Preview: A New Name Comes Out Of The Ottawa Senators’ Lineup For Game in San Jose

The Ottawa Senators will begin a three-game Western road trip with a little spring in their step on Wednesday night. Two nights ago, they finally shook off a five-game losing slide with a 4-3 victory over the Calgary Flames.

It was a good performance, not a great one.

For example, the Sens might not have another game all season where they get nine power play chances like they did on Monday night. But no one in Ottawa cares about HOW they got the win.

The Sens will be in San Jose to face the Sharks, the worst team in the NHL last season, and the men in teal aren’t a lot better this season. But at this stage, after everything that’s happened, any Ottawa player who does or says something that even hints at taking the Sharks lightly should be benched for a week.

“It’s like any other game, to be honest,” head coach Travis Green told TSN 1200 after today’s skate. “It starts and finishes with how we play. And (the Sharks) just beat the Kings 7-2. They’re playing well, feeling good about themselves, playing a lot better hockey as of late. But again, it really doesn’t matter who we’re playing. It’s about us getting to our game.”

Nick Cousins, who’s played every game this season, was absent from the game-day skate. There’s no word yet on what his injury or situation is. Noah Gregor, who hasn’t played in almost two weeks, will be a game-time decision. With David Perron and Artem Zub both out with injuries, the line combinations looked like this:

If both Gregor and Cousins aren’t available, the Sens would likely be forced into a 7D setup, which would be great news for rookie Donovan Sebrango. The Ottawa-born rookie was called up on Tuesday and would be in line for his first NHL start.

TSN 1200 reported on X that, judging by today’s skate, Linus Ullmark will start in goal for the Sens. Ullmark has lost his last four starts in a row.

It’s the Sens’ first time seeing Sharks’ rookie Macklin Celebrini, the number one overall pick in this year’s NHL Draft. Celebrini had two goals and an assist on Monday night, and with 10 points in 12 games, he stands second in points per game among NHL rookies.

According to Max Miller at The Hockey News San Jose, Sharks’ top scorer Mikael Granlund will miss his second straight game due to injury. Veterans Logan Couture and Marc-Edouard Vlasic are both on long term injured reserve and haven’t played all season. Vlasic is close, but Couture is not. The former Ottawa 67 played just six games last season as he continues to deal with hip and groin issues.

The Sharks have fallen on hard times but seeing the retirement of Joe Thornton’s number 19 on the weekend was surely an emotional boost – a reminder of their past excellence and what the organization stands for. Former Sharks defenceman Douglas Murray told an amazing story about the heart and kindness of the longtime Sharks’ captain.

The Senators and Sharks are a 10:30pm Eastern time face-off, the last of 15 NHL games tonight (RDS, TSN5).