The Pittsburgh Penguins [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/pittsburgh-penguins] have lost six in a row heading into Thursday night's tilt against the Ottawa Senators [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/ottawa-senators]. This is a team that is in desperate need of a win and will try to get one against a Senators team that has been very up-and-down this year. They're in seventh place in the Atlantic Division with a 15-13-4 record and are coming off a 3-2 overtime win over the Winnipeg Jets [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/winnipeg-jets]on Monday night. Before that win, the Senators had lost four of their last five games. They're five points behind the New Jersey Devils [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/new-jersey-devils] for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference and five points behind the Tampa Bay Lightning [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/tampa-bay-lightning] for third in the Atlantic. Tim Stutzle has been their best player this season, compiling 15 goals and 33 points in 32 games. Drake Batherson is right behind him with 13 goals and 30 points in 29 games. Defenseman Jake Sanderson is a player who doesn't get talked about enough. He put on a show at the Four Nations Face-Off earlier this year and is making a strong case for the Team USA Olympic Team, racking up seven goals and 26 points in 32 games so far. You can't forget about Brady Tkachuk, who has been back in the lineup since the end of November after missing a month and a half. He has two goals and 11 points in 12 games, and loves to mix it up. Linus Ullmark will start in goal for the Senators and has struggled this season, posting a 3.00 goals-against average and an .879 save percentage. Arturs Silovs will be opposite of Ullmark for the Penguins. Here were the rest of the practice lines from Wednesday: Forwards: Rakell-Crosby-Rust Mantha-Novak-Brazeau Hayes-Kindel-McGroarty Dewar-Heinen-Acciari Defensive pairs: Wotherspoon-Karlsson Shea-Letang Kulak-St. Ivany -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Puck drop for Thursday's contest will be at 7 p.m. ET on SportsNet Pittsburgh. Fans can also listen to the game on 105.9 'The X.' -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Bookmark THN - Pittsburgh Penguins on your Google News tab [https://news.google.com/publications/CAAqBwgKMK-q0gsw7sXpAw/sections/CAQqEAgAKgcICjCvqtILMO7F6QMwquDfCA?hl=en-CA&gl=CA&ceid=CA%3Aen] to follow the latest Penguins news, roster moves, player features, and more!
