If Guy Boucher wasn't happy with the Senators' performance in Wednesday's 5-2 win in Dallas, he certainly won't be enthralled with what went down in Glendale Thursday night.

However, at this stage of the season, any time you can get two points on the road it is a good result, and Ottawa did that on consecutive nights while not having their "A" game. Playing to the level of your competition is a dangerous game, but one that might serve them well come playoff time when there are no "gimmies" and there is no reason to take a team lightly.

Especially since it looks like it will be just a matter of time before the Senators overtake the Canadiens for first place in the division, now just two points back with two games in hand, and a big 3 game showdown over the course of 8 days starting next Saturday.

Erik Karlsson has done a remarkable job of barging his way back into the Norris debate, which up until the last week or so was essentially a coronation of Brent Burns. Burns is still going to win it without a doubt, and may even win the Hart Trophy as MVP, but the fact Karlsson has clawed his way back in to create at least a bit of conversation is a testament to how much his all around game is finally being noticed.

Karlsson had an assist on Jean-Gabriel Pageau's second period goal and then went on to tie the game to force overtime with a mid-third period goal. For good measure, he picked up a loose puck in overtime and had a breakaway from his own blue line, snapping a shot over the shoulder of Mike Smith to almost single-handedly get the Senators 2 important points.

I say almost single-handedly, because if Karlsson was the reason the Senators won the game, Mike Condon was the reason they had a chance to win the game. Like he has done for most of the season while Craig Anderson was away, Condon was not spectacular but did enough to allow his team to win. The two goals that beat him were of the questionable variety, especially the first one from Brandon Perlini that was almost Nieuwendyk/Lalime-like and had no business going in. You never like to see wraparounds go in, and Lawson Crouse's goal to give the Coyotes their second lead of the game was another one that Condon probably would have liked to have back. As he has done so many times this season it was his penchant to not allow the backbreaker goal that kept his team in it, and kept them in position to come back.

While the Senators gave up a ton of shots for the second straight game, once again the Ottawa goaltending stood strong. This one was closer than the Dallas game, perhaps partially due to the fact that the Coyotes were well rested (3 full days off) while the Senators played the night before.

Pageau scored for the third straight game, and also added an assist as the Senators depth continues to excel and is a big reason why they have now won a season high five straight.

Twenty-eight year old Chris DiDomenico, who finally got to play his first NHL game after being drafted by Toronto in 2007 and grinding it out in the minors and Europe, had a pretty inauspicious debut. He took two minor penalties in the first period, likely a result of too much energy and trying to do too much now that he was finally given a chance to play in the Show. Fortunately for him, Ottawa was able to kill off both penalties successfully and they are now a footnote rather than something that might have been a story had it gone differently. DiDomenico was front and centre for Karlsson's tying goal in the third period, creating havoc in front of Smith and occupying the defenseman while the loose puck found Karlsson on the doorstep.

Ottawa will have a great chance to wrap up the three game road trip with a perfect 6 points with a win in Colorado, even if their performance hasn't been perfect it is hard to argue with the result, and the Senators have now put eight points between themselves and the first team on the outside looking in, currently the Toronto Maple Leafs, and opened a gap of six points over the Bruins, while closing in on the Habs at the same time. Only Calgary's current streak of 8 games, which was extended with a 5-0 win over Montreal to assist the Senators, is longer than Ottawa's current 5 game run.

Join the Discussion: » 10 Comments » Post New Comment

» Goodbye, and good luck!

» Can Colin White fill the #2C role as early as next year?

» Boucher staying put, at least for now

» Boucher Day

» Sens fall to #4 in draft lottery