The Senators are down to their final preseason tune-up, and tonight brings the kind of split-squad setup that gives everyone a real glimpse at what opening night might look like.
Ottawa will face Montreal in two games at the same time, with the Sens expected to dress what looks a lot like their NHL group at the Canadian Tire Centre. The projected lineup has Eklund-Stutzle-Zetterlund up front, Burakovsky-Cozens-Batherson behind them, then Giroux-Halliday-Amadio and Cousins-Bakke Olsen-Hodgson. On the blue line, it’s Chabot-Spence, Sanderson-Stanley, and Kleven-Yakemchuk, with Ullmark in goal.
That looks awfully close to the real thing, with the full top six in place and the regular defence group getting its work in.
The Canadiens are splitting their roster as well. Montreal is expected to send more of a B squad to Ottawa, led by Bolduc-Kapanen-Dach and a lineup that also includes Davidson-Dauphin-Belzile, Berard-McKown-Pastujov, and Poulin-Mesar-Bentley. Their defence group for that game is projected to feature Struble-Xhekaj, Engstrom-Reinbacher, and Protz-Walsh, with Dobes and Kahkonen listed in goal.
At the Bell Centre, though, Montreal is expected to ice more of its NHL side. That group includes Caufield-Suzuki-Kreider, Newhook-Danault-Slafkovsky, Texier-Evans-Anderson, and F.Xhekaj-Beck-Thorpe up front, with Matheson-Dobson, Carrier-Mittelstadlt, and Szuber-Samson on defence. Fowler is listed in goal.
There’s a neat family wrinkle in this one, too: new Belleville Sens forward Ryan Suzuki will face his brother Nick Suzuki for the first time ever in an NHL jersey. Based on the expected lineups, both brothers should be in the Bell Centre game.
There are also a few lineup notes worth watching. Stützle and Cozens have swapped wingers since the last game, which means Travis Green is still experimenting with the forward combinations. This is also the first chance to see Stützle and Eklund together.
Shane Pinto will not play in either game after missing practice yesterday with an injury of some kind. The sense is that it’s precautionary, and Green mentioned several players were sore or banged up yesterday.
Jake Sanderson is set to make his first appearance after missing a few days of camp, including the split-squad games against Toronto. He’s paired with Hoyt Stanley, not Yakemchuk, which is notable given the opening created by Zub’s injury. The expectation had been that Yakemchuk might get a look higher up the lineup, but Ottawa appears committed to keeping him on the third pair for now, even though he and Kleven have struggled this preseason.
Thomas Chabot is also set to play his first preseason game. He sat out in Trois-Rivières, was scratched at the last minute against the Leafs on Wednesday, and has not practiced since.
His absence has presumably been tied to his wife’s pregnancy, though there’s been no update yet. The hope is simply that all is well.
Both games get underway at 7:00 pm EST. The home game will be on the Sens’ YouTube channel, while the road game will be carried on TSN5 and RDS.
In Other News...
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Ottawas goaltending picture changed again this week, and not by accident. After losing Leevi Merilainen on waivers and already bringing in Samuel Ersson to back up Linus Ullmark, the Senators moved to add Jonas Johansson from the Tampa Bay Lightning as a way to shore up a thinning depth chart in net.
Johansson arrives with plenty of NHL experience from the last three seasons as Andrei Vasilevskiys backup, but his career numbers have not always matched the job security of that role. For a Senators team trying to keep its goalie pipeline stable behind Ullmark, the addition helps on quantity, even if it leaves open the bigger question of how the organization wants to sort out the pecking order behind its starter. [Read more 🡒]
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For the Senators, the larger point is less about where Dach lands than what it could mean inside a division that never stays quiet for long. Montreal already declined a second-round pick for him last June, and Dach is entering the final year of his $3.6 million contract, which only adds to the sense that this situation could turn quickly once the offseason market opens up. If the Canadiens decide to move him or let the process play out, Ottawa could be watching another rival gain a piece that changes the balance in the Atlantic. [Read more 🡒]
Senators Defensive Prospect Faces Major Setback In Critical Development Year
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The injury was suffered in an OHL preseason game, and the timeline puts his absence in the four- to five-month range, which is a tough break for any prospect trying to make progress before the year gets rolling. Pangretitsch is already in recovery mode and hopes to be back before the playoffs, but for now the Senators will be watching a promising blue-line project from a distance. [Read more 🡒]