northernlou
Idi Admin
Preview: Montreal at Ottawa
7:00 PM ET, Saturday, March 19, 2016
Canadian Tire Centre, Ottawa, Ontario
The Ottawa Senators could not afford a misstep in their pursuit of a postseason berth, which is why a loss at Buffalo on Friday was a devastating blow to their already slim hopes. The Senators, who are seven points out of the second wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference, attempt to bounce back against the visiting Montreal Canadiens on Saturday.
Ottawa faces a number of hurdles in its attempt to catch Detroit, which has one game in hand. The Senators also are six points behind ninth-place Philadelphia - which has played two fewer games - and eight of their last 10 opponents either occupy a postseason berth or are contending for one. Alex Galchenyuk has been one of the few bright spots for Montreal, scoring 12 times in the last 11 games to boost his career-best total to 26 goals. The Canadiens have won two of their three meetings with Ottawa this season and will pull into a tie with the Senators with a victory on Saturday.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, Sportsnet, TVA
ABOUT THE CANADIENS (33-32-6): Montreal has been rocked by injuries all season, and the latest casualty is defenseman Mark Barberio, who will be sidelined indefinitely due to a concussion sustained in Wednesday's game versus Buffalo. “It’s unbelievable. It’s really weird," Galchenyuk told reporters. "It’s been a tough year, a lot of adversity, obviously, with the injuries." All-Star blue-liner P.K. Subban, who has been sidelined three games with a neck injury, skated prior to Friday's practice but already has been ruled out for both weekend contests.
ABOUT THE SENATORS (33-31-8): Ottawa lost for the sixth time in nine games (3-4-2) this month, and its power play has been one of the culprits in the slide, failing to convert on 21 consecutive opportunities over the last eight contests - including four against the Sabres. Mike Hoffman assisted on the team's lone goal Friday to establish a career high of 48 points but remains one tally shy of matching his personal-best total of 27 from last season. Mika Zibanejad also assisted on Alex Chiasson's goal to run his point streak to three games.
OVERTIME
1. Montreal is 2-for-28 on the power play over its last 10 games.
2. Senators captain - and leading scorer - Erik Karlsson has been held off the scoresheet in all three matchups with Montreal this season.
3. Canadiens G Ben Scrivens will get a second straight start while rookie Mike Condon is slotted to face Calgary on Sunday.
Trends
Canadiens are 5-1 in their last 6 vs. Eastern Conference.
Road team is 4-1 in the last 5 meetings.
http://www.covers.com/pageLoader/pageLoader.aspx?page=/data/nhl/matchups/g2_preview_11.html
7:00 PM ET, Saturday, March 19, 2016
Canadian Tire Centre, Ottawa, Ontario
The Ottawa Senators could not afford a misstep in their pursuit of a postseason berth, which is why a loss at Buffalo on Friday was a devastating blow to their already slim hopes. The Senators, who are seven points out of the second wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference, attempt to bounce back against the visiting Montreal Canadiens on Saturday.
Ottawa faces a number of hurdles in its attempt to catch Detroit, which has one game in hand. The Senators also are six points behind ninth-place Philadelphia - which has played two fewer games - and eight of their last 10 opponents either occupy a postseason berth or are contending for one. Alex Galchenyuk has been one of the few bright spots for Montreal, scoring 12 times in the last 11 games to boost his career-best total to 26 goals. The Canadiens have won two of their three meetings with Ottawa this season and will pull into a tie with the Senators with a victory on Saturday.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, Sportsnet, TVA
ABOUT THE CANADIENS (33-32-6): Montreal has been rocked by injuries all season, and the latest casualty is defenseman Mark Barberio, who will be sidelined indefinitely due to a concussion sustained in Wednesday's game versus Buffalo. “It’s unbelievable. It’s really weird," Galchenyuk told reporters. "It’s been a tough year, a lot of adversity, obviously, with the injuries." All-Star blue-liner P.K. Subban, who has been sidelined three games with a neck injury, skated prior to Friday's practice but already has been ruled out for both weekend contests.
ABOUT THE SENATORS (33-31-8): Ottawa lost for the sixth time in nine games (3-4-2) this month, and its power play has been one of the culprits in the slide, failing to convert on 21 consecutive opportunities over the last eight contests - including four against the Sabres. Mike Hoffman assisted on the team's lone goal Friday to establish a career high of 48 points but remains one tally shy of matching his personal-best total of 27 from last season. Mika Zibanejad also assisted on Alex Chiasson's goal to run his point streak to three games.
OVERTIME
1. Montreal is 2-for-28 on the power play over its last 10 games.
2. Senators captain - and leading scorer - Erik Karlsson has been held off the scoresheet in all three matchups with Montreal this season.
3. Canadiens G Ben Scrivens will get a second straight start while rookie Mike Condon is slotted to face Calgary on Sunday.
Trends
Canadiens are 5-1 in their last 6 vs. Eastern Conference.
Road team is 4-1 in the last 5 meetings.
http://www.covers.com/pageLoader/pageLoader.aspx?page=/data/nhl/matchups/g2_preview_11.html
