The Ottawa Senators and Colorado Avalanche will play their first game after the trade deadline. Both teams have made their deadline period deals, though they made them for different reasons. The Senators added forward depth while the Avalanche got rid of a couple of players as they were sellers at the bottom of the league standings.
With their new additions on forward, the Senators will look to acclimate their group and build chemistry. This game will be a good chance for them to do so, as the Avalanche struggled mightily all season. The Avs still have their core, unable to trade away Duchene and Landeskog. Despite their struggles, they still have plenty of skill up front and hope to provide a strong matchup.
Ottawa Senators vs. Colorado Avalanche
Canadian Tire Centre – 7:30 p.m. EST
Broadcast channels – TSN5 & ALT
Ottawa Senators – 33-22-6 – 72 points
Home Record: 16-10-6
Hot Players: Erik Karlsson, Kyle Turris, Mark Stone
Key Absences: Chris Neil (broken finger), Bobby Ryan (broken finger), Clarke MacArthur (concussion)
Projected Lines:
Forwards
Alexandre Burrows – Derick Brassard – Mark Stone
Mike Hoffman – Kyle Turris – Zack Smith
Ryan Dzingel – Jean-Gabriel Pageau – Tom Pyatt
Viktor Stalberg – Chris Kelly – Tommy Wingels
Defence
Marc Methot – Erik Karlsson
Dion Phaneuf – Cody Ceci
Mark Borowiecki – Chris Wideman
Starting Goaltender
Craig Anderson
Colorado Avalanche – 17-41-3 – 37 points
Road Record: 9-21-1
Hot Players: Mikko Rantanen
Key Absences: Semyon Varlamov (groin), Nikita Zadorov (ankle)
Projected Lines:
Forwards
Gabriel Landeskog – Nathan MacKinnon – Blake Comeau
Mikko Rantanen – Matt Duchene – Matt Nieto
Joe Colborne – John Mitchell – Mikhail Grigorenko
J.T. Compher – Carl Soderberg – Rene Bourque
Defence
Patrick Wiercioch – Erik Johnson
Fedor Tyutin – Tyson Barrie
Francois Beauchemin – Mark Barberio
Starting Goaltender
Calvin Pickard
Game Notes
[miptheme_dropcap style=”normal” color=”#222222″ background=””]1)[/miptheme_dropcap] The Senators’ bigger deadline acquisition, Alexandre Burrows, will be making his debut with the team. To maintain balance to all forward lines, the coaching staff has him playing to the left of Derick Brassard and Mark Stone. Burrows will balance that line out with grit and a drive to the net, allowing Brassard and Stone to focus on their offensive creativity. This will be a very good two-way line that will not give much time and space to the opposing team.
[miptheme_dropcap style=”normal” color=”#222222″ background=””]2)[/miptheme_dropcap] Viktor Stalberg will also be making his debut with the Senators. Like Burrows, Stalberg’s role will be to play gritty and be an imposing presence in front of the net. “They are two guys who go to the net,” the Senators’ coach said. “They screen and they battle there. That adds to what we’re trying to do. We need more of that. When we play great, we see our guys in front of the goaltender, fronting shots, screening, battling. When we don’t do that, we don’t win games. We needed to add that to our lineup.”
Welcome new guys! pic.twitter.com/y1yP7oP3xT
— Ottawa Senators (@Senators) March 1, 2017
[miptheme_dropcap style=”normal” color=”#222222″ background=””]3)[/miptheme_dropcap] Despite the disaster of a season that the Avalanche are having, rookie Mikko Rantanen has been a nice story, especially since the new year. He has eight goals and 12 points in his last 16 games, leading the team in both categories. He is a player that the Avs have invested plenty in as they look to rebuild their team once again. playing time.
[miptheme_dropcap style=”normal” color=”#222222″ background=””]4)[/miptheme_dropcap] With their trades on deadline day, the Avalanche called up forward J.T. Compher from the American Hockey League. He is 21 years old with 13 goals and 30 points in 47 games with the San Antonio Rampage. With the Avalanche season lost, he will receive a decent look as a depth forward.
