The Senators went 0-3-1 in their season series against the defending Eastern champs
After being drubbed by the Florida Panthers 6-0 last week, the Ottawa Senators had revenge on their minds in the rematch on Tuesday night. While the effort was there, the result was not, and the Sens were shut out again, 2-0.
All season long, the Senators have struggled at the beginning of games, giving up early goals in bunches. Both of those things happened again on Tuesday night with the Senators giving up two quick goals in the first period, and that decided the game.
Unlike many of their previous games, the Senators started on the front foot, creating some good chances. However, it’s about consistently forcing opportunities rather than a couple of minutes of strong play – not easy when you're facing the second-best defensive team in the league,
The Panthers weathered the Senators' storm and then went on the hunt.
Florida found themselves on the power play following an Artem Zub high-sticking penalty. They immediately pounced on a horrendous Ottawa line change, as Anthony Stolarz's full-ice stretch pass found Anton Lundell all alone for a breakaway goal to make it 1-0.
In a spell of play that was déjà vu from their last game, the Senators gave up the second goal under three minutes later, when Nick Cousins walked down main street, launching a wrist-shot past Joonas Korpisalo to make it 2-0 Panthers.
While the Senators did break a four-game streak of allowing a goal on one of the first two shots of the game, they were now chasing the game once again.
The second period was much like the first, where both teams played well defensively, keeping each other to the outside. They combined for just 7 total shots in the period. The best chance for the Senators came when Thomas Chabot wired a wrist shot off the iron.
In the third, Brady Tkachuk had two very good looks from the left hash marks but Stolarz stood tall for the shutout.
The absence of Tim Stutzle and Josh Norris was apparent throughout the game. It meant the Senators were essentially running two fourth lines, with Mark Kastelic/Parker Kelly/Boris Katchouk and Boko Imama/Jiri Smejkal/Zack MacEwen. It's hard to score in the NHL without your top two centres or scoring depth.
On the night, the difference between the two teams was Ottawa's bad line change and a miscue in the defensive zone. The Panthers consistently win because they don't skip little details like those.
Florida swept the season series, shut out the Senators three times, and outscored them 16-2 in their four games.
Ottawa returns to action on Thursday against the Tampa Bay Lightning at Amalie Arena