Senators, Panthers set for bottom-of-division clash
Panic is starting to set in for the Florida Panthers and Ottawa Senators, with answers needing to be found quickly as they currently occupy the bottom two spots in the Atlantic Division.
After kicking off their six-game road trip with two consecutive losses, the Panthers will have the chance to get back on track when they head to Canada's capital for a duel with the struggling Senators on Saturday.
The Panthers limped through a 4-1 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Tuesday before taking a 6-2 lashing from the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday night. Meanwhile, the Senators took back-to-back road losses of their own to the Utah Mammoth and the Colorado Avalanche.
Sam Bennett, a surprise omission from Canada's 2026 Olympic roster, scored both goals for the two-time defending Stanley Cup champions against the Canadiens.
"We had some strange pucks go in on us, some strange bounces. I think we gave up 12 even-strength shots here and six of them went in, I haven't seen that before." Panthers coach Paul Maurice uttered to the media following Thursday's loss. "It's frustrating because we're fighting for our lives here, but that's what we're going to go through. It's what all the teams in the same situation are going to go through."
Speaking of teams in a situation, Ottawa enters Saturday's contest enthralled in controversy and collapse.
After earning their first Stanley Cup Playoff berth since 2017 just one season ago, the Senators have spent the first half of this season battling their way through a slew of injuries and now off-ice rumours, culminating in them currently residing in last place in the tightly-packed Atlantic.
Their most recent loss was an 8-2 defeat at the hands of NHL-leading Colorado on Thursday night.
Brady Tkachuk and Shane Pinto each found the back of the net for the visiting squad.
The momentum seemingly shifted in the Senators favour thanks to a supposed second-period goal from Fabian Zetterlund, which would have cut the deficit to 3-2, but it was ultimately called back for offside.
"At 3-1, I thought we scored a goal to get it 3-2, I thought it gave us a lot of life. I liked our game then. Colorado's a good team," Senators coach Travis Green said. "It got away from us in about six minutes, and that's kind of the night."
Goaltending woes continue to haunt the Senators as Leevi Merilainen and Mads Sogaard both floundered during Thursday's loss, and there has been little word on when Linus Ullmark will return to action as he is currently away from the team due to personal reasons.
The Senators made a move in hopes of shoring up the goaltender position as they signed veteran netminder James Reimer to a professional tryout on Thursday.
"When you lose 8-2, obviously it's just frustrating. We've got to learn from it and definitely have to have a better showing on Saturday," Pinto said following the loss.
The Panthers have gotten the better of the Senators of late, coming out victorious in six of the past eight meetings (6-2-0), with the most recent contest being a 6-2 home victory for Florida back on Oct. 11.