A late collapse cost Ottawa a win on the night of their arena's 30th anniversary.
If that was meant to be the Senators' 30th birthday gift for their arena, the Canadian Tire Centre will be first in line to return it in the morning.
Cole Caufield had two goals and an assist, including the overtime winner, to give the Montreal Canadiens a 6–5 victory in Ottawa. Jake Sanderson had a goal and three assists for the Sens, who also lost to Montreal in the rink's first game 30 years ago tonight.
Ottawa overcame a slow start, some big mistakes, and some bad penalties, which is usually a recipe for disaster. But despite falling behind 2–0 after 20 minutes, the Senators generally controlled the rest of the game, outshooting the Canadiens 34–19 on the night and taking a 5–3 lead late into the third.
In hindsight, those mistakes cost the Senators some surplus room for error that they could have used during their late-game implosion.
Down by two, Montreal pulled their goalie early, and it paid off when Juraj Slafkovský scored his second goal of the game with 4:34 to play, deflecting a point shot with the shaft of his stick—one that just as easily could have ended up in the 10th row. Just over a minute later, Alexandre Carrier fired a slap shot from the point that somehow fooled Senators goaltender Leevi Merilainen, tying the game.
In overtime, the Sens had a great chance on a 2-on-1. A saucer pass attempt by Claude Giroux sailed over the stick of Tim Stützle, who was all in on a one-timer. When Stutzle missed it, he slid into the end boards and out of the play. Meanwhile, Giroux went off on a line change, leading to the easiest 2-on-1 the other way.
Caufield, who may have broken up Giroux's saucer pass, hustled up ice and was thinking shot all the way, and why wouldn't he be? He beat Merilainen with a slap shot to seal the win.
It was yet another rough outing for Merilainen, who allowed six goals on just 19 shots. In his 20 appearances this season, he's supplied .900 or better goaltending just five times. And there was no one defending him in the room either.
"It's hard to give him a pass," head coach Travis Green told the media after the game. "You know, six goals on 18 shots. I'm sure he'd like to have one or two back. I feel bad for him."
Jake Sanderson didn't mince words either, which is usually standard operating procedure in NHL dressing rooms.
"I think Leevi made some good saves," Sanderson said. "But I think at the end of the day, you got to make more than 10 saves to win a game."
Yikes.
If James Reimer can provide even average goaltending tomorrow in Detroit, Merilainen will almost certainly be Belleville-bound when Linus Ullmark returns to work, as he simply bears no resemblance to the goalie we saw last season.
In fairness, there were glitches in front of him too. Thomas Chabot had one of his worst games as a pro, and the coaching staff surely has to be reconsidering his role on the penalty kill.
The team was also hampered early by a steady stream of dumb penalties.
After beating struggling teams this week like the Vancouver Canucks and New York Rangers, a victory over the rival Canadiens would have been much more of a statement win. They did come away with a point, but it was a highly discouraging evening for the club and its fan base, especially with the rink filled mostly with Habs fans.
We'll see what the Sens have left in the tank, physically and emotionally, for another rival game on Sunday. This one will be on the road against the rested Red Wings, who don't like the Senators any more than Montreal does. They'd love nothing more than to kick the rival Sens when they're down.
Steve Warne
The Hockey News - Ottawa