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Game 12 Preview and Open Thread - Ottawa Senators versus Vancouver Canucks

One of these teams has to be due, right?

NHL: APR 19 Senators at Canucks Photo by Derek Cain/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

Game Notes

  • Both teams come limping into this one with losing records and while I like Ottawa’s chances for a few reasons (that I’ll explain subsequently), the antithetical natures of these groups could lend to a chaotic (and possibly disappointing for Ottawa) outcome.
  • No new injuries to report for the Senators as Josh Norris and Artem Zub remain sidelined.
  • We know from DJ Smith that Jacob Bernard-Docker will draw in, but the coach didn’t indicate in his morning availability just who JBD would be replacing.
  • For the Canucks, looking at the lineup, I had assumed they were missing several key players but it’s really just Brock Boeser. How is this team in cap hell with this roster? Other injuries include Curtis Lazar, Travis Dermott, Tucker Poolman, and Michael Ferland.
  • So now to the matchup. As I’ve said in seemingly every preview so far this seasons, Ottawa takes a lot more penalties than their opponents; maybe coincidentally they keep losing. Against Vancouver this could prove problematic as the Canucks have an absurdly good powerplay (table below). The Senators’ powerplay has gone ice-cold but there’s good news (maybe?) because the Canucks have an unspeakably bad penalty kill. These teams makes no sense.
  • At five-on-five Ottawa has had better offence to date but Vancouver has had better five-on-five defence with similar enough five-on-five goaltending for both teams.

Expected and Actual Goals

Team 5V5 xGF/60 5V5 Sh% 5V5 xGA/60 5V5 Sv% PP xGF/60 PP Sh% PK xGA/60 PK Sv%
Team 5V5 xGF/60 5V5 Sh% 5V5 xGA/60 5V5 Sv% PP xGF/60 PP Sh% PK xGA/60 PK Sv%
Ottawa 2.98 9.78 2.76 92.01 6.93 14.29 7.87 84.85
Vancouver 2.40 8.40 2.64 91.70 7.39 20.63 8.47 68.75
  • It sounds obnoxiously obvious but if Ottawa can win the penalty battle and limit damage from Quinn Hughes, Elias Petterson, and Bo Horvat then this looks like the perfect opportunity to end the losing streak (and get the powerplay cooking again). Please don’t screw it up.

Where to watch/listen: RDS2 TSN5 TSN1200 @7PM EST

Lines from last Game

Ottawa Senators

Tkachuk - Stützle - Giroux
DeBrincat - Pinto - Batherson
Motte - Brassard - Joseph
Kelly - Kastelic - Watson

Chabot - Brännström
Sanderson - Hamonic
Holden - Zaitsev

Vancouver Canucks

Hoglander - Horvat - Miller
Kuzmenko - Petterson - Mikheyev
Pearson - Dries - Garland
Joshua - Aman - Studnicka

Hughes - Schenn
Ekman-Larsson - Bear
Stillman - Myers

Stats

Players

Game 16 Ottawa Senators Buffalo Sabres
Game 16 Ottawa Senators Buffalo Sabres
Category Player # Player #
Goals Shane Pinto/Claude Giroux 8 Tage Thompson 11
Assists Brady Tkachuk 14 Rasmus Dahlin 11
Points Brady Tkachuk 20 Tage Thompson 21
Shots Alex DeBrincat/Brady Tkachuk 59 Tage Thompson 69
Time on Ice/GP Tim Stutzle (of healthy players) 20:26 Rasmus Dahlin 26:24

Teams

Game 16 Ottawa Senators Buffalo Sabres
Game 16 Ottawa Senators Buffalo Sabres
Category # Rank # Rank
Goals/GP 3.4 10th 3.69 T-4th
Goals Against/GP 3.53 24th 3.56 T-25th
Shots/GP 32.5 10th 31.9 14th
Shots Against/GP 34.2 25th 31.4 15th
Powerplay % 23.2 10th 23.7 8th
Penalty Kill % 76.8 20th 71.4 29th
Corsi % (5v5 SVA) 51.18 15th 52.17 11th
xGF % (5v5 SVA) 50.97 13th 49.26 18th