The Tampa Bay Lightning will conclude their five-game homestand with matches Tuesday and Thursday in opposition to the new Ottawa Senators.
Whereas the 2 video games can have a playoff-style really feel just like the opening contests of a best-of-seven sequence, the probability of the 2 Atlantic Division groups assembly within the postseason’s first spherical is slim.
A latest energy outage in scoring and streaky play by the Senators and Columbus Blue Jackets plus the Detroit Pink Wings’ six-game profitable streak have pushed the Lightning out of a playoff spot.
That is stunning given Tampa Bay’s plus-34 aim differential.
“You take a look at the primary three months of the season, and scoring wasn’t that troublesome,” Lightning coach Jon Cooper mentioned after his group went 7-8-1 in a mediocre January. “And (in January) we performed like 14 video games in 24 days, three totally different time zones, 10 on the highway. I might most likely say fatigue was part of it.
“We had been most likely scoring greater than anticipated, after which we began scoring manner beneath anticipated.”
Nikita Kucherov leads the group in assists (52) and factors (76), whereas Brandon Hagel is second in factors with 54.
Brayden Level has simply three factors in his previous six contests and has not had a multi-point outing since a three-point efficiency in opposition to the New York Rangers on Dec. 28.
Not a lot has slowed the Senators, who beat Tampa Bay 5-4 within the first assembly in Canada’s capital on Oct. 19.
Nevertheless, Ottawa suffered a blow when it introduced Monday that Josh Norris (mid-body) didn’t journey on the four-game highway journey and sure will miss a number of weeks after two laborious hits in Saturday’s 6-0 thrashing of the Minnesota Wild.
In dominant style, the Senators outshot Minnesota 52-16 and gave the house membership an ideal 4-0-0 mark on the homestand.
Ottawa recalled Cole Reinhardt from Belleville of the American Hockey League to interchange Norris, who has 19 targets.
“Any time somebody goes out, it is one other alternative for another person to return in,” Senators coach Travis Inexperienced mentioned. “(Reinhardt) will draw within the lineup tonight, and another person will play middle.”
That somebody was Ridly Greig, who tallied on the second line in Monday’s 5-2 highway win over the Nashville Predators.
Goaltender Anton Forsberg made 25 saves to elevate the Senators to their fifth straight triumph, marking the second time this season that they’ve had profitable streaks of at the very least 5 matches.
Linus Ullmark, who has not performed in 19 video games since being injured on Dec. 22, backed up Forsberg and sure will likely be within the crease in Tuesday’s back-to-back first contest in Tampa.
Ottawa’s Tim Stutzle, 23, notched his three hundredth level with an help on a aim by Adam Gaudette.
Defenseman Jake Sanderson scored a aim in his third straight sport to maneuver his level streak to 5 video games (three targets, six assists), and David Perron scored his first aim with the Senators in his fifteenth sport with the membership.
–Discipline Degree Media