Senators at Ducks
The Ottawa Senators are yielding goals at an alarming rate while their offense is struggling to get untracked. Outscored by an 26-11 margin in the last seven games (2-5-0), Ottawa looks to rebound from a disastrous performance when it continues its five-game road trip against the Anaheim Ducks on Wednesday.
"The only thing we can be frustrated with is ourselves. It's on us," Senators defenseman Mark Borowiecki told the Ottawa Citizen on Sunday after the team's 7-1 loss to Alex Ovechkin and Washington. "There's no magic formula, it just comes down to hard work and pride." While the Senators have dropped 10 of their last 12 road tilts, Anaheim fell to 2-1-1 on its season-high eight-game homestand with a 2-1 setback to Detroit on Sunday. Corey Perry scored for the third time in four contests and has 11 points (six goals, five assists) in nine career outings versus Ottawa.
TV: 10 p.m. ET, RDS, WPCW (Ottawa), FSN West (Anaheim)
ABOUT THE SENATORS (20-17-6): Mike Hoffman scored his team-leading 20th goal on Sunday and has two tallies and one assist in two career meetings with Anaheim. Bobby Ryan, who was acquired in the 2013 trade that shuffled Jakob Silfverberg to the Ducks, has been held off the scoresheet in three straight games and six of his last seven. Ryan's 13 goals this season are equal to that of struggling Kyle Turris, who does not have a tally in his last 12 contests.
ABOUT THE DUCKS (17-17-7): Silfverberg is also mired in a 12-game goalless drought and has been held off the scoresheet in all four career meetings with his former team. The 25-year-old Swede's lack of production doesn't bode well for the NHL's lowest-scoring team (1.85 goals per contest). "The margin of error is very slim when you're averaging less than two goals a game," coach Bruce Boudreau said.
OVERTIME
1. Ottawa veteran G Craig Anderson will vie for his 200th career victory against the Ducks, against whom he owns a 3-8-0 mark with a 3.25 goals-against average.
2. Anaheim has thwarted all 26 short-handed situations over the last seven contests.
3. The Senators have converted on just two of their 23 power-play opportunities over the last seven games.