May 12, 2013
Pittsburgh Penguins' Deryk Engelland (5) pushes Ottawa Senators' Colin Greening (14) in front of Penguins goaltender Tomas Vokoun (92) during the second period of their NHL hockey game in Ottawa, Ontario, Monday, April 22, 2013. (AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Fred Chartrand)
Next up, Player 87.
For the fourth time in the last six springs, the Senators are meeting Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins in the playoffs.
The Penguins advanced to the second round Saturday night by beating the New York Islanders 4-3 in overtime to claim their best-of-seven set 4-2.
The Senators-Penguins showdown could start as soon as Tuesday in Pittsburgh.
"We've got to go through everybody," Senators defenceman Chris Phillips said Saturday afternoon when discussing the prospect of taking on the Penguins, who finished first in the Eastern Conference with a 36-12-0 record that saw them win 18 games both at home and on the road.
"It would be a tough series, but yeah, we welcome the challenge. We've played them a few times (over) the last years, and I would expect no different ... a lot of energy and an exciting series."
The two teams met three times during the regular season, and Pittsburgh won each game. The Senators did pick up a point in a Jan. 27 shootout loss at Scotiabank Place decided by an Evgeni Malkin goal, then were tied 2-2 late in the third period on Feb. 13 when Erik Karlsson was sliced by the skate of Matt Cooke. Clearly deflated, they went on to lose that one 4-2.
Back at SBP on April 22, the Senators fell 3-1 to the Penguins.
Overall, Ottawa's post-season history with Pittsburgh has not been positive. After using the Penguins as a stepping stone to the 2007 final with a five-game series victory, the Senators lost the next two showdowns. They were swept in 2008 and, in 2010, lost in six.
Eliminating the Montreal Canadiens in five games did give the Senators an opportunity to kick back, as coach Paul MacLean gave the players a second day off in a row on Saturday.
"I think it was big for us," said winger Erik Condra. "It's good to get a rest in between series. Guys have some bumps and bruises, and that's what you're going to have when you're winning series. It's good to have a few days off to recover."
The Senators did throw those bodies of theirs around a fair amount in Round 1. They finished with 181 hits in the five games, which was more than the 173 registered by the Habs but paled in comparison to the league-leading 246 by the Toronto Maple Leafs in their first five games with the Boston Bruins.
On the surface, the Senators will go into Round 2 relatively healthy. Other than the unknown status of rookie defenceman Patrick Wiercioch, Jason Spezza is the only player on their once-loaded injury list, and even he is expected to play at some point in the series.
Others may be silently playing through pain, but the woods are full of guys like that at this time of year.
"The playoffs is a very secretive time of the year," said Phillips. "There are guys out there you wouldn't even know are banged up. So to have those extra days is very helpful."
Phillips, who left the season finale against Boston after being injured in the first period, is probably one of those guys.
"It's a very secretive time of the year," he said when the question was put to him.
While he recognizes the need for a break, MacLean doesn't want his players getting too comfortable, either.
"The first round is physical and obviously, we were a very physical team. That's part of our identity," he said. "Having the opportunity to rest and heal the body a little bit .. we don't want to get it so that it feels too good, we want to make sure we come back and are able to play hard again right away. But these two days we have here, we're trying to take advantage of, and I think it's not only good for the body but for the mind."
In 13 previous appearances in the playoffs, the Senators have only made it to the second round five times. They beat the Philadelphia Flyers in six games in 2003 and the New Jersey Devils in five in 2007.
And they've lost Round 2 series to the Washington Capitals (1998) in five games, the Leafs (2002) in seven games and the Buffalo Sabres (2006) in five.
To even their conference semi-final record, they're going to have to remember that bumping the Habs was not the ultimate goal, just the means to it.
"We had a couple of days to enjoy it, be proud of what we've done so far," said Phillips. "But it starts over now and we've got to get back to being level-headed and focused on what we have to do."
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