AN INFLUX OF YOUTH COULD BE COMING AS SLUMPING SENS LOOK FOR SOLUTIONS
The Ottawa Senators reached a crossroads in Columbus.
Mired in a four-game losing streak, suffering from scoring slumps, shaky goaltending, struggling special teams and ill-timed mental errors, they’re in desperate search for answers as they prepare to face the Blue Jackets, leaders of the Metropolitan Division, on Friday.
As stubborn as Senators coach Guy Boucher has been in sticking with his veterans, he hinted strongly Thursday that he could do the once unthinkable — making one of his established defencemen a healthy scratch while playing rookies Thomas Chabot and Ben Harpur.
If Boucher goes in that direction, the likely choice for odd man out comes down to Johnny Oduya or Freddy Claesson, both of whom struggled in Wednesday’s 5-2 loss to the Washington Capitals, a game in which the Senators dressed seven defencemen. Only six will play against Columbus.
“I really liked Chabot and I liked Harpur, too,” said Boucher. “We’ll have to make a tough decision there. (Chabot and Harpur) both brought their strengths. This one isn’t an easy one. Chabot was very good. He made a few little mistakes, but some of our vets made the same mistakes, too, so it’s very positive.”
The timing is intriguing. While it’s become increasingly clear that the team has yet to find an adequate replacement for defenceman Marc Methot — lost to Vegas in the expansion draft — Boucher has been receiving increased criticism for his reluctance to take a longer look at the Senators’ prospect pool. Chabot, in particular, should add a spark to a power play that has gone 0-for-14 during the four-game losing streak.
Boucher will be adding a blast from his past to the forward ranks against the Blue Jackets, with waiver pickup Gabriel Dumont stepping into the lineup. In a corresponding move, the Senators placed Chris DiDomenico on waivers, hoping he will clear so that he can play bigger minutes with Belleville of the AHL.
“(Dumont) is a hard-nosed guy who is reliable, who is going to bring us some intangibles, too,” Boucher said. “He’s a guy who hits hard and he’s smart and he can play (on the penalty kill), an outstanding shot blocker and he’s a pest.”
At the same time, the Senators will also keep 22-year-old Nick Paul in the lineup.
Maybe, just maybe, Boucher is hearing the voices asking for an injection of youth, an attitude that could also mean offensively-minded prospects Filip Chlapik and/or Colin White will get a look sooner rather than later.
For now, though, the Senators are doing their best to not panic while they fight through their problems.
On a quiet Thanksgiving Day afternoon in Columbus, the Senators opted for an off-ice workout rather than a practice.
“We’re facing some adversity right now,” said centre JeanGabriel Pageau. “We’ve got to take all the negatives out of our game and think about the positives and the little details. It’s a big day here in America and we just talked about what we’re grateful for.”
Goaltender Craig Anderson, who will start against the Blue Jackets, insists the Senators aren’t that far away from getting back on track.
“Our fundamentals is what is going to get us out of it,” he said. “For the most part, we’ve been in most of these games. There’s no reason to be crying wolf, or whatever the terminology you might want to use. It’s just a matter of sticking with it, sticking with what’s worked for us in the past.”
While the Senators desperately need some offence from Matt Duchene (pointless in six games since being acquired in a trade from Colorado) and Bobby Ryan (still without a goal this season), Anderson has to be better, too. His .896 save percentage isn’t even close to good enough.
“I’ve had some good games, some bad ones, but you can always improve,” he said. “We watch a lot of video and reflect on our games quite a bit. There are going to be mistakes by myself and you try to learn from those.
“Earlier in the year, when I wasn’t playing as well as I wanted to, we were scoring some goals and winning some hockey games.”
The Senators have been losing games because of mistakes in all areas of the ice, but Boucher’s theme is about the players maintaining their focus. Forgetting the basics at critical moments has buried the Senators time and again.
“We reminded ourselves that it’s a building moment,” said Boucher. “There is a little cloud, it’s not a gigantic cloud, that we have to see through.”
The Senators were specialists at winning low-scoring games last season. This year, not so much.
“You need to have the patience to win tight games,” Boucher said. “Our minds have strayed away from that lately, where we’re not comfortable with the one-goal lead, or the one-goal deficit, because we want more, we want right now. That’s not the right approach.”
Boucher isn’t making big picture changes just yet, but he is at least opening his eyes to some fresh personnel moves.