Ups and Downs: Week 1
Ups and downs is a feature that looks at the individual performances of the Ottawa Senators during the past week.
Hey, not a bad week at all. Ottawa split the difference and earned two out of a possible four points this week.
Biggest Gains: Robin Lehner. The Lightning shelled him with 40 shots, but he came out with the win in the shootout - something that has been a weakness of his in the past.
Biggest Losses: Jared Cowen. Didn't see the ice after Tampa tied it up in the third.
| Goaltenders | Trend | Notes |
| Craig Anderson |  | Anderson was basically the reason the Sens escaped the second period in Nashville with the lead. |
| Robin Lehner | | See biggest gains |
| Defensemen | ||
| Mark Borowiecki |  | Exceeded expectations against Nashville... Not so much against the Lightning. Saw way too much of Stamkos to blame him too much though. |
| Cody Ceci | | Probably deserves a down arrow for his overall play, he was significantly better when not with Phillips. Won't punish him for his linemate. |
| Jared Cowen |  | See biggest losses. |
| Eric Gryba | | So-so against Nashville. Pylon'd by Tampa Bay. |
| Erik Karlsson | | Forgettable game against the Predators, much better against Tampa. They average out this week. |
| Marc Methot |  | Injured. |
| Chris Phillips | | Made just about everyone he skated with worse. |
| Patrick Wiercioch | | Didn't play. |
| Forwards | ||
| Alex Chiasson | | Impressed in both games. Solid week for the new guy. |
| Erik Condra | | Didn't play. |
| Colin Greening | | Didn't play. |
| Mike Hoffman | | Looked good, but was heavily protected and couldn't find the score sheet. |
| Curtis Lazar | | Not making it past nine games with performances like those. Easy decision if he was AHL eligible. |
| David Legwand | | Didn't stand out, good or bad. |
| Clarke MacArthur | | Largely invisible this week. |
| Milan Michalek | | One of the few players to look good against Tampa, but could have been better in Nashville. |
| Chris Neil | | Ugh. |
| Bobby Ryan | | Had as many hits as he had shots. Didn't have a lot of hits. |
| Z. Smith | | Really didn't do much of anything this week. |
| Mark Stone | | Was out for tough minutes and looked good doing it. |
| Kyle Turris | | Largely invisible, just like MacArthur. |
| Mika Zibanejad | | Uneven this week - great against the Lightning, less than against the Predators. |
Special thanks to our friend winterion at Japers' Rink for our icons!