The Senators have to hope they don't miss the playoffs by a point. In tonight's overtime, they had one great chance after another, but couldn't find a way to beat Stuart Skinner. They then led by one goal after the first period in the shootout, but the next two Penguins shooters scored as Stützle and Pinto both missed to end the game 4–3 for the Penguins. Let's get into the details.
Ullmark shines through Senators' defensive struggles
This is because the Senators will have a tough time without guys like Sanderson, Chabot and Jensen in their lineup. Tonight, he gave up 38 shots, the most he has given up all season. The second period was particularly difficult, with the Sens falling 16–6. That period ended with Ullmark making some big 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 clear that Travis Green doesn't trust Donovan right now. He played just 9:22 tonight. Yakemchuk was used a good amount tonight, playing 17:42 minutes and once again showing himself to be a threat offensively. Nonetheless, the quartet of Kleven, Zub, Spence and Matinpalo have worked extensively. Kleven, in particular, has seen his workload increase dramatically. He played 27 minutes tonight after playing a career-high 28:11 games in the previous game. With the news that Thomas Chabot is out for the next 4-8 weeks with his arm injury, Jake Sanderson may not be back soon.
Batherson scored twice again
From a goal total perspective, here are Batherson's last 14 games:
- 2, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 2, 0, 2, 0, 0, 0, 2, 2
He doesn't just score one goal in a game! His two goals tonight give him 29 points on the season, a new career high. He will need five points in the final 10 games to equal his career-high of 68 points last season.
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I've seen Eric Carlson put on a show like Tonight many times. However, it's not as much fun when it's against the Senators. Karlsson is the main reason the Penguins remained in the playoffs last month. He has scored 21 points in the month of March. Only Nikita Kucherov has more than 25. Nice to see Brady Tkachuk deliver some big hits tonight. He finished the game with six hits overall, equaling his season high. After a brutal stretch in which the Senators played six games in nine days, including two back-to-back situations, the Senators finally got some rest. Like. He will be off for two days before playing in Tampa Bay against the Lightning on Saturday.
