After what felt like an eternity, the Ottawa Senators returned to NHL action tonight in a contest that saw them allow 53 shots against to the lowly New Jersey Devils. The lack of defensive proficiency led to some highlight-reel saves from Marcus Hogberg, who was the only reason that the Sens were able to earn a loser point in the 4-3 shootout loss.
Here are tonight’s thumbs: Thumbs Up: Marcus Hogberg’s Strong Start I’m running out of superlatives to describe Hogberg’s play this season. He was, once again, phenomenal in the Ottawa crease. It’s true that he will likely regret his lack of rebound control on Kyle Palmieri’s third period goal, but he more than made up for that error with momentous saves throughout the evening. He stopped 50 (!) New Jersey shots on goal, ranging from the routine to the downright dangerous.
Unfortunately, Monday night marked yet another occasion on which his teammates left him out to dry. Hogberg has been so much better than his record would suggest, especially of late:
Marcus Hogberg's SV% in 2020 starts:
— Sens Prospects (@SensProspects) January 28, 2020
929
920
900
952
943
He's 1-0-4 lol
Thumbs Up: Brady Tkachuk’s Monster Night Fresh off his all-star appearance, Tkachuk certainly looked the part against the Devils. He was pesky, he was physical, and he was an offensive threat… the list goes on.
In just less than 15 minutes of five-on-five ice time per Natural Stat Trick, Tkachuk helped the Senators generate 67% of the shot attempts and 61% of the expected goals when he was on the ice. Even considering the strength of the opponent, those are elite numbers. He was rewarded for those efforts with an assist on Tyler Ennis’ first period power play goal.
Guys who can do all that, and this, are valuable commodities in the NHL:
Brady Tkachuk vs. P.K. Subban pic.twitter.com/ofaDxsiXGW
— Brady Trettenero (@BradyTrett) January 28, 2020
Thumbs Up: Baby Steps for Anthony Duclair My last blog discussed Anthony Duclair’s goal scoring slump, and specifically how it’s been much more than *just* a goal scoring slump. For large stretches of Monday’s game, however, reasons for optimism were on display. It’s not that he played his best game as a Senator, or anything close to it for that matter, but he kept his head above water. The eye test lined up with the underlying numbers, as he boasted a 61% on-ice shot attempt share and 59% on-ice expected goal share at five-on-five per Natural Stat Trick.
Those numbers don’t count as pucks in the net, but they do suggest a step in the right direction. The Senators are going to need him to build on this performance if they want to compete in games down the stretch.
Thumbs Up: Losing to the Devils Tonight's loss was a big one in the race for draft lottery odds. The Devils and Senators are now tied with 43 points each, just two ahead of the Los Angeles Kings.
Thumbs Down: Loser Points It would have been nice to give up two to New Jersey, but one will have to suffice.
Thumbs Up: Mark Borowiecki’s In-Game Return I’m not a big intangibles guy, but seeing Mark Borowiecki return to the ice almost immediately after taking a high stick close to the eye had me fired up. He wasn’t going to win many beauty pageants with noticeable bloodstains on his face, but you can bet that his teammates were thrilled to see him back out on the ice, happy and healthy. The result could have been a lot worse. Thumbs Up: New Jersey’s Power Play This is a “thumbs up… for the Senators, as they managed to score two shorthanded goals on the same New Jersey power play in the third period. Those tallies turned a 2-1 deficit into a 3-2 lead, courtesy of Vlad Namestnikov and Chris Tierney.
For the Senators, those are nice names to see on the scoreboard as the trade deadline approaches. It’s possible that one or both of them could be moved for futures. The better they play here over the next month or so, the more likely it is that Ottawa will be able to pull the trigger on a deal that makes sense.
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The Senators have no time to rest after this loss, as they are scheduled to take on the Buffalo Sabres tomorrow night. The Sabres have once again fallen off pace from the playoff-bound pack, but still boast enough weapons to pose a challenge to the Sens. That’ll be especially true on the second night of a back-to-back.
As always, thanks for reading.