Two games, two wins for the Habs

For a second straight game, the Senators let an opportunity to slip away.

Heading into game two at the Bell Centre, so many questions needed to be answered from a Senators perspective. And every answer, was the right one yet they lost anyways. 

Would Andrew Hammond be able to bounce back after a subpar game one performance? 

Hammond was fine in game two, just not good enough to win. He made 39 saves and gave his team a chance. None of the goals that beat him looked great, but Hammond made several point blank saves and didn't make things easy for the Habs. Most importantly, Ottawa didn't have to turn to Craig Anderson and can easily stick with Hammond confidently for game three at the Canadian Tire Centre. 

"It's hard to take moral victories at this time of year, generally you're judge by wins and losses," said Hammond postgame.

Would Mark Stone be available, how limited would he be?

Mark Stone played and was a factor in the game. Picking up two assists, he was more than effective and more importantly the Senators weren't forced to dress Chris Neil. That said, he didn't take any shots AT the net, let alone on the net. The Canadiens will probably be cheating to the passing lanes and giving him the open shots in game three. Stone also took a few hefty slashes from Brendan Gallagher during the game. 

"It was up to me, I went out for warm ups and felt healthy enough to help the team," said Stone postgame. 

Would the Senators be able to stay disciplined, or would the elevated emotions from game one creep into game two?

Ottawa in no way looked like a team that was distracted or frustrated. But they still took too many penalties. If they give the Canadiens another six powerplay opportunities in the next game, they'll score more than once. But since they were "hockey" and not "stupid" penalties, they get a pass. 

"Penalties we took were in the normal course of action, both teams were in control which I pretty much expected they would be," coach Dave Cameron postgame. 

There's no question that the Senators are now in trouble. Their season is on the line in game three and it's starting to look like the miracle run is coming to an abrupt halt and midnight is about to strike. 

"We've been a never say die to for the last three months," said Stone. 

- Mitchy.