The Ottawa Senators concluded its four-game homestand Saturday with a 2-1 loss to Montreal at Canadian Tire Centre.
The Sens, however, were shorthanded from the get-go as they were forced to play with just five defencemen while Colin White made his season debut, as Three Thoughts details.
Sens play with five 'D'
The Senators were forced to deploy the rare 13 forwards, five defencemen lineup Saturday due to a few last-minute changes.
Shortly before puck drop, Thomas Chabot and Nikita Zaitsev were both ruled out with a non-Covid 19 related illness.
"It doesn't happen very often but it happened tonight," Senators head coach D.J. Smith said. "Five 'D' in the NHL is hard obviously and 13 forwards throws the lines off. It is what it is. We've had a lot of crazy things happen this year but you've got to find a way to play."
The ripple effects were thus understandable: Victor Mete was suddenly in the lineup and played 19:40, his third highest time on ice of the year.
Erik Brannstrom played 25:19, his second most time on ice of the season while Josh Brown's 20:36 was a season high. Nick Holden's 24:08 was his fourth most of the campaign while Artem Zub played 24:59.
Dylan Gambrell, who like Mete was originally not in the lineup, was also pressed into action and saw the ice for 7:44.
"It's really hard to play your offside unless you have all kinds of time," Smith said. "The only choice you have if they're putting pressure on you is to flip it off the glass. You can't go tape to tape and one shift you're left, one shift you're right."
The Sens played with five defencemen for the majority of their game in Tampa Bay on Dec. 16 after Zaitsev left injured early in the first. But regardless, it doesn't make the adjustment of playing a d-man short any easier, especially at the NHL level.
"It was a little different but you've got to be ready for anything," Mete said. "It's definitely not as easy it looks."
White scores in season debut
In one of the biggest feel-good moments of the year, Colin White not only made his season debut but scored Saturday.
After the Boston native had missed the first 50 games of the season due to a dislocated shoulder suffered during preseason, he got his name on the scoreboard 1:23 into the second period as he scored from the slot on the power play off of Connor Brown's setup.
"It's been a long year so I was super excited," White said. "I just went out there and had fun today. Brownie made an unreal play and made it a little bit easy for me. It was super exciting for me to score that goal."
White played 14:30 in his return and tallied four shots on goal, tied for the most on the Senators, and won four of his seven faceoffs. His goal was his first since April 28, 304 days ago. He also hit the post in the first period.
"It just felt like anther hockey game," White said. "I was a bit nervous but also excited going into it. I had no nap today. It felt pretty good to get out there and just play hockey. When you watch a lot of hockey, it looks a little easier up top."
Perhaps the most crucial thing for White was to get physical after he returned from an extended absence and he did that with two hits. The 25-year-old moved around the lineup all night as the Sens played with 13 forwards but he didn't care whatsoever who he had on his wings.
"I haven't been in the lineup at all so I kind of expected to play with everyone and eventually I'll find chemistry with someone but right now it's taking it shift by shift and whoever I'm out there with, I'll try to make plays," he said.
Sens embark on five-game road trip
While their longest homestand was just four games over the past six weeks, the Senators will get some time away from Canadian Tire Centre starting Tuesday as they open a five-game road trip in Tampa.
It comes on the heels of 13 of Ottawa's last 16 games being played on home ice where they went 5-6-2 over that stretch.
"We had a very busy schedule," Chabot said. "We've just finished 10 games in 16 days. We've gone through a good stretch here of playing a lot of games at home so it'll be fun to go back on the road."
The Senators also won't mind playing away from home; since Jan. 2, Ottawa has gone 5-2-1 on the road.
However, this trip won't come easy. The Senators open in Tampa Tuesday, owners of the fourth most points in the NHL. They'll then head to Florida, who they beat 8-2 Dec. 14, on Thursday to battle the Panthers whose 35 wins are the third most in the league.
Ottawa will then fly west to face the Coyotes Saturday before they visit the Golden Knights Sunday who sit third in the Pacific Division. They'll conclude the trip on March 8 in St. Louis against a Blues team that has the eighth most points in the league.
"We're playing four of the top teams in the league," White said. "They're all Cup contending teams. It's going to be a tough trip but it'll be nice to get some warm weather."
Three Thoughts: Sens play with five 'D' as White scores in season debut - Ottawa Senators
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