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GDT: Canes @ Ottawa 1/24 7:00

A

andyt

Canes Moderator
Staff member
But will the Canes be able to get home after the game?

The Canes never got ahead of the Blackhawks on Thursday, coming back to tie the game 3 times, only to lose in the shootout. They practiced yesterday and Legault and Philp both returned. Expect Bussi in goal.

Ottawa was expected to push for the playoffs and started well but they’ve tailed off. They’re 3-5-2 in their last 10 but just had a 5 game point streak broken. They’re last in the Atlantic but still over NHL .500 with 53 points in 50 games, 7 points out of the 2nd Wild Card. Tim Stutzle leads with 22 goals, Jake Sanderson has 30 assists. Brady Tkachuk has 29 points in 30 games since returning from injury. He’s on a 5 game point streak. With Linus Ullmsrk on personal leave, the Sens have turned to Levi Merilainen and recently signed James Reimer in goal. Reimer has started each of their last 3 games. He’s at 3.02/.890. Merlilainen has been bad, 3.51/.860 in 20 games, 19 starts. The Sens are 11th in goals per game, 28th in goals against. Their PP is good, 8th at 23.5%. The PK is bad, 31st at 71.7%

FanDuel for TV. If you have power.
 
A couple of notes …

It’s nice to see Legault practicing. I’d assume that he’ll go back to Chicago when he’s ready to play, but he was a very nice depth piece on the right side of the D and I wouldn’t be too surprised to see him back with the big club eventually. Having both him and Nystrom as guys who can fill in on the right side when needed is a big deal when you’re short a right hander in your regular top 7.

Ullmark was sort of forced into doing an interview he obviously didn’t want to do by the weird pushback from online Sens fans and some of the creepier Canadian hockey media in reaction to his personal leave. The guy took a break because his mental health was not where it needed to be, but because the team struggled in his absence the fans just had to make it weird. The whole thing bums me out, honestly.

Carolina gets a four day break after this one, and I think that comes at a good time in a couple of regards. First, it’s not such a huge deal if they get stuck in Ottawa for a day or two, although with the weather not looking like it will hit central NC until late tonight, I suspect they’ll be fine. Secondly, with several guys banged up, it’s a good chance to regroup a bit with a couple of practices. I understand why Brind’Amour shies away from in season practice days when the games are coming thick and heavy, because this is not a young group anymore and rest is valuable. But with key special teams peices floating in and out of the lineup, practice starts to mean more. With 4 days off they should be able to both get some rest and get some practice, ahead of a push towards the Olympic break.

Carolina hasn’t seen the Sens since the last game of the 2024-25 regular season, which was one of those empty the bench and start the subs games. That means their last best on best game with this opponent was WAY back in December 2024. There’s not a ton of familiarity, is what I’m hinting at here. They’ve tried to spread the offensive threat across three lines, but it has thinned out their impact lines a bit. Ottawa kind of has two heavy lines and two lines that like to leak out on the break, so matchups will matter in this one. Their 4th line kind of sucks, so Brindy can push that option a bit if he wants.
 
Any idea why this game hasn't started yet? Games scheduled for 7:00 usually start by 7:08. As I type this it's 7:21 and no hockey yet.
 
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