Lightning at Senators
THE STORY: Daniel Alfredsson has taken to making his way up the records ladder in dramatic fashion. After recording his 400th career goal in overtime against the Calgary Flames on Friday, the veteran star buried his 401st for another overtime winner in a 3-2 victory over the New Jersey Devils on Monday. Alfredsson, 38, has shown no signs of slowing down and is on pace for one of the best seasons of his career. The Swede, along with linemate Jason Spezza, has led the Ottawa Senators to three straight wins. On the outside of the top eight at the moment are the Tampa Bay Lightning, who visit the Senators on Thursday. The Lightning had built some momentum with three straight wins to close out December, but had that surge come to a screeching halt with Tuesday's 7-3 loss at Toronto.
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, SUN (Tampa Bay), RSNE (Ottawa)
ABOUT THE LIGHTNING (17-17-3): After appearing in the Eastern Conference final last spring, Tampa Bay looked like it had regained some of its 2010-11 form while beating the Philadelphia Flyers, Montreal Canadiens and Carolina Hurricanes by a combined 14-6 score to close December. But the defensive and goaltending problems that have plagued the team all season returned on Tuesday, when Mathieu Garon and Dwayne Roloson each had a tough night in net. After yielding four even-strength tallies, the Lightning let it get out of hand by surrendering three more on the penalty kill.
ABOUT THE SENATORS (20-15-5): Ottawa has some defense and goaltending problems of its own, ranking 29th in the league by yielding an average of 3.3 tallies, but the offense has been able to cover lately, usually in dramatic fashion. The Senators’ last four wins have come in overtime or a shootout and they have posted a 6-1-1 record in their last eight overall. Ottawa will get to test itself against an Eastern Conference power when they go up against the Flyers in a home-and-home set this weekend.
OVERTIME:
1. Alfredsson has 62 points in 53 career games against Tampa Bay.
2. Lightning C Steven Stamkos has seven goals in the last four games.
3. Ottawa posted a 4-2 victory over Tampa Bay on Dec. 5 behind a goal and an assist from Alfredsson.