A reversal of fortunes for Ottawa
Senators finally get some positive news as Stone helps team snap four-game winless drought
The Ottawa Senators stopped the slide Sunday night.
And, it couldn’t have come soon enough.
The Senators needed a boost of confidence after struggling to score goals and going winless in four straight so maybe a 5-3 victory over 19-year-old phenom Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers at the Canadian Tire Centre will go a long way in that department.
Winger Mark Stone had a threepoint effort, Zack Smith and Mike Hoffman had two points each while Tom Pyatt and Kyle Turris also chipped in with goals as the Senators scored their first win in 2017. McDavid had a two assists while Patrick Maroon scored twice and Leon Draisaitl was the other goal scorer for the losing Oilers.
Though Mike Condon didn’t look good in the second, he stepped up in the third as the Senators were outshot 17-3 and made 35 saves for the win in his 16th straight appearance. Oilers’ backup Jonas Gustavsson wasn’t any good at all by allowing four goals on 17 shots while Turris scored an empty-netter.
Coach Guy Boucher noted the Senators are in the midst of a tough stretch with the Pittsburgh Penguins and Toronto Maple Leafs both coming to town before this homestand wraps up so this night was just another in a long line of challenges after a five-day break in the schedule.
“Yesterday was (Alex) Ovechkin. Today is McDavid, Thursday is (Sidney) Crosby and then it’s (Auston) Matthews. Every team has their star,” said Boucher before the game. “(McDavid) poses a speed issue, you let him get his speed, and he’s very difficult to stop. You’ve got to prevent him from getting speed deep and going through.
“The minute you give him space, he’s gone. If you can take his space early at least it gives you a chance to not have to deal with that much speed.”
The Senators held a 4-3 lead after 40 minutes but it was a roller-coaster ride because neither goalie was stepping up with big stops in the second.
After the Oilers erased Ottawa’s 2-0 lead and went ahead 3-2, Pyatt scored his fifth of the season with 1:46 left in the second when he took a perfected from Cody Ceci to beat Gustavsson.
Only 34 seconds after Draisaitl gave the Oilers a 3-2 lead with a goal he banked off Condon from below the goal-line, the Senators answered back when Stone fired home his 12th of the season at 13:33 by taking a perfect feed from Smith to beat Gustavsson.
This game turned in a span of 1:03 on the Senators. Trying to throw a pass through the slot, Maroon erased Ottawa’s 2-0 lead with his second of the game on what turned out to be a fortunate bounce off defenceman Cody Ceci’s skate and by Condon on the glove side.
Maroon scored his 15th of the season at 5:58 of the second to pull the Oilers to within a goal by beating Condon through the five-hole from the left circle.
Given the way the Senators have started lately, they had to be thrilled with their effort in the first. Not only did they outshoot the Oilers 10-9, Ottawa pulled out to a 2-0 lead after 20 minutes.
The Senators, who had gone 0-for14 with the man advantage in the last five games, finally ended the slump when Hoffman fired home his 11th of the season at 14:53.