Struggling Senators looking for spark as Red Wings visit on TSN5
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Losers of two in a row and seven of their past nine games, the Ottawa Senators continue to search for ways to turn things around as they host the Detroit Red Wings on Thursday night.
The Senators have been off since Sunday’s 4-1 loss to the Anaheim Ducks, giving head coach Travis Green time to shuffle his lines and search for a spark ahead of tonight's game at the Canadian Tire Centre.
Ridley Grieg has been moved up to the second line alongside Tim Stutzle and Claude Giroux, while Adam Gaudette was bumped down to the fourth line to centre Noah Gregor and Cole Reinhardt.
“I moved him there today, but I’m not sure what we’re going to do tomorrow. I think Ridly Greig’s game is continuing to grow. He’s still a young player in the league that’s finding his way. We’re looking for a guy to play in that top 6 role,” Green said after Wednesday’s practice. “You might see Ridly play centre tomorrow. I think he’s a player that can play all over ultimately. He should become a guy that can play left, centre and right. But he’s young and there’s lot of things in his game that will be better in two months, six months, or two years.
“I think he’s just scratching the surface of what he is in the NHL. There’s lots that I like but he still has a lot to learn in his game.”
Grieg, 22, has two goals and seven points in 21 games this season after tallying a career-high 13 goals and 13 assists in 72 contests last year. The Lethbridge, Alta., native is no stranger to playing big minutes on the top line, having spent time on a line with captain Brady Tkachuk and Stutzle earlier this season.
Ottawa holds a 10-12-2 record this season and sits one point ahead of the Montreal Canadiens for last place in the Eastern Conference. As the team kicks off a four-game homestand on Thursday, Green wants to see the team show more emotion and hunger to snap out of its funk.
“Emotion is good and bad. You want it to be channeled in the right way. I think our team is learning to channel negative parts of the game when they don’t go their way. But you never want to take emotion away, you have to play the game with emotion,” said Green. “You have to play the game ultra-competitive and also have confidence when things aren’t going your way. I think that’s been part of our lulls - our confidence dips when things aren’t going our way, our competitiveness dips a little bit. They go hand in hand sometimes.”
The Red Wings come to Ottawa on a three-game winless streak and are two points ahead of the Sens in the Atlantic Division standings.
The Senators had a pair of players named their respective countries' 4 Nations Face-Off rosters, with Tkachuk playing for the United States and goaltender Linus Ullmark suiting up for Sweden.
“ It’s something we’ve always talked about, representing our country and playing together,” Tkachuk said of representing the U.S. alongside his brother, Matthew. “It would be special for the both of us and our entire family.
“Whenever you have an opportunity like this you want to make the most of it. Of course, it’s going to be a highly competitive event and fun and something I’ll remember forever.”
“It’s a huge honour. I haven’t had the opportunity to play a lot of junior hockey and national team or even with the national team overall,” Ullmark said Wednesday. “Ever since I came to the U.S. and Canada I think I have one world championship and that’s it….Whenever you get the call it’s a huge honour and something I would be very proud of.”
The Sens practised with the following lines on Wednesday:
Tkachuk-Norris-Batherson
Greig-Stützle-Giroux
Cousins-Pinto-Amadio
Reinhardt-Gaudette-Gregor
Ostapchuk
Sanderson-Hamonic
Chabot-Jensen
Kleven-JBD
Ullmark
Forsberg