Rookie Leevi Merilainen will start for the Senators on Saturday night while Adam Gaudette drops back to fourth line duty in his return to Vancouver.
We've all heard the sports cliché a thousand times: 'If it ain't broke, don't fix it.'
As winners of five games in a row, the Ottawa Senators don't appear to be broken. But in the third period in Calgary on Thursday night, it was clear that head coach Travis Green saw some things he didn't like.
No, the Green machine wasn't broken, but some of the parts were leaking oil.
The Senators still secured the victory, their seventh in eight games, and Green was happy to get it. However, he said after the game, "We probably would have lost that game (if it had happened) three weeks ago."
So, despite the win streak, Green is expected to make some adjustments to his lineup for Saturday night's game in Vancouver. According to TSN 1200 radio, the Sens' morning skate line combinations looked like this:
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With the Sens playing on Sunday in Edmonton, it was expected that Leevi Merilainen would start one of these two games. Instead of continuing to ride the experienced, well-rested, and red-hot hand of Linus Ullmark, Green has opted to start the 22-year-old Merilainen on Saturday night.
If we're guessing at Green's motivations, he's probably thinking a young goalie's first NHL start in a year and a half shouldn't be against Connor McDavid.
Other Ottawa changes include the demotion of winger Adam Gaudette, the Senators' second-best goal scorer. Gaudette played only one shift in the third period in Calgary, and after a hot start, he has just one goal in his last nine games. So despite this being a Vancouver homecoming for Gaudette, he'll be on the fourth line against the Canucks.
Ridly Greig scored in Calgary, his first goal in 20 games, and that was enough to push him back into the top six for Saturday night. He'll skate alongside Josh Norris and Drake Batherson.
Green had already been tinkering with the lines while Brady Tkachuk was off getting stitches in his mouth. When Tkachuk returned with a fat lip for the third period, he was moved off the Norris/Batherson line and took Gaudette's spot with Tim Stützle and Claude Giroux.
It looks like Green will stick with that tonight. This allows Giroux to shift back to his more natural spot on the right wing, and Greig to return to his natural side on the left.
For the second straight game, it's a battle of two teams trying to hold onto the final wild-card spot in their respective conference. In their meeting in Ottawa last month, Jake DeBrusk had two goals and an assist to help the Canucks hand the Sens their fifth loss in a row.
Since that game, Ottawa has flicked the switch, posting a record of 9-2-1 in their last 12 games.
Canucks' projected lineup (from NHL.com):
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Former Senator Erik Brannstrom is expected to be a healthy scratch.
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