Facing the piping-hot Colorado Avalanche in the high altitude of Denver wasn’t exactly the ideal way for the Ottawa Senators to close out a week-long western road trip.
For most of the game, the Sens looked gassed and outclassed for long stretches but still made a game of it. In the end, after a wild finish, they fell to the Avalanche 5-4 on Sunday for their second loss in a row. For Colorado, it was their fifth straight win, led by three assists from Casey Mittelstadt.
It’s always bad for business to give up a goal in the final minute of a period. The Senators managed to do it twice as the Avs took a 2-0 lead into the final frame. Nikolai Kovalenko, son of former Avalanche Andrei Kovalenko, got his first NHL goal with eight seconds left in the first. Josh Manson scored with 18 seconds left in the second.
Anton Forsberg was Ottawa’s best player, keeping the Sens in it early. He also had some weird moments in the second period, having to leave the game twice to deal with a skate issue, forcing Linus Ullmark to come in cold and play for over four minutes.
The game began to loosen up near the end of the second period. Moments after Thomas Chabot hit the post with a backhand attempt, Brady Tkachuk and Tim Stutzle failed to capitalize on a 2 on 0.
The Sens were flat to open the third period, but the final eleven minutes were bananas with the two sides combining for seven goals. Brady Tkachuk and Nick Cousins got the scoring rampage going midway through the third with a couple of quick goals for Ottawa to tie it.
90 seconds later, Colorado got two quickies from Logan O’Connor and Ross Colton to restore the two goal lead. Claude Giroux replied to cut it to 4-3. Nathan MacKinnon made it 5-3 with an empty netter, and then Giroux scored again to make it 5-4 with ten seconds left. But that was it.
An exhausting finish to what started as such a tight defensive battle.
The Sens fall to 4-4, now one of six Atlantic teams with a .500 record. They get just one day off and then host the St. Louis Blues on Tuesday.
