Senators star center Tim Stützle isn’t playing in tonight’s clash against the Lightning, interim head coach Jacques Martin said. It marks his fourth straight absence with an upper-body injury sustained last week against the Panthers. It’s fair to wonder if Ottawa will opt to shut down their first-line pivot for the season with only three games left after tonight and playoffs not in the picture yet again for the Sens.
2023-24 has been a step back for the 2020 third-overall pick, although he still produced at a good clip with 70 points (18 goals, 52 assists) in 75 games. Expectations were quite high after a 39-goal, 90-point campaign last year, though, and the Sens will need him to get back to that level if they want to shake their seven-year playoff drought. As it stands, Stützle will take the Sens’ scoring crown, although captain Brady Tkachuk only trails him by two with 34 goals and 68 points on the year.
Elsewhere in Sens-land:
- Winger Dominik Kubalík has recovered from his undisclosed injury but was still out of the lineup as a healthy scratch against the Bolts, per Dean Brown of TSN 1200. The 28-year-old had been out for the past two games after logging less than eight minutes against the Devils last Saturday. It’s been a season to forget for Kubalík, who Ottawa acquired as part of the return from the Red Wings for the signing rights to then-RFA winger Alex DeBrincat. The two-time 20-goal scorer was limited to just 11 tallies and 15 points through his first 72 games of the season and will have little opportunity to add to that total over the next few days. He’s spent most of the 2024 calendar year in a bottom-six role and has averaged 12:13 on the season, his lowest usage since making his NHL debut in 2019. It seems unlikely he’ll re-up upon completion of his two-year, $5MM deal this summer.
- Brown also says defenseman Travis Hamonic has likely played his last game of 2023-24. He’s officially missed four games with a lower-body injury, although he was a healthy scratch in six prior and hasn’t suited up since March 21 against the Blues. Bringing the 33-year-old back on a two-year, $2.2MM deal with full no-move protection has proven to be an unwise gamble for now-former GM Pierre Dorion. He’s easily been the team’s worst defender this season, posting six points in 48 games on the season with a -10 rating and horrid possession metrics (43.2 CF%, 41.5 xGF%) despite shouldering less than 15 minutes per game.