SENS WIN 4-0, WILL RETURN TO OTTAWA FOR GAME 6

I don't know about the rest of you, but game 5 was the game I was most worried about.

In game 4 they had their backs against the wall, just trying to avoid a sweep. In game 6, they'll be at home and feeling confident. If they get to game 7, it'll be anyone's series, and they'll have all the momentum. But game 5? In Toronto, against a Leafs team that wants to close this series out as soon as possible? That's the tricky one.

And thank goodness this team pulled it off, with their best all-around game of the playoffs and their first regulation win. What a win. They've got a real chance now.

As usual, Toronto got off to a good start at home, and the Sens had to play a lot of defense in the first few minutes. They didn’t do a very good job of it, but they didn’t give up a goal, and that’s all that really matters. Nylander and Tavares both got amazing chances, but Ullmark bailed out his team. You love to see it.

Ottawa also got an amazing scoring chance where it actually looked like the puck had gone in the net, but the replay showed otherwise. The Sens were generally getting much better chances than they had in games 1 through 4, even if they weren’t getting the same volume of shots. What’s more, Ullmark appeared to have finally found his game.

Things got silly toward the end of the period. Greig threw a dirty hit on Knies and got a penalty for it, but during the Sens powerplay Knies slashed Zub (and took a shot after the whistle, but only the first play was penalized). After the 4 on 4 and the brief Sens powerplay, Morgan Rielly hit Chabot from behind. Chabot struggled to get up, but didn’t go to the dressing room despite having a history of concussions, so let's hope he's okay. Somehow, it was only a minor penalty. I hope I don’t sound like too much of a homer when I say Rielly absolutely deserves a call from the department of player safety over that.

Both teams had been playing things pretty tight in the first period, but the nonsense at the end kind of blew that all up. We got some great chances on both ends at the start of the second, notably with Ullmark making another good save and the Leafs breaking up a 2-on-1 where Cozens probably should have taken a shot instead of trying to pass to Perron.

At long last, Chabot broke the tie. Our glorious assistant captain who definitely didn’t have a concussion or anything threaded the needle from the point, as he tends to do. What a guy. What a play. 1-0 Ottawa.

7️⃣ 👉 7️⃣2️⃣ 👉 🥅 👉 🚨#GoSensGo pic.twitter.com/KmuoGs03a5

— X - Ottawa Senators (@Senators) April 30, 2025

Ottawa played very well, especially defensively, for the rest of the second period, and Ullmark bailed them out when the occasional defensive breakdowns did happen (come on guys, it’s still the sens). Perron saved a sure goal too. The Sens looked like the better team, for whatever that’s worth when you’re holding on to a 1-0 lead with your season on the line.

The first five minutes of the third period were not fun! Ottawa made it very clear that they intended to spend the last 20 minutes playing defensive hockey and sitting on their one goal lead. In fairness to them, they had quite a bit of success with that strategy in the regular season. It’s still not fun to watch. Toronto put a ton of pressure on them, clearly pushing for the equalizer. I think I’ve seen this film before…

Greig taking a dumb penalty early in the period felt like it could be the turning point. But much like that 4 minute overtime penalty kill in game 4, the Sens somehow dug deep and kept the puck out of their own net. Not just that, but Gaudette and Cozens doubled the Sens’ lead shorthanded! 2-0 Ottawa.

Gaud's plan 🙏#GoSensGo pic.twitter.com/Jf2hISbP73

— X - Ottawa Senators (@Senators) April 30, 2025

There was still a ton of hockey left to play, but the Sens just kept playing good defensive hockey, and Ullmark kept bailing them out when he needed to. They sealed the deal with two empty-netters at the end, one from Stützle and one from Tkachuk. 4-0 Ottawa.

Gavin is going to absolutely love this!#GoSensGo pic.twitter.com/Z5EC7ZmeQa

— X - Ottawa Senators (@Senators) April 30, 2025

The game was a lot closer than the score suggests, but it was a goddamn regulation win and that's all that matters. Go Sens Go, baby. Let's tie it up on Thursday in Ottawa.

Game notes

• This win would not have been possible without Linus Ullmark. He bailed the team out in crucial moments. That’s not to say the rest of the team was bad! But he did exactly what you want your starting goaltender to do in a must-win playoff game. A well-deserved shutout.
• Another very, very strong game for Tyler Kleven. He’s been such a positive surprise in this series.
• Nick Jensen, on the other hand, looked pretty rough at times, especially in the first period.
• Greig needs to learn some discipline. He’s very lucky his team killed off those penalties.
• Batherson is still missing wide open nets over and over again.
• I love Thomas Chabot.
• Sanderson was great again, as he always is.

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