UPDATE: The Senators have informed Curtis Lazar that he will be remaining with the team past the 10 game mark, and for the foreseeable future. He will play his 10th game tomorrow night at home against the Wild, knocking the first year off his entry level deal. The next milestone for the young forward will be the 40 game mark, at which point this will count as a year of service toward unrestricted free agency.
Lazar has 3 assists in his first 9 games, but has found chemistry on the "Kid Line" with Mark Stone and Mike Hoffman over the last few games. The line has been insrumental in providing a spark for the team since it has been assembled.
--- Craig Anderson made 31 saves, including a game saving 2 pad stack to rob Tomas Jurco in the third period to help the Senators beat the Red Wings 3-1. Erik Karlsson opened the scoring on a second period power play, Patrick Wiercioch had the winner with just over 5 minutes left in the third and Clarke MacArthur sealed the deal with an empty netter in the last minute as the Senators broke their two game losing skid. Here are some random thoughts on the game
* He isn't an all-star yet, but Jared Cowen is improving with every game and the Cowen-bashing seems to have died down at least for the moment. He was really solid against the Wings in his 17 minutes. I am glad they were able to kill off the holding penalty he took in the dying minutes because he didn't deserve to be wearing the goat horns and that was such a weak call in the neutral zone to begin with.
* The only reason the game was close entering the second period was the goaltending of Jimmy Howard in the first 20 minutes. Ottawa outshot the Wings 16-2 in the first, and the scoreless tie was flattering to the Wings. Most notably the toe save off Bobby Ryan was really outstanding.
* It was a little scary even after doiminating the first, because you knew that Detroit was going to come out with some fight in the second. I was worried when the first ended scoreless, because the Senators had dominated and didn't have anything to show for it and that can sometimes come back to bite you.
* Sure enough, Detroit dominated the first half of the second, but it was the goaltending of Anderson and a shift by the kid line of Lazar, Hoffman and Stone just before the midway point of the middle frame that sort of got Ottawa back into the flow of the game. They buzzed the offensive zone for about 45 straight seconds and had multiple scoring chances. That shift got the Senators some momentum and the team ended up drawing a penalty a bit later and drew first blood on the power play.
*Karlsson's point shot on that first Ottawa power play of the period was a simple shot that he got through traffic and caught Howard looking the wrong way. It seems easy but those quick snap shots are rarely used on the power play by a lot of teams, and are often the most effective because with a little bit of traffic the goalie doesn't know when to expect the shot because he can't see the big windup.
* I noticed in the second period on a defensive zone faceoff that Mika Zibanejad flipped his stick and took the draw backwards. I thought I was seeing things, but then TSN caught the move on a neutral zone faceoff in the third. Interesting strategy that I haven't seen too many players do before. I guess if baseball players can switch hit, Zibanejad can switch faceoff, but he was less than 40% in the circle on the night, so maybe he should focus on winning with his strong side rather than switch-drawing.
* Kyle Turris has been absolutely snakebit of late. A lot was made of the "great save" Howard made on Turris' shorthanded breakaway, but Howard didn't have to do anything. Turris put it right into the goalie's glove, and it never moved. Add to that the controversial goal that was waved off minutes earlier because Howard was bowled over by his own defenseman. Replays showed the referee looked over once , decided not to blow the whistle when he was down, and then waved off the goal after Turris put it top shelf about a second later. Then the hat trick of frustration for Turris came on a 2 on 0 (where the goalie actually decided not to knock the net off on his own), where MacArthur set up Turris for a wide open net, but he double clutched and allowed Pavel Datsyuk time to get his stick in the way and deflect it wide.
* Alex Chiasson missed the game after blocking a shot against Boston. He took the warmup but couldn't go and Erik Condra took his spot on the second? line. He was very "Erik Condra" - worked hard but didn't really get much accomplished. I think given some time to plan, the lines might have been shifted and a better alignment set up, with Condra moving to a 4th line.
* Speaking of alignment, does anyone else think Bobby Ryan, the seven million dollar man, is a third wheel on the top line? I thought the same thing last season when Turris and MacArthur were wheeling and dealing, but then it was revealed Ryan was hurt for most of the second half. But that has continued this season, and you can play pretty much anyone with Turris and Mac and they will continue. Finding Ryan a spot to play where he can contribute more will be a key to success for Paul MacLean and the team going forward. Turris-MacArthur-Ryan works but Ryan could and should be doing more. I am just not exactly sure where that is right now. It seems to be tougher to find a spot for Ryan than it is to find a partner for Karlsson.
* David Legwand continues to do a lot of the heavy lifting for the Senators. Saddled with Zack Smith and Chris Neil, he isn't going to generate a lot of offense 5 on 5, but he continues to impress me with his overall play and doing many of the little things right. A solid signing by Bryan Murray and the Senators, he can be an example for the likes of Zibanejad and Lazar, and even Turris as well.
* On a night that was tough on the pack in the Eastern Conference, this was a big two points to get. Montreal, Toronto, Columbus, New Jersey and (obviously) Detroit all lost in regulation and Washington and Florida fell in overtime. Many of those teams will be in the battle for the Wild Card and although it is still early, it was a good night all around for the Sens.
Eight is not Enough on the Blue Line
Chris Phillips missed the third period with an undisclosed injury, and if he can't go on Thursday (and if Mark Borowiecki is still out), the Senators will have to make their first call of the season to Binghamton. Three blueliners on the shelf at once shows why depth is important, and although carrying 8 (when healthy) is tough, you also don't want to just give a player away for the sake of getting to 7.
It could be Chris Wideman, who was just named the AHL Player of the Month for October. It might also be Frederik Claesson or even veteran Aaron Johnson, but the Senators have committed to rewarding success, and Wideman is obviously stepping up early on this season. If Phillips can't go, the Senators blue line will instantly become super-young, with Eric Gryba being the elder statesman at just 26. It will also put Cowen back into the spotlight with even more pressure to continue to get better, as he would get even more important minutes.