base that was subjected to some piss-poor hockey all season long just one year ago.

With the win, the Ottawa Senators jump into a tie for second-place with the Toronto Maple Leafs, and also sit inside of the top-eight of the Eastern Conference. Could the fans ask for anything more right now?

On the other end, the Buffalo Sabres are far from out of it - in fact, after all of what I've said, they're just one point back of the Ottawa Senators. Yet, it's expectations that have forced the altered viewing of the performance from both teams, and the fans in the B-Lo are growing restless of the mediocre hockey.

Buffalo's invested a lot of time and money over the past year in order to groom this club for a deep playoff run. Hopefully for the Sabres sake, the return of some bodies from various injuries will right the ship.

If not? Well, I wouldn't want to be Lindy Ruff.

Quick note: Jesse Winchester left the game with the dreaded 'UBI', and after the game, was diagnosed with a concussion. Just remember, folks - it's not an issue because these injuries weren't diagnosed/treated properly twenty years ago.

Before you ask, yes, that's entirely sarcastic. Get well soon, Jesse.

Post-Game Grades


Mike Johnson, color analyst for TSN: F.

And now, I'm done.

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