Devils at Senators
The Ottawa Senators hope to extend their point streak to five games Sunday, after enjoying plenty of rest through the Christmas holiday, as they host the struggling New Jersey Devils. The Senators are 2-0-2 in their last four games and own at least a point in eight of the past 10 contests (5-2-3) after knocking off Buffalo 3-1 on Monday before the break with two goals from Jean-Gabriel Pageau.
“Certainly, the start (to the season) wasn’t what we wanted, but I think we’ve found our identity a little bit,” Ottawa coach D.J. Smith told reporters after his team improved to 15-12-3 since a 1-6-1 start. “When we work hard, we stay in games. And we’ve had some timely goals as of late, we’ve played well at home, but we’ve got to continue this after the break.” The Senators are 11-5-1 at the Canadian Tire Centre, including 4-0-1 in the last five, and won the first of three meetings with the Devils 4-2 on Nov. 13 in New Jersey with a hat trick from Pageau. The Devils have lost three of four after falling 5-4 against Toronto at home on Friday when defenseman Damon Severson scored into his own net while trying to clear a puck to the back boards in overtime. “It’s tough to swallow,” New Jersey leading scorer Kyle Palmieri told reporters. “We’ll come and take a look at some things we can do better heading into Ottawa (on Sunday).”
TV: 5 p.m. ET, MSG (New Jersey), RDS2, TSN5 (Ottawa)
ABOUT THE DEVILS (12-19-6): Palmieri scored four of his team-high 15 goals and added three assists over the last six games to top New Jersey with 26 points - three of them coming on Friday. Nico Hischier also had three points in Friday’s setback and 27-year-old rookie left wing Nikita Gusev scored once while setting up six other goals in the past five games to tie the 20-year-old Swiss center for second on the team among active skaters with 21 points. Goalie Mackenzie Blackwood is 3-1-1 in his last five games and owns a .923 save percentage in December after finishing the first two months with an .898 mark.
ABOUT THE SENATORS (16-18-4): Left wing Anthony Duclair boasts 11 of his career-high 21 goals in 11 games this month to lead the team and Pageau’s two goals against Buffalo gave him 18 - one shy of his career best in 2015-16. Left wing Brady Tkachuk is third on the team with 24 points behind Duclair (30) and Pageau (28) after recording two goals and three assists in the past three contests. Veteran Ron Hainsey (knee) is not expected to return the next two games against New Jersey or at Pittsburgh (Monday) and fellow defensemen Dylan DeMelo (finger) along with Nikita Zaitsev (leg) are likely out at least another week.
OVERTIME
1. New Jersey C Pavel Zacha was a late scratch due to a lower-body injury Friday, but reportedly skated with the team in practice on Saturday.
2. Ottawa G Craig Anderson (6-8-0 overall) made 43 saves in the win over Buffalo on Monday and owns a .947 SP in his last five games.
3. Devils D Will Butcher suffered an undisclosed injury in Friday’s contest and is questionable for Sunday.