The Ottawa Senators have officially clinched their first playoff berth in eight years and can no longer drop in the standings. And instead of a full court press to keep their unrealistic third place hopes alive, head coach Travis Green's game plan appears to be to get through these final games as competitively as possible, while focusing more on his team being at their best for the playoffs.
Green took the opportunity to make some serious lineup changes on Sunday afternoon against the Philadelphia Flyers, giving several players the day off.
Captain Brady Tkachuk remained out of the lineup for a seventh straight game, but is expected to return for Game 1 of the playoffs next weekend. GM Steve Staios says Tkachuk continues to progress.
"I would think that he would be ready for Game 1," Staios told TSN during the first intermission on Sunday.
Green also gave some veterans the afternoon off, including wingers David Perron and defenceman Nick Jensen. Ridly Greig and Nikolas Matinpalo also took a seat. It's possible Matinpalo's absence may be performance-related. The cameras caught Green having a long conversation with Matinpalo on the bench during Friday night's win over Montreal. It was hard to identify Green's emotion but it was a pointed conversation that was long by NHL bench standards.
Their spots were filled by Travis Hamonic, Dennis Gilbert, Angus Crookshank, and Nick Cousins. Cousins suited up for his first game since January after recovering from a knee injury, and he didn't exactly ease his way back into action. Cousins made an immediate impact, physically and competitively, quickly becoming a noticeable Sens irritant for the Flyers.
The roster shake-up led to some interesting line combinations to start the game and gave Green the chance to experiment and evaluate ahead of the postseason. Cousins took Greig's spot on the red-hot Pinto line. Angus Crookshank went from the press box right to the top line. And Hayden Hodgson played another physical game for the second straight game after his surprise callup from Belleville on Friday.
Line Combinations vs. Philadelphia on Sunday:
Forwards:
Crookshank – Stützle – Batherson
Giroux – Cozens – Zetterlund
Cousins – Pinto – Amadio
Highmore – Gaudette – Hodgson
Defense:
Sanderson – Zub
Chabot – Hamonic
Kleven – Gilbert
Goalies:
Forsberg
Ullmark
By Steve Warne
THN Ottawa Site Editor
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