If you want to point out a team that Carolina seems to lose to every year they play them and really shouldn’t, look no further than the Ottawa Senators. For some reason, Ottawa seems to get one over the Canes. Not any of the other, just one, and it’s so on-brand. Ottawa is one of nine teams to beat the Canes in regulation this season. They’re in with the likes of Florida and Washington. Don’t ask me how, I don’t get paid for that.
Carolina will make the trip to the great white north with the intent of extracting so much revenge that the Senators are afraid to play the final game against the Canes later in the year, and this will not be an easy task. Carolina is a much stronger team than the Sens, but Ottawa has a reputation for not just rolling over and making it incredibly difficult to beat them. Carolina will need to find a way tonight.
Unlike earlier in the season, Carolina arrives at this game with their full first-choice roster ready to play. This is with the possible exception of Ethan Bear who took a puck to the ankle in the game against Calgary a few weeks ago and hasn’t really been in the lineup since, although he’s not officially listed with an injury. Anyway, how do the Canes win this game?
Other than having to score more goals than Ottawa because that’s how hockey works, they’re going to need to win the goaltending battle. Of course, Anton Forsberg turned into Georges Vezina himself at PNC Arena when the clubs last met, and he had a 40+ save performance. Hence, the Canes fell short at home and the Senators left Raleigh with a win.
Now, this game is not the game that happened in Raleigh. This is in Ottawa at a different point of the year, and the team is in a much better position and commanding situation than they were in the clash before this. It was a good game that Ottawa edged in Carolina. Now, the Canes will be looking for their own win away in the capital of Canada.