GAME DAY: Ottawa Senators @ New Jersey Devils - 7:00pm EST - Wed. Nov. 25th, 2009

The Ottawa Senators (12-6-3, 27 points, 1st in the Northeast) hit the road and head to New Jersey to face Martin Brodeur and the Devils (14-6-1, 29 points, 2nd in the Atlantic) on Wednesday night. The Sens have put together 4 wins in a row and are playing with more confidence despite missing Volchenkov, Donovan, Leclaire and Kovalev in their last game. The Devils are returning home from a 3 game road trip that saw them take 1 out of a possible 6 points. They will no doubt be looking to snap their losing streak back at home. Expect to see Brodeur in net for the Devils and it's expected that Elliott will get the start as Leclare will be out up to 4 weeks with a fractured cheek bone. Mike Brodeur has been recalled to back Elliott up. We may see Volchenkov finally return to the Sens' line up. It will be great to have him back again as he's been sorely missed and his return should make the opposition a bit more cautious when entering our zone. The Sens' only previous meeting with the Devils this season was on Nov. 7th, 2009 and it was a 3-2 loss that saw the Devils score 3 unanswered power play goals to take the game in regulation.

Game Coverage:
- TV: TSN2 (HD), MSG PLUS 2
- Radio: Team 1200
- Web: check http://www.atdhe.net and http://www.justin.tv

Latest Updates:
- Clouston confirms that Fisher will not play tonight. Upper body injury. Keller to replace.
- Alfredsson and Leclaire not skating at practice today, Volchenkov taking part in practice
- Leclaire will be out for 4 weeks with a fractured cheek bone
- Mike Brodeur has been recalled from Bingo to fill-in
- Volchenkov and Donovan did not make the trip down to New Jersery
- Kovalev is not expected to be in the lineup in New Jersey

Team Lineups:
Ottawa Senators: http://www.dailyfaceoff.com/team-lineups/ottawa-senators-team-lineup
New Jersey Devils: http://www.dailyfaceoff.com/team-lineups/new-jersey-devils-team-lineup

TSN's Ice Chips:

Source: http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/feature/?id=11009

Ottawa Senators:

Sens forward Shean Donovan is expected to miss at least 6-8 weeks with an injury to his ACL and MCL. Surgery does not appear to be required. He suffered the injury during Thursday's victory over the Penguins. Pascal Leclaire suffered a lower body injury in the second period on Saturday and was replaced by Brian Elliott to start third. - TSN

Projected lines vs the Devils:

Forwards:
Michalek - Spezza - Shannon
Foligno - Regin - Alfredsson
Ruutu - Kelly - Neil
Cheechoo - Winchester - Keller

Defencemen:
Phillips - Lee
Campoli - Kuba
Picard - Carkner

Goaltenders:
Elliott
Brodeur

Injuries:
- Volchenkov (dislocated right elbow, on IR, practicing with team)
- Donovan (knee, on IR, out indefinitely)
- Leclaire (broken cheek bone, out 4 weeks)
- Kovalev (personal reasons, missed Monday's game against Washington)

New Jersey Devils:

Dainius Zubrus confirmed that he's out 4-6 weeks with a hairline patella fracture. He had surgery on Friday to secure it. - NHL Network

Projected Lines vs the Sens:

Forwards:
Parise - Zajac - Bergfors
Holston - Elias - Langenbrunner
Halischuck - McAmmond - Clarkson
Peters - Sestito - Corrente

Defencemen:
Salvador - Greene
White - Mottau
Fraser - Eckford

Goaltenders:
Brodeur
Danis

Injuries:
- Jay Pandolfo (separated right shoulder, on IR, out 4-6 weeks)
- Paul Martin (broken left arm, on IR, out 4-6 weeks)
- Johnny Oduya (groin, on IR)
- Rob Neidermayer (upper body, on IR)
- Ilkka Pikkarainen (flu-like symptoms, on IR)
- Dainius Zubrus (right kneecap surgery, on IR, out 4-6 weeks)

Game Day Previews:

OttawaSenators.com Game Day Preview:

Source: http://senators.nhl.com/club/preview.htm?id=2009020339

NHL.com Game Day Preview:

Source: http://www.nhl.com/ice/preview.htm?id=2009020339

Sportsnet.ca Game Day Preview:

Source: http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/nhl/scores/20091125/Ott@NJ/story

ESPN Game Day Preview:

Source: http://scores.espn.go.com/nhl/preview?gameId=291125011

ESPN Stats Comparison:



Media Links:
- Game Notes for tonight (PDF): http://senators.nhl.com/v2/ext/PDFs/091125_Ott-vs-NJ.pdf
- Clouston post-practice presser (MP3) from Wednesday: http://bit.ly/4CTrbI
- Clouston post-practice presser from Tuesday (MP3): http://bit.ly/6mZHcZ
- Mike Brodeur recalled on an emergency basis: http://bit.ly/506R0y
- Clouston post-game presser from Monday night (MP3): http://bit.ly/7e0HyZ
- SensTV On-line: http://senators.nhl.tv/team/console.jsp
- Official Twitter of the Ottawa Senators: http://twitter.com/NHL_Sens

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GO SENS GO!!!

Good work as usual Shabbs!

You rock Shabbs. Not sure how this one will play out. New Jersey is always an unpredicatable team, as we saw from them a couple of weekends ago ......

Kovalev will be drawing back in, correct?

SDH89 wrote:Kovalev will be drawing back in, correct?

Ah yes, almost certainly he'll be back in. That's good against the Devils - every little bit of offense helps.

I have not seen any updates on Kovalev... is it for sure he'll be there?

shabbs wrote:I have not seen any updates on Kovalev... is it for sure he'll be there?

Not for sure yet, but I think he was prepped to return as soon as last night. We'll find out soon enough I'm sure.

Cheese and Crackers!! Leclaire out up to 4 weeks! Eeesh. I hope Elliott is ready to play a tonne of games ie all of them until Leclaire is back.

Awesome job on these GDT Shabbs. I come here for most of my Sens info and click on all your links.

Farmhand wrote:Awesome job on these GDT Shabbs. I come here for most of my Sens info and click on all your links.

Welcome aboard and nice to see you join in the conversations

In order to atone for their Dung performance in the last game vs. the Devils, Ottawa must give their fans a pizza-worthy performance!!!!! Nothing less will do.

Get your Twitter on!

http://twitter.com/GMHockey/status/6017934245

According to team 1200, Kovalev will NOT be playing against the Devils.

Heard on the team 1200 that Donovan and Volchie also won't make the trip to New Jersey.

So we should expect the same line-up as last night with Brodeur replacing Leclaire as backup.