For the second time this season, the Ottawa Senators defeated the Philadelphia Flyers, this time by a score of 5-3. The Sens trailed 2-0 and 3-1 at different points of the game, but eventually completed the comeback to give themselves a 3-1-1 record in their last five games played. There was a lot to unpack in this intense, Sunday afternoon matchup. This Senators’ mom’s trip was also highlighted by the return of number 57 in the lineup.
The Return of Shane Pinto
Today was a big day for the Senators as Shane Pinto made his return to the lineup after serving his 41-game suspension for violating the NHL’s gambling rules. After having signed a one-year, $775,000 deal on Friday, the American-born centre started on the third line in his 100th career game.
He competed hard throughout the game and was especially noticeable on the Senators’ second goal of the game. He started a play that would end up with Tim Stutzle jamming the puck behind Samuel Ersson after a huge net-front battle that needed to be reviewed by officials. His return at a discounted price adds a nice depth option down the middle for the Senators. But with Josh Norris having made his return the previous day, it will be interesting to see how head coach Jacques Martin shuffles his lines in the next few weeks.
Intensity & Adversity on Display
This game was highlighted for having a few fluky goals. For the Senators, the weird bounces started early in the game. During a Flyers power play, what was a seemingly normal point shot was saved by Mads Sogaard and bounced up and away from the play, on the opposite side of the ice. No one but Yegor Zamula knew where the puck was as the Flyers defenseman shot it into the empty cage.
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Later in the period, Zamula doubled his team’s lead with three Sens players serving as a screen to their own goalie. Zack MacEwen answered with a breakaway goal early in the second period, but the Flyers regained a two-goal lead soon after on another power play point shot, this time by Joel Farabee. Later, it was the Senators’ turn to have a bounce in their favour to make it 3-2 heading into the second intermission.
Early in the third period, Claude Giroux continued to make an impact in Philadelphia, but this time it wasn’t for the Flyers. The former captain kicked the puck to himself and tucked it in after a rebound in the front of the net to tie the game up for his team. With a few minutes left in the third period, Sogaard stopped Cam Atkinson on a breakaway, which led to a Sens odd-man rush. Mathieu Joseph fed Vladimir Tarasenko on a 2-on-1 to give Ottawa their first lead of the game. Stutzle then solidified the win after batting the puck to himself mid-air and scoring an empty net goal.
Overall, we saw a Senators team that didn’t quit against a tough Flyers team. On previous nights this season, we’ve seen Sens teams that sat back when things got tough early in games. But not today. This was an encouraging performance for Martin’s group. They kept up the intensity and were involved physically with their opponents after many of the whistles. Ridly Greig’s hit on Rasmus Ristolainen in the third period perfectly describes the tone of the game.
Visit to the Bell Centre
For their next game, the Senators will face the Montreal Canadiens for the second time in under a week. The previous matchup was arguably the Senators’ best performance of the season as they defeated their divisional rivals by a score of 6-2 at the Canadian Tire Centre. Four players got at least two points in that game, with Stutzle having a goal and two assists.
There is no question that Canadiens head coach Martin St. Louis will rally the troops on Tuesday and make sure his team comes out strong right off the bat. The Sens will be on the road in one of the most difficult arenas to play in across the league, so a win would be a nice way to make a statement. Fortunately for them, this is possible given they have already vastly improved over the past few games.
