A dismal performance in Game 3 has completely changed the tone in Ottawa. Can the Senators avoid a sweep at home on Saturday afternoon?
What a difference one game can make.
After being inches away from tying the series on Tuesday night, the Senators came home from North Carolina, down 0-2, but with absolutely nothing to hang their heads about. They didn't win on the road, but their performance in Raleigh left plenty of room for optimism.
The Senators returned home believing this series was far from over, and their fans shared that view.
But Game 3 on Thursday night delivered a reality check.
A flat, frustrating 2-1 loss has the Senators staring down elimination, trailing the Hurricanes 3-0 in their first-round series. It's the second year in a row that the Sens have dropped their first three games in round one.
The Sens played with pace and purpose during the first two games, and even dominated long stretches of Game 2. But on Thursday, back on home ice, the Senators looked disconnected and overwhelmed. Their power play, already a concern, was brutally ineffective, including a long 5-on-3 that produced one shot.
Captain Brady Tkachuk is part of that power play unit, which got five chances in the second period and remains 0 for... the series. Tkachuk was asked to assess what happened in the post-game and was brief and honest.
"That's easy," Tkachuk said. "The power play cost us this game."
Despite the close final score, the game felt completely out of reach, which was night and day compared to their efforts in Carolina.
Compounding the frustration was the loss of Jake Sanderson, who was knocked out of the game early in the second period after taking a controversial hit to the head from Carolina’s Taylor Hall. Sanderson suffered a concussion, leaving an already thin blue line even more vulnerable.
Losing Sanderson’s heavy minutes, while stabilizing and driving offence from the back end, comes at the worst possible time. But it's been that kind of season.
Sanderson won't play in Game 4, nor will Artem Zub, and you've got Thomas Chabot out there playing with a very recently repaired broken forearm.
So that will make it an even bigger challenge in trying to slow down the Hurricanes, the top team in the Eastern Conference. And history isn’t on their side. Only four teams in NHL history have come back from a 3-0 series deficit.
There’s also the matter of possible fatigue.
The Senators surged into the playoffs with a torrid 21-6-4 run to close the regular season, clawing their way into the final wild card spot. But that may have come at a cost. Facing a playoff-tested Hurricanes group immediately after that sprint wasn't ideal.
Perhaps that double overtime loss in Game 2 was the breaking point in a mentally and physically taxing season? Time will tell.
The good news is this. They're in a position that 16 NHL teams would love to be in. Go ahead and cue up the Jim Carrey/Lauren Holly memes, but I'm telling you there's a chance. They don't have to win four games on Saturday. They can't win four games on Saturday. They just have to win one. That's doable. Then take it from there.
As fans pack Canadian Tire Centre for what could be the final game of the season, the Sens have to somehow rediscover the urgency and structure they showed in Carolina, and their snakebitten scorers must find a way to finish their chances, because there won't be many.
It’s a tall order.
They either find a way to win and live to fight another day.
Or they lose and their playoff season that began with so much promise comes to an end, just a week after it began.
Steve Warne
The Hockey News
This article was first published at The Hockey News Ottawa. Check out more great Sens features from The Hockey News at the links below:
Pending UFA Lassi Thomson Embraces Late-Season Opportunities In Ottawa
Senators Lose Game 3, Now On Brink Of Being Swept By Carolina
Cam Crotty Makes NHL Playoff Debut In Senators Must-Win Scenario
Senators Sign Goalie Prospect Who's Currently On A 21–1 QMJHL Heater
Blake Montgomery Turns Pro With Senators, Scores Highlight-Reel AHL Goal