Tight-checking 3-0 victory
NEWARK, New Jersey — Let’s all go back to our pre-season predictions about how the Ottawa Senators might achieve success.
We all had Dion Phaneuf scoring four times as many power play goals as Erik Karlsson and we all had Mike Condon posting five shutouts, right?
Bizarre as it seems, that is the way it looks after Condon and Phaneuf led the Senators to a tight-checking 3-0 victory here over the New Jersey Devils Thursday.
With the victory, played in front of a proud group of fathers, the Senators are now four points behind Montreal for top spot in the Atlantic Division, with three games in hand.
Phaneuf’s power play goal, with 1:59 remaining in the second period, broke a 0-0 deadlock.
Karlsson padded the lead to 2-0 with 3:58 remaining and Kyle Turris put the game out of reach by scoring into an empty net with 1:37 on the clock.
Phaneuf ’s goal was his second in two games, his third in four games and his fourth power play of the season. Remarkably, Karlsson has but one power play goal.
While Phaneuf and Karlsson took care of the offence, Condon cleaned up business at the other end.
Making his first start since a 3-2 win over Dallas on Feb. 9 — and his first since Craig Anderson returned to action last week — Condon stopped 21 shots. Condon is now tied for fourth in the NHL in shutouts.
Between him and Anderson, the Senators have nine blankings, second in the league behind Washington.
Phaneuf couldn’t have picked a better time to break the Senators woeful stretch on the power play.
His slapshot past Schneider broke a five-game, 0-for-13 drought with the man advantage, dating back to a Feb. 2 game against Tampa. The Senators had also only scored on the power play in one of their previous eight games.
Devils winger Mike Cammalleri was feeling the shame, sitting in the penalty box for tripping Derick Brassard.
For the longest time, it was a game crying out for something — anything — to happen. Then again, it wasn’t entirely surprising, either.
Both teams recognize their key to success is to play within a defensive structure, not opening up.
The Devils came into the game with only 131 goals, last in the Eastern Conference. The Senators had scored only 141.
While the Senators picked up the pace in the latter stages of the second period, neither Schneider nor Condon was overworked.
Condon’s big break came 15 seconds into the second period when Beau Bennett’s slapshot bounced off the post and stayed out. The Senators goaltender was also fortunate that Adam Henrique shot high on a shorthanded breakaway following a bad Mike Hoffman giveaway.
Winger Pyatt may well have saved a goal with an outstanding backcheck to break up a 2-on-1 break.
The Senators sported a different look from the squad that suffered a 3-2 loss to Buffalo at Canadian Tire Centre Tuesday.
For one, Condon was back in net, playing for the first time since a 3-2 victory over Dallas on Feb. 9 and for the first time since Craig Anderson’s return.
Curtis Lazar, who had been a healthy scratch for the previous four games, stepped into the lineup while Chris Neil took his turn sitting out. Lazar played primarily on a fourth line with Tommy Wingels and Chris Kelly, but he did also received an early look on a line with Kyle Turris and Hoffman.
On defence, Marc Methot was “sick”, according to Senators coach Guy Boucher, meaning that Fredrik Claesson stepped into his spot as Karlsson’s defence partner.
The Devils entered the game amid the log jam of teams desperately trying to gain ground in the fight for a wild card playoff spot – five teams and five points out.
New Jersey needs a special kind of run to make it and the Devils weren’t in any position to take the Senators lightly.
“They’re not underrated from our room,” Devils coach John Hynes said. “This team has been very good, very consistent and that’s why they’re one of the top teams in the (Eastern) Conference.”
The Devils outshot the Senators 8-7 in the scoreless, tight-checking first.
Both Condon and Schneider needed to make big saves on two on one breaks to keep the game scoreless in the first period.
Schneider’s stop came off Hoffman six minutes in. Condon’s save came off Kyle Palmieri with less than five minutes remaining.
The Senators were scheduled to leave New Jersey for Toronto immediately following the game. The Senators will conclude their regular season series against the Maple Leafs on Saturday.