The Senators head into Los Angeles on Thursday night looking to put their road trip back on track after a frustrating start in Vegas.
Ottawa opened its five-game trip with a 4-1 loss to the Golden Knights on Tuesday, but the score didn’t tell the full story. The Senators created plenty early, including an 11-4 edge in shots in the first period, and had several chances to seize control before Vegas finally broke a 1-1 tie midway through the third period and added two empty-net goals to close it out.
They’ll try to respond against the Kings with Jonas Johansson making his third straight start in goal. With Linus Ullmark still out with a lower body thing, Johansson has gone from a recall out of Belleville just seven days ago to taking over the net for the moment.
He made his Senators debut in Saturday’s 7-4 win over the New York Rangers, then followed that with the start against Vegas. Now he gets another chance to hold onto the backup role while Ullmark recovers.
Ottawa also gets a boost on the blue line. Thomas Chabot is back after missing time with an injury, giving the Senators a full slate of defensemen for the first time this season.
He skated with Jordan Spence at Thursday’s morning skate, while Jake Sanderson was with Artem Zub. Tyler Kleven and Nikolas Matinpalo made up the third pair, and Chabot’s return means Carter Yakemchuk comes out.
“Anytime you can get back to full health, it's a good thing for our group,' head coach Travis Green told the Senators website. “Obviously, Chabby is a big part of our team.
It's not an easy decision on who to play tonight. We've got seven guys that we like a lot.
LA is a big, strong team. They're heavy in front of the net, so we kind of based our decision on that."
Up front, the Senators will be without Warren Foegele, who left Tuesday’s loss in Vegas with a lower-body injury. Green said Foegele is expected to be out for an extended stretch, opening the door for Hayden Hodgson to enter the lineup. Hodgson, who played in the Kings organization during the 2023-24 season, will skate on the fourth line with Stephen Halliday and Nick Cousins.
The rest of Ottawa’s projected forward group has Zetterlund with Stützle and Giroux, Burakovsky with Cozens and Batherson, and Greig with Pinto and Amadio.
One thing that has traveled well with this team: the response. Even with five losses in their first 13 games, the Senators haven’t dropped back-to-back games yet this season.
The Kings took the last meeting between the teams, a 2-1 result, and they’re still looking for their first home win. Ottawa comes in 3-3-0 on the road, with Thursday’s game marking the second stop on the trip.
Puck drop is set for 10 p.m. ET at Crypto.com Arena, with the game on TSN5.
In Other News...
Senators Rally Raises A Bigger Question Than The Overtime Loss
The Senators turned what looked like a runaway loss into a wild finish against the Kings, erasing a 5-1 deficit with four unanswered goals in the third period to force overtime. Dylan Cozens and Drake Batherson helped drive the surge, giving Ottawa a burst of life after it had spent much of the night chasing the game, while Corey Perry kept the Kings dangerous on the other side.
Even with the comeback, the 6-5 overtime loss only sharpened the bigger question around Ottawa: how a team can look so buried, then suddenly find that kind of push when the game seems out of reach. Quinton Byfield ended it for Los Angeles in overtime, but the Senators left with a reminder that the fight is there, even if the result still slipped away. [Read more 🡒]
Senators Forward Depth Is Being Tested In A Hurry
The Senators are leaning on their depth chart sooner than planned, with Philip Tomasino and Xavier Bourgault summoned from Belleville after injuries to Warren Foegele and Andre Burakovsky, along with Hayden Hodgsons suspension, thinned the forward group. Both Tomasino and Bourgault have been productive in the AHL this season, and Ottawa is hoping their recent form can carry over as the club tries to keep its lines intact through a sudden wave of absences.
Belleville had to make a move of its own in response, signing Kyle McDonald to a professional tryout contract to help fill the gap left behind. For Ottawa, the bigger question is how long this patchwork arrangement lasts, especially with one injured winger facing a longer absence and another still awaiting a clearer read on the severity of his setback. [Read more 🡒]
Kings Let Ottawa Back In And It Nearly Cost Them
The Senators had the kind of night that can leave a coach shaking his head, because they looked in control early before the game turned sharply in Los Angeles. Ottawa still got three-point efforts from Dylan Cozens, Tim Sttzle and Drake Batherson, but it was not enough to protect a lead that slipped away as the Kings answered with a long run of offense.
Jonas Johanssons night ended after he gave up four goals on 16 shots, and Samuel Ersson had to take over in relief, making 20 saves to finish it out. For Ottawa, the second straight loss was especially frustrating because the scoring was there and the start was there, but the back half of the game left far too much to clean up. [Read more 🡒]