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Game 51 Preview: Ottawa Senators @ Montreal Canadiens

A preview of this afternoon’s important matchup between the Sens and Habs

Ottawa Senators v Philadelphia Flyers Photo by Len Redkoles/NHLI via Getty Images

This game has the potential to divide fans who are on #TeamTank and #TeamNeverCheerForLosing. I think there’s a middle ground for this season: lose every game — except for the ones against the Toronto Maple Leafs and Montreal Canadiens.

The injury notes from Colin’s preview yesterday still stand: Bobby Ryan out, Colin White in. Mike Condon and Carey Price start on the second-half of a back-to-back for both teams.

Here are the expected line combos:

Hoffman - Duchene - White Dzingel - Brassard - DiDomenico Smith - Pageau - Pyatt Paajarvi - Thompson - Burrows

Oduya - Karlsson Phaneuf - Borowiecki Chabot - Ceci

Condon (starter) Anderson

Some notes:

  • Via TSN 1200: “At this time last year, the Habs were 1st in the Atlantic with 67 points; Sens were 2nd with 60 points. This year, they’re 6th and 7th with 48 and 43 points respectively.”
  • Although White lined up on the first line yesterday, he actually played the least among Sens forwards (11:20). Pageau, Smith, and Pyatt played 17+.
  • Like the Sens, the Habs are looking to make some moves at this year’s trade deadline. Pacioretty and Galchenyk, two of the high-end names mentioned in rumours, have been producing as of late. Patches has 9 points (6 goals) in his last 10 games, while Galchenyuk has 7 points (5 assists).
  • A dude named Jakub Jerabek has been the Habs second best defender (after Jeff Petry) with Shea Weber out. In his rookie season, Jerabek has suited up for 25 games (4 points) and put up an even CF% rating.
  • The Habs depth (Plekanec, Lekhonen, De la Rose) has been disappointing from a production standpoint. They’ve been missing Phillip Danault due to injury, but he returned against Anaheim yesterday and contributed an assist in the Habs 5-2 victory.

Team Stats

Category Ottawa Senators Boston Bruins
Category Ottawa Senators Boston Bruins
-- Value Rank Value Rank
Goals/GP 2.68 25th 3.25 6th
Goals against/GP 3.44 30th 2.56 3rd
Shots/GP 30.7 24th 32.8 11th
Shots against/GP 33.0 25th 29.3 2nd
Powerplay % 16.7 26th 23.5 4th
Penalty Kill % 76.2 27th 83.3 4th
Corsi (5v5, Score & Venue Adjusted) 46.32 29th 53.97 2nd
Fenwick (5v5, SVA) 46.94 27th 54.01 1st

Player Stats

Ottawa Senators Boston Bruins
Ottawa Senators Boston Bruins
-- Player # Player #
Goals Matt Duchene 27 Brad Marchand 34
Assists Erik Karlsson (out) 53 Brad Marchand 51
Points Karlsson/Stone (both out) 62 Brad Marchand 85
Shots Mike Hoffman 253 David Pastrnak 236
TOI/GP Erik Karlsson (out) 26:44 Zdeno Chara 22:53