We Won But Did We Deserve It You Tell Me

Well, you wake up this morning and the Ottawa Senators have themselves another two points, eh? A 3-2 win on the road against the Detroit Red Wings, and it's nice to see that 'W' beside our name. Brady Tkachuk got us started on the power play in the first, because of course he did. Then that kid, Cam Yakemchuk, who's been looking good, got one in the second, and Lars Eller, who's quietly just been doing his job, added another. It looked like we were cruising, didn't it? But then Detroit decided to make a game of it, with goals from David Shine and Dylan Larkin. Honestly, when Larkin scored that power play goal in the third, I thought, 'Here we go again, boys.' But the Ottawa Senators held on, twenty-one shots to their thirty-four. That's a bit of a worry, if you ask me.

The big takeaway from last night, beyond the score, is just how important these wins are becoming. This puts the Ottawa Senators at 85 points, holding onto that second Wild Card spot. We're on an 8-2-0 run in our last ten, and that's the kind of hockey we need to be playing if we want to get into the dance. We're still looking over our shoulders, mind you. Every single point matters from here on out. The boys are showing some grit, sure, but we can't be getting outshot by almost double every night and expect to keep pulling these off.

So, the mood in Ottawa this morning? A bit of a collective sigh of relief, I'd say. People are probably grabbing their morning coffee from Bridgehead, maybe walking the dog by the Canal, and feeling a little better about the playoff picture. It wasn't the prettiest win, but a win is a win, and in this league, you take them when you can get them. We've got to keep this momentum going, eh? This young core, they're showing what they're capable of, but consistency is the key.

Eleven-eleven, boys. Eleven-eleven.

The gang at the desk is dissecting this one right now, you can catch it live at mornings.live.