The resurgent Ottawa Senators will aim for their fourth straight victory on Tuesday when they visit the scuffling Philadelphia Flyers.
Ottawa improved to 4-0-1 in its past five games when it notched a 2-1 home victory over the Detroit Red Wings on Monday. The Senators had lost five consecutive contests prior to their hot stretch.
Making his eighth consecutive start, Senators goalie Linus Ullmark recorded a season-high 48 saves against Detroit. Ullmark, who stopped 27 shots in the second period alone, could be in for a night off Tuesday on the second half of a back-to-back set.
“It was just a chaotic game,” Ullmark said. “I’m pretty sure we have to look at ourselves in the mirror and say, ‘That wasn’t good enough.’ We have to be honest with each other. That’s not a sustainable type of game to play.”
The highlight for the Senators’ offense was Dylan Cozens scoring his first goal for Ottawa in his second game since coming over in a trade with the Buffalo Sabres.
“I just couldn’t be happier to be here and to be a part of this team,” said Cozens, who netted the game-winner on a power play at 14:56 of the third period.
Meanwhile, Philadelphia has lost four games in a row following a 4-0-1 stretch, and its playoff aspirations are rapidly becoming a long shot. The Flyers have scored only six goals during the current skid, including three goals over the past three games.
“It (stinks), there’s no hiding about that,” forward Ryan Poehling said after Philadelphia’s 3-1 loss to the New Jersey Devils on Sunday. “I think there’s no time to feel sorry for yourself. It’s definitely a gut check. That’s kind of what it comes down to.”
The Flyers were getting shut out against New Jersey until Jamie Drysdale scored with less than five minutes remaining. Philadelphia needs to get going in a hurry, as challenging home games against the Tampa Bay Lightning and Carolina Hurricanes loom before the squad embarks on a difficult five-game road trip.
“We’ll just build,” said Drysdale, who has scored twice this month — equaling his season total heading into March. “But, yeah, we have to get back in the win column one way or another.”
While Drysdale might be starting to find his groove on offense, several key Flyers continue to search for a much-needed goal. Travis Konecny leads the team with 22 goals but hasn’t scored in more than a month. Owen Tippett has only one point in five games this month, while Sean Couturier has only two goals in his past 18 games.
“We got a couple chances,” Couturier said of the Sunday setback. “It was a tight game out there. They got their bounces. We didn’t, really.”
The Tuesday contest will be the second of three meetings between the teams this season. The Flyers edged the Senators 5-4 in Ottawa on Nov. 14 as Matvei Michkov scored in overtime. The teams will meet again in Ottawa on April 13.
“Every game the rest of the year is a huge game. We’ve got to bring our best every game,” Cozens said. “Every game matters a lot. We’re playing every game like it’s a playoff game right now. It’s a lot of fun.”
–Field Level Media
