The Senators West coast trip continues today when they take on the Anaheim Ducks
The set-up
The back half of the Senators West coast trip kicks off this afternoon with an early clash against Anaheim. Anaheim boasts one of the most entertaining young teams in the league led by star players Troy Terry and Trevor Zegras with 21 and 17 points respectively.
Though their records are near identical, the Senators own the statistical advantage in every major category. However, there may be no bigger advantage for the Senators than the special teams play. Ottawa boasts a 22.4% power play percentage to Anaheim’s 12.5%, the lowest mark in the league. Additionally, Ottawa has a healthy lead in the penalty kill game with killing 77.3% of their penalties while Anaheim currently kills off just 66.2% of their penalties. Look for the Senators to take advantage of their special teams advantage against this young exciting Ducks team.
Roster notes
The Senators held an optional skate yesterday so we won’t have a true understanding of how they will line up tonight until game time. We will receive an update on the status of Thomas Chabot‘s availability for this afternoon at D.J. Smith’s media availability later this morning.
Below is how the Senators lined up against the Golden Knights at T-Mobile Arena:
Forwards:
Tkachuk – Stützle – Batherson
DeBrincat – Pinto – Giroux
Motte – Brassard – Joseph
Kelly – Kastelic – Watson
Defense:
Sanderson – Hamonic
Brannstrom – Zub
Holden – Thomson
Past History
The Senators and Ducks joined the NHL in successive years in 1992 and 1993 respectively. Since then, they have faced off 39 times in the regular season, with the Ducks owning the all-time series 22-14 with three ties to boot. Of course, these two battled on hockey’s biggest stage in 2007 with the Ducks winning the Stanley cup in five games over the Senators. A win today would end a four-game streak for the Ducks against the Senators and their first win in Anaheim since January, 2019.
Who to watch
Captain Brady Tkachuk, who set career highs last season in goals, assists and points, is on pace to shatter the marks he set last season. 19 games in Tkachuk has 22 points, which assuming he stays healthy all season has him nearly on pace for his first career 100 point season.
Tkachuk started the season on a scoring tear with six goals in his first eight games. However, since then he has been held to just one goal acting primarily as a set-up man with ten assists already this month, including two separate three-assist games. Look for the captain to get back to his early goal scoring ways tomorrow against the Ducks to help propel the Senators to a winning effort.
Where to watch
Friday’s game can be seen live on TSN5 and RDSI. Fans can also tune into the radio call on TSN 1200 and Unique FM 94,5.