Latendresse finding his scoring touch after injuries

When Ottawa Senators winger Guillaume Latendresse somehow found the back of the net with an impossible angle, airborne shot attempt Saturday afternoon, he might have been the only person at Scotiabank Place who wasn’t surprised.

Just like he practised it, right? Well, actually, yeah.

“That’s part of being a guy that’s supposed to score goals, and some nights it’s going to be pretty ones, some nights its going to be different, but I think that’s the kind of shot I’ve practised before from the red line, the goal-line,” he said.

Still, he allowed there was some luck. “If you give me 10 pucks like that tomorrow, I’m not sure that’s going to go in,” he said with a laugh.

If you’d given him 10 pucks in January, it almost certainly wouldn’t have.

He got off to a slow start here after signing a one-year contract that he saw as a chance to prove he could still play in the league following years of injury problems.

He managed just one assist in six games before suffering whiplash and recurring migraine headaches, however, and it was starting to look like this season would shape up much like his last two (15 points in just 27 games).

Yet in seven games since he returned this month, he has posted four goals and two assists. He looked at home Saturday night on a new line with Swedish rookies Mika Zibanejad and Jakob Silfverberg that combined for four points against the Lightning.

Not only has Latendresse healed physically, the mental side of his game is rounding into form as well. He suggested battling his own selfdoubt is as big a challenge as battling injuries.

“I feel good and, like I said, 90 per cent of my game is mental,” Latendresse said in French following practice Sunday. “As soon as I start to question myself, I stop moving my legs, my hands aren’t there as much.

“It’s important for me to keep the mindset in the right place and not stress for no reason.”

Asked if he might like to make his move to Ottawa more permanent, the 25-yearold pending unrestricted free agent said he would.

“I think I’ve said since the start, I think it’s a great organization. We’re treated like kings here, the treatment we have, the facility we have, it’s awesome here,” he said. “We have good crowds, it’s a nice city, so for sure.”

BISHOP BACK IN

The Senators will turn to goalie Ben Bishop against the New Jersey Devils Monday night. Bishop (6-4-0, 2.62 GAA, .921 save percentage) has already defeated the Devils once this season, stopping 30 shots in a 2-1 shootout victory in Newark on Feb. 18.

INJURY UPDATE

Injured Senators Jared Cowen and Craig Anderson skated at the Sensplex before practice Sunday, though neither is expected back in the lineup any time soon. Anderson is still recovering from a sprained ankle and Cowen is out until next season following surgery in the fall to repair a torn hip labrum.