The Sabres have been playing inspired hockey as of late and have battled their way back into the Eastern Conference playoff picture. Heading into tonight's tilt, Buffalo is just two points back of the 8th place Capitals. The Sabres will be a desperate hockey club tonight.
Meanwhile the Sens will be looking to build off an impressive win over the New York Rangers on Thursday night. The Sens got solid goaltending from Ben Bishop and quite possibly put together their best 60 minute effort of the season. Ottawa has won back to back games and seven of ten and continue to put pressure on the 6th place Devils.
New Jersey is in Long Island tonight.
Tonight marks the sixth and final meeting between the Sabres and Senators this season. Buffalo took the first two meetings but the Sens have claimed the last three, including a 3-2 win in Buffalo on New Year's Eve.
Ben Bishop, who has played well in his two starts, will make his third straight start in the Ottawa goal. Ryan Miller gets the nod for the Sabres. No line up changes are expected for Paul MacLean's group which means that Zenon Konopka, Matt Carkner and Bobby Butler will be the healthy scratches.
Here is how the Senators are expected to line up.
Greening-Spezza-Michalek
Klinkhammer-Turris-Alfie
Daugavins-Smith-Condra
Foligno-O'Brien-Neil
Kuba-Karlsson
Cowen-Gonchar
Phillips-Gilroy
Puck drop is scheduled for just after 7:00 PM tonight with all the action available on CBC's Hockey Night in Canada. For those of you looking to stream the game, check out the HNIC website as they always have live streaming available on their site.
- Some more good news on the injury front this morning as apparently Craig Anderson was able to handle the puck a little bit for the first time since being sidelined with a cut to his right hand. Still no time frame for his return but it's clear Anderson is progressing down the road to recovery.
Let's hope he gets in 5-6 games before the playoffs start to get the rust off.
Big Win tonight boys!
Can't wait to see Bishop live for the first time!
On one hand I'd like to see Erik tough it out even if he's banged up - and if he does sit out other teams are just going to be even more physical with him. On the other hand, he's still young so don't want to have him play hurt and not be effective.
To me it looks like Maclean has the lineup the way he wants it for the playoffs (i.e 1st line with Greening and bottom 6 the way it is) and he will simply switch between Klinkhammer to Zibanejad. Klinkhammer actually is somewhat similar to Zibanejad in the sense that he plays with speed and forechecks hard. Zibanejad brings all that to the table but also can create offense. Even if he isn't full polished as I'm sure everyone would agree with, he still brings more offense than Hammer or anyone else that's played in that spot this year. I really do think he would be very effective with Turris and Alfie. They could finally stop ignoring the 3rd member of that line. Just imagine zib sniping one timers like he did at the world juniors or like he did in the preason game against Boston where he scored the OT winner
I honestly believe this has been a part of the plan for a little while now. Probably why BM didn't feel too pressured to get a depth forward at the deadline
Don't forget Winchester either - he's pushing hard to be back before the season is over. I'm sure a top 8 finish is helping motivate him as well.
Oh come on Karlsson, suck it up. You got hit, you may be sore, but it will all go away. Get into the game and the Adrenaline will help.
People say it would be a terrible management decision to burn a year off a contract only for the playoffs. I think it's actually a brilliant decision. Then he will be signing a 2nd contract a year earlier and therefore has fewer years under his belt and chances are, not as good of stats for when negotiations start. Chances are, he would sign a similar deal to what Claude Giroux signed.(2 or 3 years at 2 or 3 mill). As opposed to him having 3 years under his belt. Most probably would have a big 3rd year and end up getting a longer term deal at a much bigger cap hit.
I say play the kid
I hope I'm way off base...but I don't think I am.
My only concern with that is clearly the Rangers (and TB for that matter) tried to play extra physical with Karlsson to get him off his game. If he sits out a game every team in the NHL will do that since it appears to work. Of course, if he plays hurt and isn't effective it's the same thing.
Hopefully in another couple of years he's better able to withstand the physical side so it's not "the book" on how to play against him.
Gotta remember the kid's still just 21.
I think Karlsson is respectful enough - but he did clearly show that you can get him off his game by roughing him up. So in that sense he's going to see more of it until he can demonstrate that it won't stop him from producing.
I'm actually glad that now (at 21) he's getting all this attention. Spezza went through the same thing and came out the other side so EK can do the same. He just needs to prove that simply sending some 4th line guy out to lay a few hits won't get him off his game.
GO SENS GO!
The guy that hit him is about 6ft 8 -- well over 200 lbs... I'm sure none of you would be feeling very well pounded by that goon. He can't play hockey.. he's there to fight & hurt... and he obviously succeeded on the hurt part.
I don't like the idea of no Karlsson going tonight against a speedy team like Buffalo... that would affect the Sens rush for sure...
As for Mika... he's in Sweden until April...
If Karlsson does play -- he will be targetted especially by Kaleta... that punk... too bad this got to the media...
dont believe silfverburg is, zibby played 9 games prior to deadline that makes him eligible for playoffs,
if silfverburg was available he would only be allowed to play regular season games.
It would be nice to see Petersson up for a while to see how he is doing.
Hope we see some more secondary scoring tonight! GO SENS
really, you register to nit pic?
It's Silfverberg ..
Karlsson will play tonight I don't think a couple hits will drive this guy from not playing
Sens win 3-1
sounds like ruff doesnt think too much of nick.
As per Timmy Thomas, he's a very streaky player & after his Whitehouse boycott, his game has not been the same. As much as I admire TT, what he did was selfish, distracting and I'm sure it's caused a rift in the Bruin's locker room.
I also agree that Eric needs to play through some ailment. The playoffs are going to be mighty punishing for the young Sweed.
I predict Karlsson will be receiving A LOT of attention like this in the future...As he is around 175 pounds, I wonder if the Sens will be hesitant to sign him too long term...
Vanek is questionable for tonight.
Saying he wants Marcus to be the best Foligno is simply leveraging sibling rivalry to challenge Marcus to play hard. A compliment to Nick if anything.
Sounds like Karlsson is in
They have a chance to pull to within 1 pt with a win tonight..
I realize the Bruins have 3 games in hand... but 1 of those is tomorrow against the Penguins...
They have a pretty easy schedule the rest of March.. but their 4 games in April are tough ones, Rangers, Pitts, Ottawa & Buffalo..
Sens schedule rest of March is so-so.. 3 games in 2 weeks against the bloody Habs who seem to have the Sens #. But the games to close out in April are, Islanders, Carolina, Boston & New Jersey..
A much better schedule at the end. Sens have to stay close in the standings. Could that game on April 5 be for the division championship? What team, goaltender will be better rested...
It's up to the Sens to get the job done.. how sweet would that be... Wins against the Habs & Leafs go a long way into getting to Boston...
Let's hope & pray...
it lists cbcO showing toronto vs philly...
WTF?
Yeah bell blows... i checked mine early and it said the same thing... and now its saying montreal toronto...
im sure cbc o will be playing the game just some really bad technical difficulties early on
Karlsson Game time decision
WHYYYY GOD .. WHYYYYYYYYYYYYY YYY
I guess Wolski didn't get the memo on Alfie then ...
HD screen @ SBP = WIN
HD Sens Coverage = FAIL
I remember someone put a petition at http://cbcottawainhd.org but that hasn't built up the steam I was hoping. They're response:
Bell TV is always working to offer our customers as many local channels across the country in both SD and HD as possible. But as you note, we don't yet carry all available local channels in HD.
We're eager to expand our HD channels even beyond the more than 100 we offer now. Bell continues to invest in additional capacity to carry more HD, and the new Nimiq 6 satellite (with all capacity dedicated to Bell TV) is scheduled for launch by mid-2012.
That said, even as capacity grows, we will have to negotiate with broadcasters for the rights to carry more over the air channels nationally, including HD, so I can't offer any dates around new HD additions.
Thanks for contacting Bell, we do appreciate hearing from our valued customers!
Jacqueline Michelis
Bell Media Relations
yup thats bullshit, got the same email...
the hd channel already exists and is broadcasted on other providers and thats where this email falls short, its not like they need to convert the signal its already available. Also if cbc wasn't national it would be in hd on nhl center ice.
oh well i'll just stream the hd feed on cbc.ca
There was speculation Karlsson was a game time decision via Cassie Campbell. MacLean has since said no lineup changes. Expect Karlsson to be in the lineup
Thanks.
Bodog is usually right on top of these things, and the game is still closed to betting which makes me wonder about EK65.
With or without him, there is no reason we cannot spank the living f**k out of the Sabres tonight.
GO SENS!
I left the room and when I came back the singer was laughing, then she finished the anthem
She forget the words or something? lol
What happened?
Suter anyone?! :)
I think I've been saying Suter and Parise since last summer.
I think Gilroy is a little more mobile than Lee, but he's going to be pretty far down our depth chart if we bring him back next year.
They tried it before and they both aren't comfortable on the left side from what I remember.
If we can't get a hold of Suter, Matt Carle or Brad Stuart would be nice additions and wouldn't be as expensive. I'm a fan of all of them, but Suter would be a nice addition to our defense and we have the money for him.
If Detroit doesn't re-sign Stuart he's going back to California. I remember hearing that his wife and kids never left with him when he left SanJose.
Suter???
You do realize King Eric will be taking most of the cash from here on in, don't you? Suter and Parise are merely wet dreams for us Sens fans...
Dislike that trade more with each game.
I'd rather have Captain Crunch leading my team than that sloppy seconds luvin' bozo...
Norris
Yeah - easy to do - Yashin used to be our Captain.
DaybreakMaidenh ead!
Mr Smith is a beast same with Klink Klink
Why is he better in the NHL? He was a beast during his tenure in the NHL he should be blanking everyone at the AHL level. Bah.
Can't always make up for a terrible team around you. Our AHL team is pretty poor this year, but there will be a huge influx into the roster next year.
You do realize Gonchar was taken down on that play.
And we should have had a power play after the goal when in as Bishop was high sticked. The bad bounces and missed calls on that play lost us the game.
You're right. Shots tonight are 23-8 for Rochester end of 2nd.
WTH was that haha
There is no negotiating. Just give him what he wants, damn it. I have no damn worries that he will earn every penny of his contract.
7-8M a year is what we will probably be looking at!
He is due for a hatty
I think it was fine.
Why not? He hit him on the mask. But I guess that is not reviewable.
Ya we let a few in but they were all dirty scramble goals that just happen some times. I thought everyone hustled really hard tonight. So many different players had their own 'noticeable' shift. Even Bishop I thought had an awesome game(excluding the part where he looked silly in the shootout).
Everyone was saying the new York game was the best performance for the team. Wich I agreed with, but tonight's was even beter. Full 65 minute effort tonight.
Paul Maclean should/must be very proud of the boys tonight!!
Gonchar fucked up tho.
Rulebook doesn't specify that a penalty gets called only when you high-stick a skater. So I guess my question is should that whack to the mask been a penalty (in addition to the slew-foot on Gonchar)?
I hope they don't completely tank. I don't want them to get a lottery pick and get lucky..
Well if the rulebook states there will be no penalty then I guess I can't argue but seem like a forward should not be able to high stick a goalie.
Let's get ém on this shootout.
Ben Bishop was solid all game long I was blown away. Really liked Klink, too.
Gonchar is single handedly responsible for the tying goal. Dumb play going backwards got outhustled and they score a chippy one. All on Gonchar.
Sens really should have won, but this shit happens! Too much good has happened this season for me to be mad about a loss at this point.
Sens Zero: Gonchar.
Doesn't matter, Gonchar is the Joker
Lehner please come back !!!!
And now tequila time.
Luego!
Bishop played great and no chance on the 3 he let in.
Gonchar played ok and got slew footed on the last goal... wasnt soft on that play at all.
Klinkhammer reminds me of Greening..
Does Ottawa play him one more game and give that 7th rounder to chicago??
When is he gonna bang up his skates?
Good for him.
I'm glad he's getting a real chance for once, with some regular play. Not play-scratchx4- play-scratchx6- etc.
Rather have lee....
Murray needs to definitly address this in the offseason.
was at the game they were not chanting "we suck" they were chanting leafs suck awesome game btw one oft the best games i've been too
He has 16 goals in 36 games since, thats on pace for about 35 on a 82 game season.. scary
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=afUnQ7ywmzg
No wonder Lee played 22 mins, you see the other D-men they had dressed (Commodore, Mikkleson)? Tampa's D-men are atrocious.
We were chanting LEAFS SUCK -- someone had the sign... so we obliged by chanting that..
Look it's a hockey game for pete's sake... no need to fight. If you can't handle your liquor ... then don't drink it. A lot of kids at the game last night.. don't these guys think that a 3rd party could get hurt in their fisticuffs? Maybe a child? And that's on both sides..
Miller was the difference last night... Sens should have shot high on him.. but they kept putting it in his pads.
But I'm sure they will take the point. The only team they gained on though was Boston.. all the rest in front and Wash behind got 2 pts.
Bishop made some nice saves though.. but let's be realistic he is not Miller..
Bishop & Lehner combined have a record of 4-2-1 which is very good for rookie goalies especially against some of the teams they have been playing.
The next 3 games scare me though. 2 against the Habs and 1 against Toronto. Fast teams that the Sens have a hard time against. Need 4 out of 6 pts please..
Boston is losing one of their games in hand today to Pitts 3-0 in the 1st intermission.
I thought Boston would be the team to beat in the East... no way... that now belongs to Pittsburgh. They are playing great hockey.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=afUnQ7ywmzg
I'm sure his head was not in that game last night.
My condolences to the Zoricic's family, friends & teammates.
He has really been in a slump and it continues this afternoon
Good for us!
Also i think we'll see Anderson play sometime this week, our young goalies have done well for us and we're lucky to have them in our system.
Can't believe I was cheering for the pens today !! 2 more injuries for the bruins Patrice and boychuk hopefully get a losing streak going
These next 5 games 3 vs mtl tor nj could be the streak that puts us in 2 nd overall
Didn't see the whole game.. but if they lose Bergeron for any length of time.. they are screwed. Down Horton.. then to lose Bergeron.. Yikes.
I can't believe I'm saying this... it goes against everything that is in me.. but go Leafs.. beat those Caps... they can't get too close to the Sens in the standings.
seemed like when he started the season he was always floating them in for a tip, as the season wore on now he is sending them in to beat the goalie.
Any news on bishops new mask coming any info?