Danny McCloskey
The Senators will have to hope they don’t miss the playoffs by a point. In tonight’s overtime, they had great chance after great chance, but could not find a way to beat Stuart Skinner. They then went up a goal after round one in the shootout, but the next two Penguins shooters scored as both Stützle and Pinto missed to have the game end 4-3 for the Penguins. Let’s dive into the details.
Ullmark Shines through Senators Defensive Struggles
It stands to reason that the Senators would have a harder time without the likes of Sanderson, Chabot, and Jensen in their lineup. Tonight, they gave up 38 shots, the most they’ve allowed all season. The second period was particularly rough, with the Sens being outshot 16-6. That period ended with Ullmark making a few huge saves to keep the game tied. He kept the Sens in this game with several great saves, including a breakaway toe save in overtime.
It’s obvious that Travis Green doesn’t trust Donovan just yet. He played just 9:22 tonight. Yakemchuk was used a decent amount tonight, playing 17:42 and once again showing himself to be a threat offensively. Nonetheless, the foursome of Kleven, Zub, Spence, and Matinpalo have taken on huge minutes. Kleven, in particular, has seen his workload increase dramatically. He played 27 minutes tonight after playing a career high 28:11 in the previous game. With the news that Thomas Chabot is out for the next 4-8 weeks due to his arm injury, Jake Sanderson can’t come back soon enough.
Batherson Scores Twice, Again
Here are Batherson’s last 14 games, from a goal total perspective:
- 2, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 2, 0, 2, 0, 0, 0, 2, 2
He simply does not score just one goal in a game! His two goals tonight give him 29 on the season, a new career high. He’ll need five points in the last 10 games to match his career high 68 points, set last season.
Additional Notes
I’ve seen Erik Karlsson put on a show like he did tonight many times. It’s not as fun when it’s against the Senators, though. Karlsson is the number one reason the Penguins have remained in a playoff spot over the last month. He’s scored 21 points in the month of March. Only Nikita Kucherov has more, with 25. It was nice to see Brady Tkachuk deliver a few massive hits tonight. He finished the game with six hits in total, tied for his season high. The Senators will be back at it Saturday afternoon in Tampa Bay, taking on the Lightning. This is after a brutal stretch that’s seen them play six games in nine days, including two back-to-back situations.
