The Senators come into the game sitting at 6-7-0 on the year but have lost two of the last three games. In the last game, they face the New York Islanders. After a scoreless first period, the Islanders would take a 2-0 lead in the second period. They would go on to fall to the Islanders 4-2. Meanwhile, the Bruins have struggled to start the year, sitting at 7-7-1. Still, they have won three of their last four games. In the last game, they faced the Calgary Flames. The Bruins would have a 3-1 lead heading into the third period, but the Flames would tie it up. Still, with 20 seconds left in the overtime period, Brad Marchand would win the game for the Bruins.
The Ottawa Senators are returning their top line from last year. Brady Tkachuk leads the line. Last year he led the team with 37 goals, while also having 37 assists. He has seven goals and nine assists so far this year. He will be joined by Tim Stutzle. Stutzle was second on the team while leading the team in assists. Stutzle had 18 goals and 52 assists last year, for a total of 70 points. He has six goals and 13 assists on the year already. Meanwhile, Michal Amadio has moved up to the top line. Amadio has just two assists this year.
Drake Batherson will be leading the second line. He was third on the team in points last year. Batherson had 28 goals and 38 assists last year. Batherson had six goals and seven assists this year. He is joined by Claude Giroux on the line. He has five goals and six assists this year. Meanwhile, Josh Norris has been solid already this year. He has four goals and four assists already on the season. Further, blueliner Jake Sanderson has also been solid this year. He has a goal and eight assists on the year.
Linus Ullmark is expected to be in goal for the Senators in this one. Ullmark is just 2-4-0 on the year with a 3.02 goals-against average and a .892 save percentage. He has struggled as of late. In his last game, he allowed five goals on 34 shots. It was his second straight game under .890 in save percentage and took the loss.
Why the Bruins Could Cover the Spread/Win
Elias Lindholm joins the Boston Bruins this year. Lindholm will be joining the top line with Pavel Zacha and David Pastrnak. Lindholm played for the Flames and Canucks last year. He scored 15 goals with 29 assists last year for the two teams. He has been solid this year, with two goals and seven assists this year. Pastrnak was solid last year for the Bruins. He has 47 goals with 63 assists for 110 points to lead the team. He has six goals and seven assists this year, while he has scored three times on the power play. Finally, Zacha has just two goals and three assists this year, with an assist on the power play.
Meanwhile, Cole Koepke has been great coming from the fourth line. He has four goals and four assists on the year. He is joined on the line by Mark Kastelic. Kastelic has three goals and four assists this year. Further, Brad Marchand has been solid this year. He has scored four times while adding seven assists. One goal and four assists have come on the power play.
Jeremy Swayman is expected to be in goal for the Bruins in this one. He is 4-5-1 on the year with a 3.14 goals-against average and a .894 save percentage. Last time out, he gave up three goals on 26 shots and took the loss to the Maple Leafs. It was the fourth time in five games that Swayman has been below .890 in save percentage.
Final Senators-Bruins Prediction & Pick
Linus Ullmark returns to Boston facing off with his former partner in net, Jeremy Swayman. The Senators have been great at scoring this year, scoring 3.46 goals per game this year, while also sitting fourth in the NHL on the power play. Still, the Senators have struggled on defense, sitting 23rd in the NHL in goals against per game. Meanwhile, the Bruins are scoring just 2.53 goals per game this year. They have also struggled on defense, sitting 24th in the NHL in goals against per game. The Senators are the underdog in odds in this early season NHL game, but take Linus Ullmark to get the win in his return to Boston.