Senators at Maple Leafs
THE STORY: After winning at St. Louis on Thursday night for their third straight road victory, the Toronto Maple Leafs need to find a way to reverse their recent stumbles at Air Canada Centre. The Maple Leafs are all but assured of receiving a jolt from the home fans when they host the Ottawa Senators on Saturday in the Hockey Hall of Fame Game. In what promises to be an emotional cauldron, Toronto will honor former team captain Doug Gilmour along with Joe Nieuwendyk and goaltender Ed Belfour in pregame ceremonies. The charged atmosphere, along with this season's third edition of the Battle of Ontario, should provide the perfect remedy for Toronto to end a two-game home skid in which it was outscored 12-1. The Senators have their own woes to solve after suffering their fifth consecutive loss with a 5-1 defeat at Buffalo on Friday night.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, CBC
ABOUT THE SENATORS (7-9-1): The return of captain Daniel Alfredsson from a five-game absence due to a concussion could not stop Ottawa’s slide. The Senators fell into a 2-0 hole just 2:25 into the game in losing their fifth straight game in November. Defenseman Sergei Gonchar scored his first goal since March 4 to end Ottawa’s 0-for-11 drought on the power play. Jason Spezza assisted on the goal to give him 17 points in 17 games.
ABOUT THE MAPLE LEAFS (10-5-1): With James Reimer's return still uncertain, rookie Ben Scrivens came up big for Toronto in the 3-2 win at St. Louis, making 38 saves and turning aside all three shots in the shootout. Phil Kessel scored his league-best 12th goal before supplying the winning score in the shootout. He leads the NHL with 23 points. Erik Karlsson is tied with Florida’s Brian Campbell for the league lead among defensemen with 14 assists.
OVERTIME:
1. Scrivens had stopped 76 of 79 shots in two road wins and has surrendering seven goals on 21 shots in two appearances at Air Canada Centre.
2. Ottawa has surrendered a league-worst 63 goals.
3. Mark Howe, who helped the Toronto Marlies win a Memorial Cup prior to a 20-year NHL career, will also be honored Saturday.