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The Ottawa Senators were not projected to play in an eighty-third game this season, but a wild ride of a regular season has propelled them back into playoff hockey after a one-year hiatus.
Overcoming obstacles posed in the first eighty-two games was difficult. Knocking off the Eastern Conference champions in round one? Call it the ultimate test.
In a classic one-versus-eight draw, the New York Rangers(51-24-7, 109 PTS) will hope to bury the eight-seeded Ottawa Senators(41-31-10, 92 PTS) quickly and quietly. If the regular season series was any indication, though, these two could very well fight to the distance.
Although there was a seventeen point differential between the two in the standings, the Ottawa Senators have to be walking into Madison Square Garden on Thursday night with a bit of confidence. After all, this is a New York team they've beaten in three of four attempts - a far better winning percentage(.166%) than the one they posted against the Boston Bruins, who looked very much like the team's first-round draw up until Saturday night.
Still, Ottawa is quite cognizant of the challenge in front of them. They'll play a New York team that skates as hard as any in the National Hockey League, and they're back-stopped by the venerable Henrik Lundqvist(39-18-5, .930 save percentage, 1.97 GAA), who provides sixty-minutes of frustration for the attack game-in and game-out.
If overcoming obstacles is the theme of the first-round for Paul MacLean's club, conquering Henrik Lundqvist has to be on the top of the list. The guy is quite possibly the best in the business when it comes to goaltending, and although Ottawa remains the only Eastern Conference team with a winning record over him career, his splits long-term v. the Senators - including a .931 save percentage and 2.05 GAA - are scary.
However, for the first time in a long-time, Ottawa is coming into postseason hockey without a giant question mark between the pipes. Craig Anderson(33-22-6, .914 save percentage, 2.84 GAA) has been rock-solid all year for the young club, and appears fully recovered from a hand injury that forced him out of action in March.
The story of Lundqvist v. Anderson will take center-stage for the duration of the series. If New York maintains a giant goaltending advantage and beats Craig Anderson with regularity, Ottawa could be out in a hurry. If Anderson plays well and slims the disparity between the two, the team will have a shot.
If Anderson has one advantage over Lundqvist, it's that he won't be facing the Ottawa Senators attack. Although enigmatic in nature, Ottawa's scoring has been quite productive this season, scoring 3.0 GPG - good for fourth in the National Hockey League. They're led by the franchise cornerstones in Jason Spezza(34G/50A) and Erik Karlsson(19G/59A); both of whom have had fantastic success against New York on the season. Combined in just four games v. the Rangers, Spezza and Karlsson have tallied four goals and seven assists.
To say the least, Lundqvist will have plenty to deal with. But, don't short change the New York offense, which does get the job done. Although the Rangers are a defensive-minded team, the club did finish in the top-half of scoring, and they're led by 41-goal winger Marian Gaborik. Brad Richards(25G/41A) is a serious problem down the middle, too.
Regarding tonight's lineup, there's only a couple of tweaks on the Ottawa end. The Ottawa Senators will roll with Matt Gilroy on the blue line in favor of Matt Carkner, sending the big man upstairs with the likes of Bobby Butler, Rob Klinkhammer, and Zenon Konopka. Kaspars Daugavins will go. The recently-injured Chris Neil is also expected to draw in.
New York's still without both Michael Sauer and Steve Eminger, as both deal with long-term injuries of their own.
The wild ride starts at 7:00 PM ET. Prepare for a war.
Ottawa Senators
Colin Greening - Jason Spezza - Milan Michalek
Nick Foligno - Kyle Turris - Daniel Alfredsson
Zack Smith - Jesse Winchester - Chris Neil
Kaspars Daugavins - JOB - Erik Condra
Filip Kuba - Erik Karlsson
Jared Cowen - Sergei Gonchar
Chris Phillips - Matt Gilroy
New York Rangers
Carl Hagelin - Brad Richards - Marian Gaborik
Artem Anisimov - Derek Stepan - Ryan Callahan
Brandon Dubinsky - Brian Boyle - Ruslan Fedotenko
Mike Rupp - John Mitchell - Brandon Prust
Ryan McDonagh - Dan Girardi
Marc Staal - Anton Stralman
Michael Del Zotto - Stu Bickel
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