It’s been a tough stretch for the Ottawa Senators, who now find themselves at the bottom of the Atlantic Division standings despite a positive goal differential. The team has lost three in a row and hasn’t gotten the goaltending they were hoping for so far.
Part of that is due to the absence of Cam Talbot, something that was rectified today as the Senators activated the veteran netminder from injured reserve. Talbot has been out since the beginning of October after arriving in Ottawa through an offseason trade with the Minnesota Wild.
While Anton Forsberg will still start tonight’s game against the Vegas Golden Knights, Talbot is going to dress and be the backup. He is expected to start on Saturday against the Philadelphia Flyers.
The 35-year-old Talbot has been a reliable option throughout his career, posting a .915 save percentage in nearly 400 regular season appearances. Last season with the Wild he went 32-12-4 with a .911 before essentially being replaced by deadline acquisition Marc-Andre Fleury.
Now with Ottawa, he should get a good chunk of the starts from here on out. If he can improve on the .909 that Forsberg has provided so far, the Senators look as though they can make some noise in a playoff chase.
One thing stopping them from doing that is the absence of defensive stalwart Artem Zub, who is still expected to miss another few games, according to Bruce Garrioch of Postmedia.
Goaltending hasnt been the problem. It’s been the obvious weakness on D which is only magnified with the loss of Zub, the only good RHD.