Last Tuesday's game at the Bell Centre hurt the Ottawa Senators. They lost three key players during the game: Tim Stützle, Brady Tkachuk, and Thomas Chabot.
And they seem to want revenge.
Ottawa Senators to field a tough lineup against the Montreal Canadiens
Perhaps in response to the incidents that occurred during the game, the Sens have recalled several physical players ahead of the next duel between the two clubs, which will take place this Saturday night in Ottawa. Tyler Boucher, Angus Crookshank, Stephen Halliday, Hayden Hodgson, Cole Reinhardt, Filip Roos, and Donovan Sebrango have all left the Belleville Senators in the AHL to join the main team.
While there's no guarantee they will all play on Saturday night, we can expect a rather physical lineup from the Sens. According to Bruce Garrioch, Boucher, Crookshank, and Sebrango are known to agitate their rivals on the ice.
When questioned about these call-ups, Canadiens' head coach Martin St-Louis said he's preparing for anything in this matchup. He even asked his boss, Kent Hughes, to reach out to his counterpart, Steve Staios, to figure out what they have in mind.
"I asked Kent to see if he could talk to [Steve] Staios. It's somewhat related to what we saw across the league during the preseason [injuries]. You don't want to lose guys."Martin St-Louis
It wouldn't be surprising, given the circumstances, if the league also tries to minimize any potential issues by talking to both teams.
It will be interesting to see how MSL reacts to all this. Since he is visiting Ottawa, he will have to submit his lineup to the NHL first and therefore won't be able to tell if the Ontario team is bluffing.
Will the Canadiens choose to protect their star players, or will they give them one final real preseason match? The club's top line hasn't played in over a week, and leaving them in the stands could negatively impact their season opener on October 9.
A situation to follow...
