Ottawa 5, Buffalo 2
When: 7:30 PM ET, Monday, December 29, 2014
Where: Canadian Tire Centre, Ottawa, Ontario
Referees:
Graham Skilliter, Paul Devorski
Linesmen:
David Brisebois, Don Henderson
Attendance:
18284
By SportsDirect Inc.
Senators 5, Sabres 2: Bobby Ryan recorded his fourth career hat trick as host Ottawa snapped a three-game slide by cooling off Buffalo.
Clarke MacArthur scored for the second straight game and Craig Anderson made 19 saves to improve to 11-3-1 against the Sabres as the Senators moved to 4-3-2 under Dave Cameron. Colin Greening also tallied and captain Erik Karlsson registered a pair of assists for Ottawa, which totaled four goals in its previous three contests.
Defenseman Mark Pysyk scored his first goal of the season and Zemgus Girgensons tallied for the second straight game for Buffalo, which fell to 4-12-1 on the road. Jhonas Enroth stopped 31 shots - 15 in the first period - while Chris Stewart extended his point streak to five games with an assist.
Ryan opened the scoring with 1:36 left in the first period as he accepted a pass from Kyle Turris at the right post and jammed the puck past Enroth after hitting the pipe with his initial chance. The Sabres needed only 1:53 of the second period to even the score as Pysyk collected a turnover near center ice and, after Enroth made a save on his first shot, Stewart pushed the rebound wide before the blue-liner moved in deep, regained the puck and beat the netminder with a wrist shot.
Buffalo took the lead 6:44 later, when Matt Moulson threw the puck toward the crease and Girgensons kept jamming away until it crossed the line for his 11th goal. Ryan recorded the equalizer when he redirected Mike Hoffman's pass in front with 1:19 left in the second period and registered his first three-goal performance with Ottawa when he took a feed from Karlsson in the high slot and wired a shot past Enroth's glove 3:02 into the third.
GAME NOTEBOOK: MacArthur provided insurance with 8:06 left, when he collected a pass from D Chris Phillips in his skates near the right post and slipped a shot past Enroth for his 11th goal, tying him for the team lead with Hoffman. ... Greening was credited with his first goal of the season - an empty-netter - when he was hauled down by Buffalo D Nikita Zadorov on a breakaway with 1.1 seconds left. ... Ottawa D Mark Borowiecki was scratched after suffering a leg laceration during a pregame soccer session. ... Ryan, whose last multi-goal effort came in a 6-4 victory over Washington on Nov. 27, 2013, has 10 goals this season and scored for the first time in six contests since a 5-4 loss to Buffalo on Dec. 15.
Top Game Performances
| Buffalo |
|
Ottawa |
|
Zemgus Girgensons 1 |
Points |
Bobby Ryan 3 |
|
Zemgus Girgensons 1 |
Goals |
Bobby Ryan 3 |
|
Matt Moulson 1 |
Assists |
Erik Karlsson 2 |
|
N/A |
Power Play Goals |
N/A |
|
N/A |
Short Handed Goals |
N/A |
|
Jhonas Enroth .886 |
Save Percentage |
Craig Anderson .905 |
|
Jhonas Enroth 31 |
Saves |
Craig Anderson 19 |
Team Stats Summary
| Team |
Shots |
Goals |
Power Play |
Penalty Kill |
Penalty Mins |
Face Offs Won |
| Buffalo
|
21 |
2 |
0-4 |
2-2 |
13 |
28 |
| Ottawa
|
35 |
5 |
0-2 |
4-4 |
15 |
32 |
Upcoming Games
-
Ottawa will play their next game on the road against Boston. The Senators have a W/L % of .333 after a win and .476 after a loss.
-
Buffalo will play their next game at home against Tampa Bay. The Sabres have a W/L % of .500 after a win and .304 after a loss.
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