Game 45: Montreal Canadiens @ Ottawa Senators
Start time: 7:00 PM EST / 4:00 PM PST
In the Canadiens region: TSN2 (English), RDS (French)
In the Senators region: TSN5 (English), RDS (French)
Streaming: ESPN+, RDS, TSN
As the Montreal Canadiens get set to play their 45th game, they will finally face divisional opponent Ottawa Senators for the first time, starting off the final of the 31 season series.
After the way last year’s four-game set played out, the Canadiens probably didn’t mind a break of half a season from seeing the Senators again. No opponent handled the Habs as easily as the Florida Panthers last year, but Ottawa wasn’t far behind as the other team to sweep a four-game series from Montreal, outscoring them 18-8 overall.
With 35 other wins during a season that ended six points out of a playoff spot, the Senators were expected to take a step forward in 2023-24 and push the usual contenders in the Atlantic Division for a playoff spot. Instead, the season has been nothing short of a disaster for a team that believed all of its building blocks were in place. Ottawa has just 15 wins through 39 matches, sitting in last place in the division, and, even factoring in that they’ve played fewer games than any other team, fourth-last in the NHL in points percentage.
| Canadiens | Statistics | Senators |
|---|---|---|
| 19-18-7 | Record | 15-24-0 |
| 44.8% (29th) | Scoring-chances-for % | 46.4% (25th) |
| 2.70 (28th) | Goals per game | 3.33 (9th) |
| 3.32 (23rd) | Goals against per game | 3.77 (31st) |
| 18.9% (19th) | PP% | 16.6% (24th) |
| 72.7% (29th) | PK% | 71.7% (31st) |
| 0-4-0 | Head-to-Head Record (22-23) | 4-0-0 |
The Senators have made some moves the past couple of season to insulate all the players they’ve amassed through the draft over the past number of years. Rather than complement the starpower already in place in a secondary capacity, Claude Giroux and Vladimir Tarasenko have been among the top producers for the team, especially since the coaching switch from D.J. Smith to Jacques Martin. In the 13 games under a new bench boss, Giroux is tied for the team lead with 13 points and Tarasenko ranks fourth with nine. That’s great for them, but not as great for a team that has made four top-10 draft selections in the last six years and traded another one away to acquire Alex DeBrincat, who is putting up good numbers this season … on another team.
In these 13 games under Martin, Jacob Chychrun (another player acquired for a first-round pick) is a team-worst -10. Josh Norris’s return to health was supposed to help propel the team into a post-season position, but he had 20 points in 33 games before exiting with another injury. Tim Stützle has been really fighting it in recent games, not just unable to put the puck in the net, but committing costly errors in late-game situations that result in back-breaking goals. He has nine points in Martin’s tenure, with four of them coming versus the San Jose Sharks.
Stützle isn’t alone in having mistakes end up in goals against. The spirit of the team has been crushed by poor goaltending that spoils what has generally been decent play. Even with several players not scoring as expected, the Senators rank ninth in goals per game, but they’re 31st in goals against.
Ottawa was already last in the league heading into tonight's games, for whatever it's worth.
— Shayna (@hayyyshayyy) January 17, 2024
Also bad: NJD, CAR, MIN.
The best: WPG, BOS, VAN. pic.twitter.com/UatyvT17nX
The hope was that the goaltending was taken care of when they signed Joonas Korpisalo to a five-year contract. He now ranks dead-last in goals saved above expected in the NHL. With Anton Forsberg injured and Mads Søgaard giving up six goals to the Avalanche in the last game, there isn’t much choice but to go with the guy paid to be the number one.
The Senators are still a team Montreal needs to take seriously; the loss to the Sharks is lesson enough for what happens if they don’t. Brady Tkachuk is one of the few consistent young producers on the team with a style of play resistant to slumps. Drake Batherson has been able to join him in that regard, and Ridly Greig is also on a roll with five points in four games. No matter how many goals they manage to score, however, the Canadiens will have their chance to produce even more if they stick with the game plan that has earned them consecutive wins.
