The Ottawa Senators have gone down 2-0 in the Round 1 series against the Toronto Maple Leafs, and while the score is all that matters, it doesn’t tell the full story. The Senators dominated for a lot of the game; they were much improved from Game 1, and their performance has given fans hope again after a disastrous start to the series.
Ullmark Settled In Well
After a rough showing in Game 1, Linus Ullmark had a much better performance in Game 2. While it was a shaky start to the game for him, allowing two goals on the first four shots against again, he was lights-out for the rest of the game. The two goals against in regulation were hard to blame him for, but those are the moments you need a big save. Both goals were cross-crease passes that took a deflection, but being a bit more aggressive on the pucks could have saved the period.
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The only other goal Ullmark allowed in the game was the overtime goal, which he is far from the first person to take criticism for that one.
If Ullmark can have a few more games like that one, but tighten up the first period, the Senators will certainly have a chance to crawl back into the series.
Defensive Collapses Cost Them…Again
It is hard, almost impossible, to play a perfect game. Teams with as much talent as the Maple Leafs will take advantage of any opportunity they are given, and that was the case here. While the two redirected goals are hard to draw up the way they were executed, they still resulted in goals, and the Senators need to be tougher in front of their own net and not give the Maple Leafs as much space. Morgan Rielly came in from the blue line and, while contested, was still able to get into a position to have the puck deflect off of him and past Ullmark.
The Senators did a good job of minimizing the opportunities from the Leafs, but they need to play tighter defense. The overtime goal, which we will get to, was a perfect example of the team scrambling, and that time it cost them big time.
Ridly Greig is an Absolute Menace on the Ice
Heading into the series, names like Nick Cousins, Brady Tkachuk, and David Perron were talked about as players to get into the minds of the Maple Leafs, and that hasn’t happened yet. That is okay, because Ridly Greig has done enough for all of them put together.
The empty-net slap shot that got Greig on the radar of the Maple Leafs and their fans might not be impacting this series, but his presence is in a very familiar way.
Greig did a great job of baiting Anthony Stolarz into taking a penalty. The frustration that led to the punches, slashes, and an eventual body-check could have stemmed from the collision in the game before, but Greig was spending lots of quality time in the crease and got Stolarz to take a penalty.
Somehow, the referees also saw enough out of Greig, who was standing there, to give him a penalty, too. Complaining about the officiating was for Game 1. The standard is set now, and the complaining needs to be over, but this one had many curious about the official’s thought process.
Batherson’s Unfortunate Shift
It isn’t fair to put a loss on one player, but the overtime shift from Drake Batherson that led to the Max Domi goal was a big misstep on his part. It started with a tough turnover in the offensive zone, with a lazy backhand pass across the middle of the ice that was picked off by Simon Benoit. Following that, after catching back up to the play, it was the fly-by on Domi that really upset the fanbase.
Batherson had the opportunity to get the puck, lay a big hit, or just get in the way of Domi. He opted to take one poke and keep skating by. Domi immediately scored, and put the Leafs up 2-0 in the series.
Now, Batherson doesn’t need anybody telling him what went wrong, and the criticism won’t change anything. He knows. But with that being said, whether it is Batherson or anybody else on the ice, that is a lesson to learn from.
