The Ottawa Senators five-game losing slide is finally over. Cole Reinhardt got his first NHL goal to help the Senators defeat the Calgary Flames, 4-3. The win allows the Sens to salvage something from their now-completed four-game homestand.
Drake Batherson and Brady Tkachuk led the way with a goal and an assist each. Ridly Greig and Jake Sanderson each had two assists. Anton Forsberg made 24 saves for the win.
Calgary opened the scoring first on the power play, which usually spells disaster for the Sens. With two seconds left in a borderline slashing call on Brady Tkachuk, Jonathan Huberdeau finished off a pretty passing play from the slot to make it 1-0.
Less than three minutes later, Adam Gaudette’s unlikely goal scoring run continued. Parked in front of the net, he scored his ninth of the season, finishing off a nice pass from Ridly Greig.
39 seconds later, Tkachuk appeared to give Ottawa the lead on the power play with a nice shot from the slot, but Drake Batherson had backed into Flames goalie Dustin Wolf and the goal was disallowed due to goalie interference.
Early in the second period, Batherson got that power play goal back, deflecting home Jake Sanderson’s shot from the point to give the Sens a 2-1 lead.
Forsberg made one of the saves of the year, down and out after a puck trickled through him, He recovered and made an outstanding, sprawling glove save.
Ottawa entered the game more shorthanded than they thought they’d be. Already with defenceman Artem Zub, winger David Perron missed the game with an upper body injury, replaced by Belleville’s leading scorer, Cole Reinhardt.
Reinhardt, one of five 2020 Sens draft picks in tonight’s lineup got his first NHL goal to make it 3-1 Ottawa. Greig, his former Brandon Wheat King teammate, drew the assist.
Up 3-2 in the third, Tkachuk got his power play goal back, scoring from almost the same spot he had on his disallowed goal, giving the Sens some breathing room. They needed it as Nazem Kadri floated home a long wrist shot with the goalie pulled. But that was as close as the flames would get.
The Sens next game is Wednesday night in San Jose, the start of a three game Western road trip.
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