Ann 2Game 44 Review: Senators Stage Comeback But Fail To Top Canadiens In 5-4 Shootout Defeat
January 20th 2009 06:23
Not a good game for Alfie
If the NHL was a theatre, the Ottawa Senators would be a tragedy (the Toronto Maple Leafs would be a comedy but that's another story). From Stanley Cup finalists just two seasons ago, the Sens have spent most of this ongoing season in the cellar of the Eastern Conference. Their downfall has mystified fans and critics alike. Just last season, they were off to an excellent start only to spiral downwards, getting swept 4-0 by the Penguins in the first round of the playoffs. Now, with the same core of players in the roster, they sit in 13th place in the Conference. To sum it all up, no one is scared of the Senators anymore. That includes the Montreal Canadiens who were always apprehensive about facing Daniel Alfredsson and his teammates at the Scotiabank Place.
The main issue for the Senators these last couple of years has always been their goaltending. Ray Emery was bought out at the end of last season. The club was consequently put onto the hands of Martin Gerber who has never been known to steal goals. Alex Auld was brought in as a back-up, and he quickly stole the number-one spot from a shaky Gerber. Now, why am I telling you all this, you may ask. Well, on Saturday, the Canadiens faced neither Gerber nor Auld. Instead, unknown rookie Brian Elliott started in net for the home team.
Two of the four goals scored in regulation time by the Canadiens were the result of poor positioning by the netminder as the puck trickled under his pads on both goals Montreal's second by Andrei Kostitsyn and fourth by Tom Kostopoulos. His inexperience was shown on the first goal of the game. As the Canadiens operated on a 5-on-3, Robert Lang found Alex Kovalev posted on Elliott's left with a brilliant pass that the Russian winger only had to redirect and push it in the back of the net. Although the defense was a bit at fault, I'm pretty sure that guy like Martin Brodeur would have tried to harpoon the puck as it was making its way across him. Despite those goals, the rookie was more than decent as he stopped the Habs from taking the game out of reach. His stops on two breakaways (first on Plekanec then on Lang) in the second period impressed the gallery, and allowed the Sens to hang on to a two-goal deficit which is, if you're the Canadiens, the worst lead you can have in a hockey game.
The Sens reduced the Habs' lead to one goal early in the third period via Dany Heatley, but Kostopoulos' goal six minutes later returned things to the status quo. Strangely, instead of demoralizing the home team, the goal seemed to amplify their efforts as Heatley put the score at 4-3 just thirty seconds later. In the wild final minutes, the Habs were simply overwhelmed by the desperate energy steaming off the Senators' players. Mike Fisher equalized the mark with two minutes left to go, giving the Sens a guaranteed point for taking the game into OT.
The Canadiens claimed their two points in the shootout as Kovalev and Lapierre both easily beat Elliott (Kovalev surprised everyone by going with a move that's very similar to Koivu's shootout deke instead of his usual backhand top-shelf) while Spezza shot wide and Alfredsson was stopped by Halak. The Bruins' defeat that same night reduced the gap between the rivals to ten points (eleven today, since Boston lost to the Blues in a shootout) with the Canadiens having two games in hand. The final stretch of the season starting after the All-Star break will be very interesting.
My 3 Stars:
3. Alex Kovalev
2. Dany Heatley
1. Robert Lang
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