Ottawa Senators vs Carolina Hurricanes - Odds and Predictions

Where: PNC Arena – Raleigh, NC.

When: Monday, November 11, 7PM EST

How (TV/Radio): TSN5, RDS, FSCR | WFAN

Ottawa Senators (Away)

Head Coach: D.J. Smith {All-Time 6-9-1 OTT}

The Senators have one of the biggest injury pileups in the league including the recent addition of Artem Anisimov to the DL list after only just getting him back.

Lucky for the team, they have a seemingly unlimited surplus of young talent itching to claw their way up to the NHL level and it’s that hunger that has led to Ottawa’s first win streak of the season, winning their second in a row against Carolina on Saturday night.

Offense

The Ottawa Senators set a franchise record Saturday night against the Carolina Hurricanes when they scored two goals only four seconds apart.

That was a big energy boost for a team that ranks 24th in goals scored. They beat Carolina once but that doesn’t mean they can sit back.

The Senators barely average 30 shots on goal per game. That’s not good enough against a team that finished last season with the most shots in the league.

The biggest downfall for Ottawa heading into this matchup is their horrific power play. Ottawa still ranks 31st in the league, having the NHL’s worst power-play percentage at just 6.9 percent.

Statistically, the closest the Sens come to matching up with the Canes on paper is their faceoff and shooting percentages; two categories in which the two teams are dead even at 50.1 percent and 9.1 percent respectively.

Defense

On the defensive end, things get a little more precarious for the Senators.

Stacking these two teams up head-to-head, Ottawa holds absolutely no edge over Carolina.

And yet, they did beat the team just two nights ago. Ottawa allows an average of 3.13 goals and 34.4 shots against per game.

They have the second-worst average when it comes to penalty minutes per game at 11.6 minutes.

However, they are also fourth-best in the league with three shorthanded goals. Their penalty kill ranks at 20th in the league at 80 percent – just one ranking below the Carolina Hurricanes. They can beat Carolina again but it may come down to the goaltending.

Goaltending

It is expected that Goaltender Craig Anderson will return to the net for the Ottawa Senators Monday night to give Anders Nilsson a break after playing the majority of last week. Anderson is only 2-6-0 on the season with a goals-against-average of 3.20 and a .897 save percentage.

Carolina Hurricanes (Home)

Head Coach: Rod Brind’Amour{All-Time 55-36-8 CAR}

The Carolina Hurricanes are in the midst of their worst losing streak of the season after dropping their fourth game in a row to the Sens Saturday night. They are 3-6-1 in their last ten and haven’t had much going for them this past week as they have been losing to teams that they shouldn’t be.

Offense

Four losses in a row isn’t something to ignore.

With each loss, a team this young will tend to make more mistakes.

With that said, one can’t forget what this team still has to offer. The Canes were 9-3 before this streak.

They have the ninth-most goals in the NHL and average more than three per game while averaging more than 33 shots per game.

They have the tenth-most power-play goals as well and their power-play unit has a success rate of 21.8 percent – ranking them at 11th in the league.

They have more than enough physical skillsets to defeat the Ottawa Senators Monday night.

They just need to get over the mental hurdles that come with a losing streak and need to remember than all streaks eventually come to an end.

Defense

Carolina needs to take advantage of their defensive game against the Senators.

They should be able to just shut the Sens down completely as the Canes already rank first-overall in the league for allowing the fewest shots against per game and have allowed the fourth-fewest shots against in total.

They have allowed the fifth-fewest goals against and, on average, allow less than three per game.

They average less than nine penalty minutes per game and have an 81 percent success rate when killing off those minutes. They are coming in with much more consistent goaltending as well.

Goaltending

Petr Mrazek is expected to be between the pipes Monday night for the Carolina Hurricanes.

Despite Carolina’s recent stretch of bad luck, Mrazek has still managed to put up very respectable numbers. He has a record of 7-3-1, a GAA of 2.56, a save percentage of .904, and has registered two shutouts.

This is the second game of a home-and-home stand for these two teams. They played Saturday night in Ottawa where the Senators came out victorious with a final score of 4-1.

Momentum and morale are at stakes for both of these teams as both are riding season-high streaks heading into this matchup.

Ottawa is riding a two-game winning streak – the first time this season that they have won two in a row.

They hope to continue to build on that momentum in enemy territory.

The Hurricanes, however, are riding a four-game losing streak and morale is low after head coach Rod Brind’amour said it was “soul searching time” for the team.

The Canes will be looking for a big win on home ice to snap their skid. A fifth loss in a row could do a lot to damage the mental game of this young team.

Questions to Answer

Who will lose their streak? The Senators have already beaten Carolina this week and in dominant fashion. Can they do it again? Or will the Hurricanes come out swinging and avenge their loss from the weekend?

Coming into this game with weak numbers already, how will Craig Anderson perform after several days off? Will his time out of competition help or hinder his performance on Monday night? Will returning on visiting ice affect his play?

How big of a roll will special teams play? Ottawa has the league’s worst power-play percentage heading into this game and Carolina has the 11th-best. Yet, both teams rank equally at killing penalties. Will they void each other out?

Ottawa Senators Injury Report

F Clarke MacArthur – IR/NR (neck)

F Artem Anisimov – DL (groin)

F Ryan Callahan – IR/NR (back)

F Marian Gaborik – IR/NR (back)

F Scott Sabourin – DL (head)

F Logan Brown – DL (upper-body)

F Rudolfs Balcers – DL (lower-body)

D Christian Wolanin – IR/NR (shoulder)

Carolina Hurricanes Injury Report

F Erik Haula – day-to-day (knee).

F Jordan Martinook – DL (abdomen).

Carolina Hurricanes vs Ottawa Senators – Game Odds

The odds for this match between the Canes and the Senators are provided by  bet365 NJ, DraftKings Sportsbook, and 888Sport NJ.

Good luck!

Money Line