Ottawa Senators top the Winnipeg Jets 3-1

The Senators wrapped up a five-game road trip with a victory in Winnipeg on Wednesday night. Andrew Hammond earned his seventh straight start for the Sens, while Michael Hutchinson got the start in net for the Jets.

In the opening minutes of the game, it looked like we were in for an ugly period from the Senators. Shots were 6-1 for Winnipeg in the first five minutes, and the Jets were vastly controlling the play. But then, almost out of nowhere, Kyle Turris opened the scoring, making it 1-0 for the Sens. Off a pass at the blue line, Turris broke into Winnipeg's zone and ripped a wrist shot past Hutchinson. Cody Ceci and Milan Michalek both recorded assists on the goal.

Despite outshooting Ottawa 15-6 in the first period, Winnipeg's offence looked shaky at the best of times. They were awarded numerous odd-man rushes, but failed to generate quality scoring chances on most of them. Andrew Hammond was there to shut the door on the chances they did get.

Hammond kept Ottawa in this game with some huge saves, including a key save on Andrew Ladd. Tyler Myers took a shot from the point, which bounced off the boards right to Ladd, who was looking at nothing but an open net. Hammond slid from one side of the net to the other, and made the save.

In the final seconds of the period, Cody Ceci took a holding penalty, and gave the Jets their first power play of the game, which they would carry into the second.

As the second period began, the Jets continued doing everything in their power to get in Andrew Hammond's face. But Hammond continued to stand tall, and didn't let any of this traffic get the better of him. The Sens managed to generate more scoring chances than in the first period, and started to even up the play.

About half-way through the second, Jacob Trouba took a slashing penalty, putting Ottawa on the power play. Winnipeg did manage to generate a shorthanded 2-on-1, but after that was broken up, Erik Karlsson drove the puck through the neutral zone and back into Winnipeg's end. A strong forecheck by Alex Chiasson and Mika Zibanejad resulted in a goal from Bobby Ryan. Zibanejad fed Ryan the puck in the slot, and he knocked the one-timer past Hutchinson to make it 2-0.

Shortly after, Erik Condra scored a similar one-timer off a pass from Mark Stone. And just like that, the Senators were up 3-0.

That didn't stop Andrew Hammond from continuing to make save after save on the Jets. This prompted Dave Randorf to yell "Who is this guy?!", which effectively summarized the thoughts of almost every Sens fan at the moment.

The Sens started the third period on the power play, after Mark Stuart took a slashing penalty in the dying seconds of the second. They failed to capitalize, and the Jets were able to kill it off without much trouble.

It wasn't long before the situation was reversed and the Sens found themselves on the penalty kill. Erik Karlsson took his second penalty of the game after shooting the puck over the glass and getting called for delay of game. After a shorthanded chance for Turris, Michael Frolik put Winnipeg on the board, scoring a power-play goal off a pass from Tyler Myers.

Both teams exchanged minor, but fairly insignificant scoring chances throughout the majority of the third period. With just over two minutes to go in the game, Winnipeg pulled their goalie and threw on the extra attacker. From there, they would lay on pressure, making Sens fans all the more nervous. The Sens, and Andrew Hammond, would stand tall and finish off their five-game road trip with a win.

Sens Hero: Andrew Hammond

This one almost goes without saying, but I will say it anyway. Hammond made 35 saves on 36 shots, giving him a .972 SV% on the night. For any goalie, on any night, this would be impressive. But this was just his seventh career NHL start, on a run which has seen him go 6-0-1. He was the reason the Sens were even in this game in the beginning, and he dealt with a lot of traffic in front of his net. He put up with a lot tonight, and still came out on top.

Sens Hero: Kyle Turris

Not only did Turris open the scoring in this game, but he also added an assist and finished +2 on the night. His line with Stone and Michalek was arguably the most effective tonight. They were hard on the forecheck and generated a number of scoring chances. Kyle Turris was a huge part of this, and deserves full credit tonight.

Honourable Mention: Erik Condra

With a goal and three shots on goal tonight, Condra definitely deserves a shout out for his play. He played over 15 minutes, and his line with Curtis Lazar and Jean-Gabriel Pageau continues to be a very effective third line for the Sens.

Honourable Mention: Patrick Wiercioch

He may not have shown up on the score sheet, but Wiercioch did what most NHL players can't: Take on Dustin Byfuglien in front of the net. The is a job no one in the NHL wants, and he may have only had the job for half of the game, but he did it well. Byfuglien was ineffective in front of the net, and Wiercioch was a big part of that early in the game.

Shot Chart via ESPN:

Game Flow via Natural Stat Trick:

Game Highlights: