UPDATE: Mike Hoffman will play in place of Erik Condra. The rest of the lineup remains the same with Lehner getting the start in goal.
The Ottawa Senators put their 3 game winning streak on the line Saturday night when the host the Columbus Blue Jackets at Canadian Tire Centre.
While it would be hyperbole to call the 5th game of an 82 game season a "must win" and it is still much too early to be watching the standings, this is the type of game that the Senators not only should, but need to win in order to solidify their playoff hopes:
a) a home game; b) against an incumbent playoff team that the Senators could very well be competing against for a wild card spot in 6 months time; c) who played the previous night and had to travel to this game, even if it is only a couple of hours
It is also the type of game the Senators, especially last season, came out flat in and it put them behind the 8 ball all too often and resulted in their missing the playoffs.
The Blue Jackets are coming off a 3-2 win over the Flames on Friday night, a game where they had a 3-0 lead before the midway point and had to hang on to win.
The Senators are coming off a strong 3rd period that was enough to allow them to come back with a 5-3 win over the Avalanche. If they can build on that period they will be in good shape, but despite the three game winning streak the Senators still have a lot of room for improvement, which is a good thing.
The way the team lined up for practice yesterday, there will be no changes to the forward or the defense lines, but Paul MacLean did confirm that Robin Lehner would start in net in place of Craig Anderson.
The Blue Jackets are led offensively by Ryan Johansen, who despite missing training camp while battling with management over a contract extension, has 3 goals and 3 assists in 4 games this season. He has a shooting percentage of 50%, with his 3 goals coming on just 6 shots.
Sergei Bobrovsky has played every minute so far for Columbus, but after facing 31 shots on Friday night there is a chance that the Senators could face former Sen Curtis McElhinney on Saturday night, because Bobrovsky can't play every game.
The Senators and Blue Jackets sport identical 3-1-0 records, with the Blue Jackets being slightly more offensive, while the Senators have allowed fewer goals. Their power plays are very close in terms of percentage, with the Blue Jackets 100% penalty kill the best special teams unit between the two games.
The biggest area the Senators need to improve as a club is still getting the puck out of their zone more efficiently and effectively. This sounds like a broken record, but prolonged stretches playing behind their own blue line results in more shot and scoring chances against. Whether it is the defensemen making poor clearing passes, or the forwards not being in the correct spots to receive them, it simply needs to be better.
In terms of individuals, Mika Zibanejad needs to start imposing his will on the game more, and being proactive instead of reactive. With a sniper like Bobby Ryan riding shotgun, he needs to want the puck on his stick and not only look for his own opportunities, but also help Ryan get his. Zibanejad is big, strong and fast enough to be a legitimate #2 centre now, he just needs to get that killer instinct into his game to be more effective. Ryan got on the board finally on Thursday, and hopefully that triggers a hot streak for a guy that can be a very streaky scorer.
In goal, Anderson was great in the second period against the Avalanche, when the Senators were still looking for their game, and gave his team a chance to come back, which they were able to do. Lehner needs to duplicate that performance, and if he can one-up his crease-mate and avoid a 3 goal first period, it will be that much better.
Puck drop is at 7:00 pm and the game can be seen on Sportsnet 1.