Remember NHL hockey?

It seems like it has been a long time since the Senators have laced them up, and in fact over the last 12 days, 10 of them have been without games, and the other two were back to back and an ocean away so its time to get back at it.

There are a lot of storylines on both sides of this matchup, which will make up for the lack of action over the past few days.

Ottawa has played the fewest games in the NHL (16, along with 3 other teams) and they will host the Pittsburgh Penguins, who have played 20 games, tied for the most in the league. Both teams will play a league-high 19 sets of back to back games.

This will mark Matt Duchene's Ottawa debut in a Senators jersey following the trade that seems so long ago but also so recent. He has played in the Senators' dark uniform once, but that "home" game came in Stockholm, Sweden.

It will also be the return of Bobby Ryan, who has been out since breaking his finger blocking a shot on October 21st against the Leafs. Mark Borowiecki will also return to the lineup after missing the trip to Sweden.

Ryan has been, at least for the moment given Guy Boucher's propensity to pull numbers out of a hat, paired with Duchene and Ryan Dzingel, while the line of Mark Stone, Derick Brassard and Mike Hoffman remains together.

Chris Wideman, who played some wing as the seventh defenseman during the second game in Colorado, practiced in that role Wednesday on the fourth line.

This will be the first opportunity for the Senators to play against the team that ended their remarkable playoff run and ended their quest for a Stanley Cup Finals appearance in double overtime of game 7.

I don't subscribe to the suggestion that beating the Pens in a November regular season game gets any type of payback or revenge for that loss, but beating the defending Stanley Cup Champs is never a bad thing.

As for the Penguins, they have been scuffling along and perhaps suffering from a bit of a Stanley Cup hangover. They sit third in the Metropolitan Division, but are still within striking distance in a group that demonstrates parity as six points separate first from eighth.

As he did a couple of years ago, Sidney Crosby has struggled (for him) out of the gate, with just 15 points in 20 games. He ended an 11 game goal-less drought in Tuesday's win over Buffalo, but has just 6 goals so far this season, and you can take it for what it is worth he is a -14, second worst in the NHL.

Phil Kessel leads the Penguins in goals (8) assists (16) and obviously points (24).

It is tough to predict what the Senators will look like tonight, as there will be lots of built-in excuses like travel and rust to explain away a bad performance. Hopefully they will not have to use them.


---
I somehow missed it yesterday, but Clarke MacArthur has given indications that he is calling it a career. Pierre Dorion went on radio Tuesday and indicated he believed the winger had moved to Florida and a return was doubtful. He would be open to a return if he got clearance but didn't foresee it happening.

It's a tough call but he got to come back and make a deep playoff run, but once again it is time to focus on his quality of life after hockey and his future.

With MacArthur all but officially done, will the Senators decide to actually use the cap space putting him on LTIR opens up, or will they stand pat. I still see a hole in the top 6, as I don't think Ryan Dzingel finishes enough to fill that role permanently. Ditto Zack Smith, who has 1 goal since March 4th, a stretch of 25 regular season and 19 playoff games. A third line of Smith- Jean-Gabriel Pageau - Dzingel and a fourth line of Tom Pyatt - Nate Thompson - Alex Burrows would make a deep lineup.

Are they approaching the time when a rental might be the answer? Pending UFA Evander Kane, for one, would be a nice fit on the wing if contract talks with Buffalo break down. Now that they have pulled the trigger in Duchene, the clock is ticking on him and Karlsson so they might as well go all-in now.

Join the Discussion: » 13 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