Tkachuk Shakes Off Deadline Day Emotions To Lead Senators Past Rangers In Overtime Thriller
The Ottawa Senators once again found a way to get it done in the third period on Saturday afternoon, rallying to defeat the New York Rangers 4-3 in overtime at Canadian Tire Centre.
Igor Shesterkin makes a save on Claude Giroux (Imagn Images)After the Rangers coughed up the puck in their own zone, Tim Stützle picked it up along the boards and slid it over to Brady Tkachuk, who beat Igor Shesterkin for the game-winner just 33 seconds into overtime.
If Tkachuk was still feeling down about losing Josh Norris as a teammate on Friday, he didn’t let it show on Saturday.
“I mean, obviously, it was a really hard day yesterday,” Tkachuk told the media. “It sucked. But with that being said, today we had a job to do. And for us, every game's a Game 7 right now. So you can't let emotions and things in your head get in the way of it. For us, it’s all about winning this game.”
The OT goal was Tkachuk’s second of the afternoon, and in a game where no player had more than three shots, he had nine—a performance that will likely spark another round of bogus trade rumors out of New York.
The Senators trailed the Rangers 3-1 with under 10 minutes to go, but Ridley Greig and Michael Amadio managed to tie things up for Ottawa. Amadio's goal with 2:52 remaining was his seventh of the season and easily his biggest as a Senator so far.
The Sens outshot the Rangers 37-23, and for a long time, it looked as though Shesterkin would frustrate them once again, just as he had in their last meeting. He made 33 saves on the afternoon, while Linus Ullmark stopped 20 for Ottawa.
Travis Hamonic suffered a lower-body injury in the third period and did not return.
One of the Sens’ deadline-day priorities was improving their league-worst 5-on-5 production, and they did just that on Saturday. That was especially important because the power play went 0-for-5.
Newcomer Dylan Cozens was noticeable all day, creating scoring opportunities and hustling back to support the D. He even registering an assist on Greig’s goal—his first point as a Senator since being traded from Buffalo on Friday.
Cozens, the "Workhorse from Whitehorse," was all smiles after the game. He said the quick turnaround with an afternoon start made things easier.
“I think so," Cozens told the media. "I think that makes it a lot easier. You know, I wasn’t nervous thinking about it all day. So, you know, pretty much just woke up, came to the rink, and got on the ice. So I do think it made it easier for sure.”
This is a huge two points for the Senators, who now move into the top Eastern wild-card spot, one point ahead of both the Rangers and the Columbus Blue Jackets, who go head to head on Sunday.
With just 20 games left in the regular season, the Senators are back at it again on Monday night, hosting the Detroit Red Wings. Fabian Zetterlund will make his debut for the Sens.
By Steve Warne
Site Editor - The Hockey News Ottawa
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