The Ottawa Senators hosted the Los Angeles Kings on Saturday, Nov. 15, for the first time in nearly a year, but there was some familiarity on both sides. It was the first time that Jordan Spence faced his old team after being dealt at the 2025 NHL Draft, and on the other end of the ice, former Senators’ backup Anton Forsberg started for the Kings.
Both teams entered the game with the exact same 9-5-4 record, sat in the same place in their divisions, and had won three of their last four games. Unsurprisingly, the match proved to be a tightly contested affair. Neither the Kings nor the Senators wanted to give the other a chance to build momentum, and so the game was decided by just one goal scored in the first period.
Game Recap
The Kings’ reputation as a stingy road team was on full display in Ottawa, and the Senators struggled early to get through Los Angeles’ constant shot-blocking, forcing turnovers, and preventing scoring chances of any kind. It wasn’t until after the midway point of the first period that the Senators finally got their first shot on net, and despite two power play opportunities, they only managed to finish with four shots and no goals.
Related: Kings’ Early Season Observations
The Senators responded in kind, however, limiting the Kings to only one more shot, but that proved to be enough to give Los Angeles the lead. Nearly 10 minutes into the game, Alex Laferriere deflected a shot from defenceman Mikey Anderson past Senators goalie Linus Ullmark.
The second period remained a low-event contest; Ottawa managed to put six shots on goal throughout the period while limiting the Kings to just two, but they couldn’t manage to get one by Forsberg. Los Angeles prevented the Senators from getting any space or generating any sustained offensive zone time. Every time the Senators tried to start something, the Kings were ready with bodies on the blue line. However, despite the intense pressure, the Senators had some strong chances and were able to control the puck more
The one significant moment was when Drew Doughty, in an attempt to push a Senators player out of his goalie’s crease, took a shot from Claude Giroux off the ankle. Immediately, it was clear that he was in a lot of pain as he hobbled back to the bench. After gritting through the discomfort for a few minutes, he finally walked back to the dressing rooms, where it was announced during the intermission that he would not return to the game.
The Senators entered the third period energized and quickly took control of the game, but the Kings remained committed to blocking as many shots as possible and preventing scoring chances. That led to some frustration, and roughly eight minutes into the period, Spence took a tripping penalty after knocking into Philip Danault while trying to get around the skilled defensive centre. Four minutes later, Artem Zub was called for high-sticking Quinton Byfield after his stick caught him up high. Byfield tried to force the double minor by showing the referee some blood from his mouth, but the two-minute call remained.
In both cases, the Senators expertly killed off the penalties and even got a fantastic short-handed scoring chance, but at the last second, Tim Stutzle elected to pass the puck to Drake Batherson, which was partially blocked, and the Senators’ winger fumbled the catch. Ullmark was pulled with two minutes remaining, and while the Senators once again had some of their best chances all game, Forsberg remained steadfast, and the Kings’ defence let few good chances through to hold onto the 1-0 win.
