For a second straight game, the Ottawa Senators fell on the wrong side of the scoreboard as they were handed a 6-4 defeat by the Buffalo Sabres.
This Frozen Frenzy game had its fair share of ups and downs for the Sens. The Sabres led 5-1 up to around the 57th minute of the third period until they gave up three consecutive goals. In the end, they still kept their lead and beat their divisional rivals in what was an important game for both teams. It’s certainly a really interesting game to dissect on the Sens side of things, so let’s get right into it.
Craig Anderson’s Retirement
In my eyes, the most important – and positive – takeaway for the Senators didn’t come during the game. Rather, I would say that the return of Craig Anderson, who retired as a Senator after signing a one-day contract, takes the spotlight.
The team honoured Anderson with a beautiful ceremony before the game. His wife Nicholle and their children joined him at centre ice as the Senators had their first-ever goalie ceremonial puck drop, taken by starting goalies Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen and Anton Forsberg. Chris Phillips and Chris Neil were also present at the game as they welcomed Anderson to the Senators Alumni club by gifting him a jacket in the middle of the first period.
Anderson played in 435 games in the 10 seasons he spent with the team. Notably, he was the starting goalie for the Senators in the 2017 Playoffs, when the team was eliminated by a Chris Kunitz goal in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Final. He also finished with an impressive 1.69 goals-against average (GAA) and a .941 save percentage (SV%) in the 2012-13 season, which raised eyebrows around the league.
However, his most memorable moment came in 2016 when he returned from the leave of absence he took to be with his wife as she fought against (and most importantly beat) cancer. In his first game back, Anderson famously shut out the Edmonton Oilers in an emotional game for both him and his teammates.
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Overall, Anderson was a good teammate who will always be remembered for his professionalism and perseverance. He truly exemplifies what it means to be a member of the Senators.
Congratulations on a wonderful career, Craig. But also, I’m sorry you had to watch the Senators lose last night.
A Shaky 55 Minutes
Now we shift to what happened on the ice. The Sabres came back strong in their second game in as many nights after a deflating 3-1 loss to the Montreal Canadiens. They didn’t play as a team that had seen action just 24 hours ago, but the Senators still should have played with more energy knowing the circumstances.
The Sens created some chances early on in the game, but just couldn’t finish. The top line of Brady Tkachuk, Tim Stutzle and Claude Giroux played a solid game last night, and seems to be finding a lot of chemistry so far. The Senators’ offence still looks as dangerous as it has been since the start of the season, but Luukkonen played a solid game in his first start of the season.
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Goaltending-wise, Forsberg didn’t have his best game despite making some good saves for the Senators. Joonas Korpisalo entered in the third period to stop the bleeding and spark the comeback, but it was too late for the team by then.
The Sens’ biggest issues last night were the defensive turnovers and the team’s puck battles. The defence had been one of the team’s strengths up to now, but Artem Zub’s injury must really have hurt them as it resulted in the pairings being shuffled. All night, it seemed as if they were having trouble handling the puck in their own zone. While Thomas Chabot had a solid game, Jake Sanderson, who’s arguably been the team’s best defenceman so far, didn’t play his best game.
Three of the Sabres’ goals came from tipped shots, which came from the Senators losing their coverage of players in front of the net. Some goals came from turnovers or as a result of losing key puck battles. The Sabres were also often able to attempt stretch passes to their forwards. Head coach DJ Smith will definitely address these defensive woes in his next practice.
The Captain Sparks a Comeback
Despite the loss, Tkachuk, who led with his physicality and the offensive chances he created with his linemates, remains the brightest spot for the team.
Tkachuk finished with six shots on goal and five hits. But the scariest moment of the game came at the very end of the second period. Following a hit on Peyton Krebs, Tkachuk dropped his stick and made his way to the bench and down the tunnel immediately after, all while grabbing his shoulder and wincing in pain.
The atmosphere in the Canadian Tire Centre was at an all-time low. The entirety of the following intermission saw much speculation regarding the nature of the captain’s injury. But to everyone’s surprise, he walked back down the tunnel and onto the ice at the start of the third period. From that moment, he made his biggest impact.
With three minutes left in the game, Tkachuk surprised everyone by dropping the gloves with Alex Tuch, who had hit him awkwardly just seconds before. He not only left his opponent bleeding but also left Sens fans cheering hard for probably the first time in the game. The chanting didn’t stop as the Senators scored three quick goals right after and showed they were still willing to play some inspired hockey behind an inspiring leader.
If Tkachuk, who played in all 82 games last season, continues to show up big for his team on and off the ice, it could make a big difference in whether they make it to the postseason or not. Plus, it shows how truly special he is.
Challenging Ilya Sorokin
The Senators will need to get their team back in shape by Thursday as they face the New York Islanders in only their second road game of the season. The Islanders like to play a tight defensive game and have a star in net in Ilya Sorokin, who could possibly get the start.
The Senators may have started slow last night, but they showed a lot of character in the dying minutes of the game. It won’t be easy, but if they start strong against the Islanders and let the past be the past, they could cause the Islanders some trouble as they try to turn the ship around.
