The Ottawa Senators are a more competitive team than a lot of people were giving them credit for earlier this season, as evidenced again tonight with their 5-1 victory over the Calgary Flames. A dominant second period was ultimately enough to push this team over the edge in this game. Here are tonight’s thumbs:
Thumbs Up: Matt Murray’s Goaltending We got the good version of Matt Murray tonight; he stopped 27 of 28 shots fired his way on the road to victory. The Senators needed Murray to be good in the first period particularly, as they didn’t really get their legs under them until the second. Murray stopping 12 of 12 in the opening frame allowed the Senators to turn on the jets and take over the game in the middle period.
Thumbs Up: Drake Batherson Joins the History Books With two goals tonight, Drake Batherson joined the Senators history books by extending his scoring streak to six games. Even if his second of the game and ninth of the season was a bit of a freebie, his opening marker was a goal scorer’s goal; it was also a glimpse into the future for this Senators squad. Assisted by Josh Norris and Tim Stützle, the goal came with a wicked (and patient) wrist shot from the high slot. He’s feeling it right now in almost every facet of the game.
And, Batherson’s company in the history books? It’s good:
Drake Batherson has joined some elite company.#GoSensGo pic.twitter.com/Fyp8gVoP1d
— Ottawa Senators (@Senators) March 2, 2021
Thumbs Up: Two Assists for Stützle Now with five goals and 14 points through 21 games this season, Tim Stützle sits second overall in league rookie scoring. His underwhelming underlying numbers remain a bit of a mystery, but it’s clear that he’s added a dynamic offensive instinct that this team was missing last season.
Thumbs Up: The White Line Rebounds After a rough outing in their last performance, it was a refreshing return to form for the Nick Paul-Colin White-Evgenii Dadonov line this evening. They were back to their usual tricks of maintaining puck possession and keeping the opposition at bay. Their late-game offensive contributions, which included an empty-net goal from White, were just icing on the cake.
Thumbs Up: Artem Zub’s Penalty Killing Work It’s a thankless job, but an important one nonetheless. And, at least by my eye, Artem Zub did it really well this evening. His penalty killing work saw the Flames limited both in terms of passing lanes and shooting opportunities, which resulted in successful seconds killed when he was on the ice. His play for this team has been such a revelation.
--
The Senators will be right back at it tomorrow night against the Montreal Canadiens.
As always, thanks for reading.