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Game Day: Senators @ Sharks - a late night in the Shark tank |
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The Senators venture across the continent to step into the Shark Tank, to face a red hot and well rested Sharks team.
San Jose hasn't played since beating the Montreal Canadiens 2-1 on Dec 2nd, while the Senators played Monday night in Pittsburgh, coming out on the wrong end of an 8-5 track meet and then traveling yesterday.
Craig Anderson and Curtis Lazar didn't take the trip with the team, instead returning to Ottawa, Anderson to be with his family and Lazar injured after a collision along the boards early in the second period. Andrew Hammond and Phil Varone have joined the club and both will be dressed tonight.
The Sharks have won 6 of their last 7 games and are on the verge of overtaking the Oilers for first place in the Pacific Division, trailing McDavid and Co. by a single point having three games in hand. They have done it on the back of being the stingiest defensive team in the league, averaging just over 2 goals against per game (tied for 1st) and 26.2 shots against (2nd in the league). In their last 6 wins they have allowed just 6 goals against, the only blemish being a loss to the Ducks in which they allowed 3 goals. Martin Jones has been the benficiary of a strong team in front of him but has put up elite numbers with a 1.99 GAA and .924 SP
This looks to be a pretty even matchup if you look at their records, with the only difference being Ottawa having an extra game played and being a point ahead based on one extra OT loss. They are currently 8th and 9th in the NHL in terms of point percentage.
The Sharks are led in goals by defenseman Brent Burns (10) and they only have 4 players in double digits for points, compared to Ottawa who has almost double that amount (7).
Mike Condon will start for Ottawa, coming off a shutout in his last start, and mopping up in relief of Anderson for the last 7 minutes in Pittsburgh has stopped the last 26 shots he has faced. He is 3-1-1 in a Senators uniform with 2 shutouts, a 1.73 GAA and .954 SP. Depending on how long Craig Anderson's absence is, Condon has started to put together a streak reminiscent of Hammond a couple of years ago. Maybe they will have to start calling him the Whopper.
It is a 10:30 pm eastern puck drop, so get in a nice pre-game nap and enjoy what should be a tough test of the Senators resilience and bounce-back ability. I don't think the Senators want a repeat of the run and gun game they played in Pittsburgh, even if that game was there for the taking. Boucher will want his team to tighten up and get back to the less exciting but more necessary and successful game of bottling up in their own end and reducing the shots that Condon has to face. If they can do that and continue with solid special teams that they have displayed (aside from the power play against Florida) then it might be a positive reason to stay awake until 1 am even with a 5:30 wake-up call Thursday morning!
Ottawa Senators Blogger • 
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