The Ottawa Senators played a nearly perfect road game in Anaheim, and Andrew Hammond continued his improbable run making 22 saves for his first career shutout as the Sens beat the powerful Ducks 3-0.
It is probably too little, too late, as far as the playoffs are concerned, but the rookie goalie has provided a spark to the team and the players in front of him seem to have rallied around Hammond in his and the club's current 3 game winning streak.
The complete game was an impressive effort all around, arguably the best effort of the season as the club's first 3 game winning streak since mid-October snapped the Ducks' own 3 game streak.
Once again the goals weren't of the pretty variety, with Eric Gryba's point shot going in off the leg of Erik Condra in the first period, Mika Zibanejad knocking a rebound past John Gibson in the second and Kyle Turris icing the cake with a long empty netter in the dying seconds.
Ottawa refused to sit back even with the 2 goal lead into the third period, and kept the forecheck going and minimizing the chances the Ducks would get on Hammond. That doesn't mean that Hammond didn't earn the goose-egg, as he made a handful of key stops, most notably against Kyle Palmieri on a rebound late in the game, and earlier against Ryan Kesler where the Ducks forward tried to wait Hammond out but the goalie's glove came up big.
The only thing that didn't go right for the Sens was the production on the power play, where they went 0 for 4 with just 5 shots. The Ducks used a high-pressure PK, not allowing the Sens to really get set up.
A couple of nervous moments as Cody Ceci blocked a shot with his right foot and was on the hobble for a while, but he came back to take a regular shift. With just 6 defensemen available on the trip until Minnesota when Jared Cowen's suspension has been served, you hope that once Ceci took his skate off that there was no swelling that would keep him out of tonight's game because....
The Senators will try to make it 4 in a row with a win on back to back nights as they head up the highway to face the red-hot LA Kings. LA has won 8 in a row, and if the Senators still harbor any hope of making a late playoff run, the Kings are the example of exactly what they need to do. The Kings were 5 points out of the playoffs and 6th in the Wild Card race on February 7th, but reeling off 8 in a row has them sitting in 3rd in the Pacific. A playoff spot is far from secured, but they control their own destiny right now.
The Senators are following the Red Wings through California, as the Kings downed the Wings 1-0 on Tuesday night, having also been the previous opponent for the Ducks. They will also follow the Wings into San Jose on Saturday.
It is a tough back-to-back for the Senators, who have to hope the Kings are looking ahead to the rivalry game Friday night against the Ducks and overlook the Sens. The Kings will be bolstered by Andrej Sekera, who should be in the lineup after being acquired by the Kings from the Hurricanes on Wednesday, solidifying the blue line in the extended absence of Slava Voynov.
Even though Jonathan Quick is coming off a 20 save shutout against Detroit, it wouldn't surprise me if Martin Jones got the start against Ottawa and the Kings save Quick for Friday night against the Ducks. You have to figure that the Sens will continue to ride Hammond, and not throw ECHLer Chris Dreidger to the wolves at this point, at least until Craig Anderson is ready to return.
You have to think that Colin Greening might get into the lineup in LA, probably at the expense of Matt Puempel. The kid played his second career game against Anaheim, and really hasn't done a whole lot and for my money was far less impressive once again in a similar role than Shane Prince was last week.
As tough as this back to back is for the players, it is equally tough for the fans back east, with two late nights in a row for those die-hards who are able to watch it live, especially mid-week. Congrats to those who stick it out!