Senators score second straight win with Merilainen in net

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The Ottawa Senators went back to Leevi Merilainen on Sunday after he recorded his first NHL shutout on Saturday. “We’ve got a lot of faith in him,” coach Travis Green said.

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SENATORS 3, STARS 2

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This 60 minutes was about redemption for the Ottawa Senators.

Booed off the ice by the hometown faithful after an ugly 4-0 loss to the Buffalo Sabres on Thursday night, the Senators delivered in a big way with a 3-2 victory over the sizzling Dallas Stars in front of 17,893 on Sunday night at the Canadian Tire Centre.

Rookie goaltender Leevi Merilainen made 24 stops to help lead the club to its second straight victory. Matthew Highmore, Tim Stutzle and Josh Norris scored for the Senators.

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Coming off a 5-0 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday on the road, the Senators needed to pick up where they left off against Dallas. The club had a complete 60-minute effort and dominated every aspect.

This one wasn’t scripted the same way, but the Senators battled back from an early deficit and got the two points. The Stars came into this one as one of the NHL’s hottest teams with a seven-game winning streak.

“We talked about that Buffalo game. I’ve seen it over the years where you come home from a long road trip and you just feel like it’s going to happen,” said Ottawa coach Travis Green. “We gifted them some goals in that game and emotional energy wasn’t as high as it needed to be.

“We had a lot of emotional energy in Pittsburgh and I thought it carried over against Dallas.”

Former Senators winger Evgenii Dadonov pulled Dallas to within a goal with 52.2 seconds left in the game.

BACK TO THE KID

The decision to go back to Merilainen was the biggest news of the day.

The Senators have been reticent to start goalies in back-to-back games this season. However, after Merilainen made 29 stops for his first National Hockey League shutout in Pittsburgh on Saturday, there was no reason to take him out.

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“We’ve got a lot of faith in him,” Green said.

But backup Anton Forsberg hasn’t won a game since Nov. 25 against the Calgary Flames and has lost five straight starts. The Senators need wins and Merilainen wasn’t overworked against the Penguins.

Merilainen was cheered when he was introduced as the starter in his first home game in six appearances.

The Ottawa Senators' Matthew Highmore (15) celebrates his goal on Dallas Stars goaltender Casey DeSmith during the third period in Ottawa on Sunday, Jan. 12, 2025.
The Ottawa Senators’ Matthew Highmore (15) celebrates his goal on Dallas Stars goaltender Casey DeSmith during the third period in Ottawa on Sunday, Jan. 12, 2025. Highmore’s goal, which turned out to be the game-winner, was his first as an Ottawa Senator. Photo by Justin Tang /The Canadian Press

“That was special and that was super fun,” Merilainen said. “The fans were on our side. That was fun.”

He’s just calm, cool and collected, plus he made the necessary stops.

It helped that the Senators gave him offensive support again.

Highmore scored an insurance marker only 21 seconds into the third period with his first in an Ottawa uniform. Highmore was alone in front to pick up a rebound and beat DeSmith on the stick side to give the club a 3-1 lead.

That was Highmore’s first NHL goal since April 21, 2022, when he was with Vancouver, and the timing couldn’t have been any better.

“All I want to do is help the team get wins and this was a big win for the team,” said Highmore.

FINDING A GEAR

The Senators did a much better job pushing the pace of this game in the second period, which led to a 2-1 lead for Ottawa after 40 minutes.

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After registering only five shots in the first, the Senators picked up the pace with a quick-strike offence in the second.

Stutzle and Norris scored goals only 39 seconds apart to give the Senators a 2-1 lead at only 3:53 of the second. Stutzle’s 14th of the year came on the club’s seventh shot of the period.

He made no mistake by one-timing a pass from Jake Sanderson by DeSmith on the stick side.

Norris brought some life into the building with No. 15 of the year to tie it up 1-1. He did a great job tipping a pass in the air from Drake Batherson by going to the net and beating DeSmith at 3:14.

The Senators found themselves down early in this one.

Jason Robertson opened the scoring for the Stars only 4:31 into the first with a shot from the slot that beat a screened Merilainen low. The Senators came into this game with a 4-15-3 record when allowing the first goal.

AFTER FURTHER REVIEW

The Stars thought they had tied it 2-2 with 7:55 left in the second and the club on the power play. Roope Hintz took a pass alone in front and slid it through Merilainen, however, the Senators challenged right away.

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The goal was called after the NHL’s situation room took a look at it.

“Hintz preceded the puck into the offensive zone and was in an off-side position prior to his goal,” the league said in its ruling.

Green, video coach Mike King and assistant Josh Mallory are now four-for-five on challenges this season.

“They’re two of the best in the business,” Green said of his video coaches.

That was a pivotal moment in a tight game.

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