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Sens Leafs Game Review: After an exciting pre-season win Sunday afternoon against the Leafs, the Sens doubled down, winning 4-3 in overtime against the Toronto Maple Leafs. Two Jakob Chychrun goals lead the way for the Sens, who remain undefeated in pre-season. Mads Sogaard got the start and put up a rock-solid performance against a high-quality Leafs lineup. We also got our first look at a couple of new Sens, who found their way onto the scoresheet.
First Period Scoring Breakdown
Roby Jarventie Goal 1-0 Sens
The scoring started off early for the Sens, with Roby Jarventie finding the back of the net. The play started behind the net, where Mathieu Joseph pressured Leafs defender Topi Niemela. Niemela made the mistake of flipping the puck up the centre of the ice right into the lane of Roby Jarventie.
Roby Jarventie made the heads-up play to swat the puck down to his backhand, where he made a quick pass to Dominik Kubalik. Kubalik quickly passed back to Jarventie, who ripped a one-timer from the hash marks past Joseph Woll.
Dominik Kubalik Goal 2-0 Sens
After getting his first point in a Senators uniform on the Jarventie goal, Kubalik was looking for his first goal as a Senator. He didn’t need to look for too long after his re-direction gave the Sens a 2-0 lead. The play started with Jarventie behind the net, who moved it to Joseph in the slot.
Joseph found Lassi Thomson at the point, who fired a low blocker side wrist shot on net. Dominik Kubalik found himself wide open out front and was able to tip the puck under the arm of Joseph Woll. The Kubalik, Joseph, Jarventie line was finding a way to click early on, and the Sens found themselves with a quick 2-0 lead.
Easton Cowan Goal 2-1 Sens
With just under 10 minutes left in the period, the Senators found themselves shorthanded. With 30 seconds remaining in the penalty, the Leafs ran the bumper play to Easton Cowan, who was set up between the hash marks. Cowan beat Sogaard five-hole on the one-timer, bringing the Leafs back within one. It’s tough to blame Sogaard for the goal. Someone needed to pick up Cowan in the slot who didn’t receive any pressure from the defence.
Jakob Chychrun Goal 3-1 Sens
After giving one up, the Sens battled back to restore their 2-goal lead courtesy of Jakob Chychrun. The Senators found themselves on a power play consisting of Chabot, Chychrun, Tarasenko, Batherson, and Kubalik, all competing for their positions on PP 1 and 2. Vladimir Tarasenko was able to coral the puck in the corner before sending a backhand pass to Thomas Chabot on the point.
Chabot quickly passed across the ice to Jakob Chychrun, who was set up just inside the right-hand circle. Chychrun took a touch to dust off the pass before letting go of a howitzer of a wrist shot bar-down past Woll. This shot was an absolute rocket, and for those who remember Chychrun’s first goal as a Senator against Columbus, this was nearly a carbon copy.
Joseph Blandisi Goal 3-2 Sens
The Sens once again coughed up their 2-goal lead, this time at the hands of Joseph Blandisi. The play began looking relatively harmless, with the Leafs making a D-to-D pass to Topi Niemela. Niemela sent a harmless wrister towards an unscreened Mads Sogaard, who was squared up to the shot. The puck was re-directed a couple of times and eventually bounced off of the leg of Blandisi past Sogaard. Once again, it’s tough to blame Sogaard on a shot that changed directions several times and was headed wide before hitting a body.
Third Period Scoring Breakdown
Mitch Marner Goal 3-3
After nearly forty minutes without a goal, the Sens looked ready to head home with the win. But the Maple Leafs refused to quit, with Mitch Marner finding a loose puck out front. The play started along the goal line with Auston Matthews, who was looking for an open teammate. He found John Klingberg set up along the centre of the blue line, ready for the one-timer. Klingberg fired the puck down the center into a cluster of players out front. The puck was batted out of the scramble by Tyler Bertuzzi right onto the stick of Marner, who tucked the puck into an open net.
Overtime Scoring Breakdown
Jakob Chychrun Goal (2) 4-3 Sens
After giving up the lead in the game’s dying seconds, Jakob Chychrun made sure the Sens still left Toronto with the win. The play started with Auston Matthews on the rush against Mathieu Joseph. Matthew’s shot missed the net low and wide, which sprung Ridly Greig out of the Senators’ zone. Jakob Chychrun was able to catch up to the play, creating a 2 on 1 situation.
Greig, who had Mitch Marner quickly gaining on him, made the smart play, snapping a low shot off the pads of Martin Jones. This shot-pass was performed flawlessly as Jones deflected the puck right onto the stick of Jakob Chychrun. Chychrun made no mistake one-timing the puck past Jones and gave the Senators their second pre-season win.
Post Game Analysis
There were a few key things that I took away from this game. The first thing was that the pairing of Thomas Chabot and Jakob Chychrun looked fantastic. Although it’s only the pre-season, it’s still exciting to see what is likely the number one defense pair performing at a very high level. Although the fan reaction was quite divided, I was happy with Chabot’s overall performance in this game.
Even while playing his offside, I thought Chabot had some impressive rushes this game, including a shot that he rung off the post. It will be interesting to see if the team experiments with Chabot on the left and Chychrun on the right. And to see how Chabot looks playing on his strong side rather than his weak side.
The second takeaway was Mads Sogaard putting up one of his best performances in a Senators uniform. Sogaard finished the game with a .923 SV% after stopping 36 of 39 shots. He looked much more calm and confident in the net this game compared to certain games down the stretch in Ottawa last season. If Sogaard continues to track the puck and play his angles like he did tonight, he is in for a huge season.
Finally, the line of Roby Jarventie, Mathieu Joseph, and Dominik Kubalik looked great tonight. It’s no secret that Joseph has had his name all over the trade block, which has to be tough mentally as a player. But Joseph showed no signs of stress, creating all kinds of offense against the Leafs. Jarventie and Kubalik also connected on the first couple of goals this game. Although not credited for a point, Jarventie made the play that started Kubalik’s goal in the first.
Sens are back in action on Wednesday against the Montreal Canadiens, where they look to extend their pre-season record to 3-0.
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