Senators at Sharks
Last season's trip to the Eastern Conference finals seems to be a lifetime ago for the Ottawa Senators, who are in the throes of a horrid slump that has them careening down the standings. Losers of three in a row and 10 of their last 11 (1-9-1), Ottawa continues a season-long seven-game road trip at the San Jose Sharks on Saturday night.
The Senators did show a pulse in their latest setback, getting a last-second goal in an eventual 4-3 overtime defeat at white-hot Los Angeles that came on the heels of two shutout losses. "It's been a little rough lately, but I think we're headed in the right direction," Ottawa defenseman Cody Ceci said after Thursday's loss. San Jose lost its final two on a four-game road trip before kicking off a three-game homestand with a dramatic 5-4 overtime victory versus Carolina on Thursday, rallying from an early 3-0 deficit. It marked the first time in franchise history that the Sharks won a game after trailing by three goals following the first period.
TV: 10 p.m. ET, Sportsnet (Ottawa), NBCSN California (San Jose)
ABOUT THE SENATORS (9-11-7): Matt Duchene was acquired in a three-team deal early last month to bolster Ottawa's offense, but his power-play tally at Los Angeles was the former Avalanche forward's second goal in 13 seasons since the deal. "There's lots of really good things to build on tonight and that's the next step is building on it now and not hanging our heads and being too disappointed," Duchene said after his first two-point game since Nov. 4. Duchene has seven goals and seven assists in 23 games against San Jose.
ABOUT THE SHARKS (15-10-2): Defenseman Brent Burns has been in a major rut after scoring 56 goals over the past two campaigns, but he made his second one this season count by delivering the game-winning tally in overtime against the Hurricanes. Burns also set up a goal to register only his second multiple-point game of the season, and first since Oct. 21 -- a notable dip after amassing 76 points in 2016-17 and 75 the previous season. Joe Thornton collected three points to move into 19th place (1,410) on the all-time list.
OVERTIME
1. The Sharks won at Ottawa 4-3 in a shootout last December to end a streak of five consecutive losses in the series, including three at home.
2. Ottawa is 4-for-39 with the man advantage during the 11-game swoon.
3. San Jose had two power-play goals in a game Thursday -- the first time that's happened since Oct. 17.