The Ottawa Senators dropped their second straight game to open the season on Saturday night, losing 4-1 to the New York Rangers at the Canadian Tire Centre.
While the final score still adds to Ottawa’s “L… column in the standings, this game was much closer than the score suggests and a vast improvement on their performance Wednesday against the Toronto Maple Leafs. Really, this game is exactly the sort of thing the Sens should be looking for this season: They were competitive at 5v5, their young players looked good, and they lost the game. It’s the perfect combination of developing prospects and working to secure a high-end draft pick next June.
With all that in mind, here are my ‘thumbs’ for last night’s game:
Thumbs Up: Bobby Ryan… again Another superb performance from Ryan. Per Natural Stat Trick, he had an expected goal share of nearly 79% at 5v5, and coupled that with a shot attempt share of 72.73% to lead the Senators. He’s driving the bus right now, and being rewarded for it with valuable minutes.
DJ says Bobby Ryan being moved onto the top line is because he has done everything we’ve asked of him and he has elite hockey sense offensively.…
— TSN 1200 (@TSN1200) October 5, 2019
Thumbs Down: Craig Anderson’s Goaltending As mentioned, the Senators were really competitive in this game. They needed their goalie to make key saves at key times, and unfortunately it just didn’t happen. Only able to stop 26 of 30 shots fired his way, Anderson gave the Rangers all the life they needed to turn their performance into a victory. His .875 save percentage and 4.58 goals against average to start this season leave a lot to be desired, even if his workload has been heavy. This team needs more from its veteran netminder.
It might be time to give Anders Nilsson a run of games.
Thumbs Up: Brady Tkachuk is a Force There aren’t many players more valuable to the Senators’ rebuilding efforts than Brady Tkachuk. If his performance on Saturday night specifically, and through two games to start the season, is any indication, he’s going to be an absolute force in the National Hockey League for years to come.
In addition to helping the Senators control north of 60% of the 5v5 shot attempts when he was on the ice, Tkachuk potted his second goal of the season last night:
Brady Tkachuk gets in tight and redirects Chabot's shot past Georgiev!#GoSensGo pic.twitter.com/LFzrxUe5xO
— HD365 (@HockeyDaily365) October 6, 2019
Thumbs Down: Sabourin’s Let Down After scoring his first career NHL goal in his first career NHL game on Wednesday, Scott Sabourin had a bit of a ‘fall back down to earth’ performance on Saturday night. He ranked right near the bottom of the Senators in terms of on-ice shot attempt share and expected goal share. It wasn’t the kind of performance that will keep him in the lineup for very long. Thumbs Up: Roster Moves The team announced this morning that both Drake Batherson and Filip Chlapik have been sent down to Belleville in the American Hockey League:
Roster update: The #Sens have assigned forwards Drake Batherson and Filip Chlapik to Belleville (AHL).
— Sens Communications (@Media_Sens) October 6, 2019
Mise à jour alignement : Les #Sens ont retourné les attaquants Drake Batherson et Filip Chlapik à Belleville (LAH).
On February 18th, 2020 the @Senators will retire Chris Phillips #4.
— TSN 1200 (@TSN1200) October 5, 2019
Extra Bonus Thumbs Up: San Jose’s Struggles The San Jose Sharks look… bad. It’s obviously early going in 2019-20, but they are 0-3-0 out of the gate with two losses to Vegas and a third to Anaheim. The Vegas losses are, for a lack of a better term, excusable; the Golden Knights are a tremendously talented club with Stanley Cup aspirations, after all. The loss to Anaheim, on the other hand, is one that you wouldn’t have expected from the Sharks.
Goaltending is a big weakness for San Jose right now, and if they don’t get it sorted relatively soon they may dig themselves a sizable hole in the standings. That would be great news for Ottawa, as the Senators hold San Jose’s first round pick in the 2020 draft. So, Go [Insert San Jose’s Opponent on Any Given Night] Go!
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The Senators are now off until Thursday, when they will take on the defending Stanley Cup champion St. Louis Blues.
As always, thanks for reading.