SENS NEEDED THIS ONE
After losing six of eight, Ottawa rallies in Florida
SUNRISE, Fla. Perhaps all those pre-game soccer warmup drills have a purpose, after all.
Just ask Colin Greening after the Senators much needed 4-2 victory over the Florida Panthers here Tuesday.
Greening scored the winner with 43 seconds left in the second period, in a game which was full of unlikely heroes, unlikely bounces and unlikely line combinations.
With the Senators on a power play in the final minute of the second period, Joe Corvo’s point shot deflected off Greening’s leg, popped high in the air, over the head of Panthers goaltender Tim Thomas and into the net. Bend it like Beckham, indeed.
Bobby Ryan provided the third period insurance, all alone at the side of the net to finish off a Jared Cowen pass.
At the other end of the ice, Senators goaltender Craig Anderson added to his mastery over the Panthers, improving his career record over Florida to 10-1-1. Anderson, who came into the game fresh from being pulled last Thursday against Vancouver, rebounded impressively after a shaky start, ending up with 30 saves.
After losing six of their previous eight games, the Senators desperately needed a victory here to try and climb back up the Eastern Conference ladder towards a playoff spot. Coupled with Toronto’s loss to San Jose Tuesday, the Senators are now five points behind the Maple Leafs for the final wild card spot in the East.
Desperate to find a winning combination, Senators coach Paul MacLean made like a mad scientist in shaking up his lines this way and that.
After the Senators handed the Panthers an early 2-0 lead on a pair of early Florida power-play goals, MacLean’s roster-shuffling paid off.
Corvo got the comeback started when his floating wrist shot from the blue-line cleared a pack of players in the slot and caught the top corner past a stunned Thomas.
With 1:15 left in the first period, Erik Condra tied the game 2-2, finishing off a pretty passing play with Clarke MacArthur and Jason Spezza. Condra is normally a fourth-line checking winger, but MacLean’s hunch to put him with Spezza and MacArthur paid off.
Newcomer Mike Hoffman was on a unit with Kyle Turris and Bobby Ryan, while Greening was with Zack Smith and Chris Neil. Mika Zibanejad centered another line with Corey Conacher and Milan Michalek on his wings.
Like the Senators, the Panthers came into the game in a tailspin, with a record of 1-3-1 in their previous five games, outscored 10-3 in the previous two.
The Senators and Panthers have both allowed a boatload of first-period goals this season — Ottawa had yielded 30 and Buffalo 26 before the game — and they were up their old tricks again Tuesday.
After Mike Hoffman and Jason Spezza took penalties 47 seconds apart to give the Panthers a 5-on-3 edge, Jonathan Huberdeau beat Anderson, cashing in on his own rebound. With Spezza still in the penalty box, Brian Campbell jumped in from the point, streaked to the net and ripped a wrist shot over Anderson’s trapper. The Senators have yielded 13 power-play goals in their past nine games.
After Campbell’s goal, the Senators looked as dismal as the crowd, which numbered somewhere around 5,000 in the cavernous 20,737-seat BB & T Center. Give the Senators credit. Anderson made huge saves off Scottie Upshall and Nick Bjugstad to keep the game within reach and then the Senators fought back, finishing the first period with a 2110 edge in shots.
The Senators are now in position to complete the Florida sweep in Tampa Thursday, but Tampa presents a more formidable challenge, with former Senators netminder Big Ben Bishop backstopping the Lightning.