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Buffalo wins best-of-seven series 4-1 |
Ottawa Senators general manager John Muckler has no intention of rebuilding the club from scratch after another early exit from the Stanley Cup playoffs but that doesn't mean he's going to keep the status. » FULL STORY
Strengths | Weaknesses | Key Player | |
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Ottawa Senators |
Much has been made of Ottawa's offensive proficiency, and with good reason: the Senators scored the most goals per game in the league in both the regular season and the first round of the playoffs. And they're nearly as good at keeping the puck out of their own net. Despite the loss of starting goalie Dominik Hasek to injury, the Senators have rolled on with rookie backup Ray Emery, allowing the fewest goals in the East in the regular season and a respectable 2.60 per game against Tampa in the first round. |
It's hard to knock a team with an NHL regular-season-best scoring differential that was 65 goals better than any other in the East, but goaltending could become an issue. With Hasek still hurt, it looks like Ottawa will again turn to Emery. The 23-year-old had a solid first round, including a .924 save percentage, but that was against a tepid Lightning team that finished in the middle of the pack in the league in goals scored. Buffalo will present a more difficult test for Emery. |
Martin Havlat: Few could have blamed Havlat for being a little rusty after missing four and a half months with a shoulder injury. But after returning to the Senators lineup for the final two games of the regular season, the flashy 25-year-old quickly recaptured his offensive spark in the playoffs, setting a franchise record for the most goals in a series with six. If Havlat can continue his hot play, he'll take pressure off Ottawa's vaunted scoring trio of Daniel Alfredsson, Dany Heatley and Jason Spezza. |
Buffalo Sabres |
The Sabres' lineup might be lacking in big names, but it packs a big punch. With a balanced attack featuring nine players that tallied at least 18 goals each, Buffalo was the league's fifth-highest scoring team in the regular season. Then the Sabres lit up the Flyers for 4.5 goals per game, second only to Ottawa, in the first round. Buffalo has also made a smooth transition to the new, fast-whistle NHL: they are among the stingiest teams when it comes to giving up penalties, and they're solid at killing them off too. The Sabres also have one of the best power plays in the NHL. |
After posting a conference-high 25 road wins in the regular season, the Sabres looked sluggish in losing Games 3 and 4 of the first round in Philadelphia. Buffalo bounced back when it mattered, pounding the Flyers 7-1 in Game 6 in Philadelphia to clinch the series, but won't have the luxury of taking its foot of the gas against the favoured Senators. Continued strong play from rookie goalie Ryan Miller will be key for Buffalo, which allowed more shots on goal in the regular season than any team left in the playoffs. |
Daniel Briere: Buffalo is often criticized for lacking a go-to player, but Briere, when in the lineup, was among the league's most productive players in the regular season. The 28-year-old, who missed a slew of mid-season contests with an abdominal injury, piled up 58 points in 48 games. Briere's nine points in the first round tied him with teammate Chris Drury for fifth in the post-season scoring race. |
OTTAWA SENATORS GOALIES | |||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
GP | W | L | GA | SV% | GAA | ||||
Ray Emery | 10 | 5 | 5 | 29 | .900 | 2.88 | |||
Dominik Hasek | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.00 |
OTTAWA SENATORS TOP SCORERS | ||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
GP | G | A | P | +/- | PIM | PP | GW | |
Jason Spezza | 10 | 5 | 9 | 14 | -1 | 2 | 3 | 1 |
Martin Havlat | 10 | 7 | 6 | 13 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 1 |
Dany Heatley | 10 | 3 | 9 | 12 | 1 | 11 | 3 | 1 |
Wade Redden | 9 | 2 | 8 | 10 | -2 | 10 | 2 | 1 |
Daniel Alfredsson | 10 | 2 | 8 | 10 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 0 |
OTTAWA SENATORS INJURIES | ||
---|---|---|
Dominik Hasek | groin | indefinitely |
BUFFALO SABRES GOALIES | |||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
GP | W | L | GA | SV% | GAA | ||||
Ryan Miller | 18 | 11 | 7 | 48 | .908 | 2.56 | |||
Martin Biron | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
BUFFALO SABRES TOP SCORERS | ||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
GP | G | A | P | +/- | PIM | PP | GW | |
Daniel Briere | 18 | 8 | 11 | 19 | 0 | 12 | 3 | 2 |
Chris Drury | 18 | 9 | 9 | 18 | 5 | 10 | 5 | 1 |
Derek Roy | 18 | 5 | 10 | 15 | 7 | 16 | 1 | 0 |
Jean-Pierre Dumont | 18 | 7 | 7 | 14 | 1 | 14 | 3 | 1 |
Tim Connolly | 8 | 5 | 6 | 11 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
BUFFALO SABRES INJURIES | ||
---|---|---|
Tim Connolly | upper body | day-to-day |
Dmitri Kalinin | broken ankle | indefinitely |
Jay McKee | leg infection | day-to-day |
Henrik Tallinder | broken left arm | indefinitely |
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