Senators defy odds
With little fanfare, Ottawa moves to verge of playing for Stanley Cup title,
The Ottawa Senators, with 98 points, were the NHL’s 12thbest team in the regular season. They ranked 22nd in goals-pergame (2.51), and their special teams finished in the bottom third.
When the playoffs began, the Senators were a 28-1 shot to win the Stanley Cup. Only the St. Louis Blues had worse odds.
It’s fair to say the Senators, holding a 1-0 lead on the Pittsburgh Penguins in the best-ofseven Eastern Conference finals, are a major surprise. So who are the Senators, and why have they been so successful? 1. Think mid-1990s New
Jersey Devils: That’s the comparison that works, because the Senators can frustrate the opposition by using a 1-3-1 forechecking formation that tends to clog up the neutral zone.
Those Devils became one of the NHL’s best teams by using that strategy.
“We are a hard team to play against,” Senators center Zack Smith said. “With the system we play, it’s no secret we don’t give up a lot of chances.”
The Senators’ identity is their relentless commitment to the system.
“I’m not sure what the word is for it,” Smith said. “But ‘stinginess’ would be part of the way to describe it.”
2. Charismatic coach: Guy Boucher is responsible for transforming the Senators into the gritty group that doesn’t allow many clean looks at their net. Hired last summer, Boucher took a team ranked 26th in goals-against average (2.94) in 2015-16 and converted the players into defensive zealots. The Senators ranked 10th in goals against this season at 2.56.
“The word ‘respect’ has always been a part of our talk with players,” Boucher said. “We want to respect the opponent, but it’s important that we are ourselves, and we spend 80% of our time talking about ourselves and what we need to do
and 20% about the opponent.” 3. Look to be David, not Goliath: The Senators are rallying around their underdog status. They liked that all the attention was on the Pittsburgh-Washington Capitals second-round series while they were taking care of business against the New York Rangers.
“It’s not a bad position to be in when you are underestimated,” Smith said.
4. Nuclear powered: No team has an offensive weapon quite like defenseman Erik Karlsson. He is the world’s most dynamic defenseman and can beat a forecheck on his own with his skating ability. In Game 1 against the Penguins, he led all players with six shots on net. Much of Ottawa’s offense flows from Karlsson.
“I’ve watched him since he’s been 17, and I’ve been telling people in the NHL and around the world that he was one of the best players in the league,” Ottawa general manager Pierre Dorion said.
Boucher has challenged Karlsson to be a more complete defenseman.
“I think this year he has bought into what Guy’s tried to tell him to do. I think he’s kept his shifts shorter,” Dorion said. “When we interviewed Guy, we spent a lot of time talking about Erik, and he was adamant that he was a very good defender and he felt he was going to use him on the (penalty kill).” 5. Tightknit fraternity: The Senators have grown closer through unfortunate circumstances. GM Bryan Murray, diagnosed with cancer in 2014, retired in the offseason. Bobby Ryan’s mother died over the summer. Goalie Craig Anderson’s wife was diagnosed with cancer, and he missed time this season to be with her.
These are players who play for each other. They have pulled together through hard times, and now they pull together on the ice.
“Also the hockey part solidified our group,” Boucher said. “It’s been a growing process since Day One. Like I always say, the intangibles matter more than anything else.”