Ottawa Senators vs. Penguins at 7:00 PM ET: Wild-Card Stakes Rise on March 26
ottawa senators host the Pittsburgh Penguins at Canadian Tire Centre with puck drop set for 7: 00 PM ET, in a matchup that carries direct implications for a tight playoff race. Pittsburgh arrives at 35-20-16, Ottawa at 38-24-9, and Thursday’s result could quickly reshape the wild-card math and the pressure on both clubs.
What Happens When the Ottawa Senators and Penguins Meet With the Standings This Tight?
The immediate context is simple: points are becoming increasingly crucial. Pittsburgh could find itself out of a playoff spot with a loss Thursday, while Ottawa enters holding the East’s second and final wild-card position. The Penguins lead Ottawa by one point in the standings, and Pittsburgh also holds only a one-point edge over the New York Islanders.
That leaves little margin. A Pittsburgh win would create a three-point cushion over Ottawa for a wild-card spot if needed and preserve at least a one-point lead over New York with one game in hand. For Ottawa, the game offers a chance to strengthen its hold on that wild-card position while completing a three-game regular-season sweep of Pittsburgh, after earlier wins that included a 4-0 shutout and a 3-2 victory.
Thursday’s contest also comes with a recent history of close finishes between these teams in Ottawa. Four of the last five games between Pittsburgh and Ottawa at Canadian Tire Centre have gone to overtime, and Pittsburgh has collected points in 16 of its last 23 games versus Ottawa (10-7-6) dating back to March 23, 2017.
What If Injuries and Goaltending Decide the Margin?
Both lineups carry notable uncertainty and stress points, even as each side has been banking results. Ottawa has been on a tear, but its blue line is depleted: Jake Sanderson and Thomas Chabot are out, as are Nick Jensen and Lassi Thomson. Ottawa’s defense has been described as patchwork, yet the club has not allowed more than two goals in any of its last four games.
Pittsburgh’s forward group has its own complications. Evgeni Malkin has been described as out day-to-day, and there was an announcement that Anthony Mantha would not play Thursday before an update that Mantha confirmed he would play. Blake Lizotte is also out with an injury, and the Penguins recalled Avery Hayes and Joona Koppanen from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Thursday morning.
In net, the expected matchup is noteworthy. Linus Ullmark is expected to start for Ottawa and has recently stopped 32 of 34 shots in a 3-2 win over Detroit. For Pittsburgh, based on coach Dan Muse’s goalie rotation, Stuart Skinner is in line to start Thursday. Skinner has a 6-1-0 record in seven games played against Ottawa with a. 903 save percentage and a 2. 71 goals against average.
The goaltending layer matters even more given Pittsburgh’s recent result against Colorado, a 6-2 loss in which the Penguins did not score their second goal until the third period. In that game, Arturs Silovs stopped 24 of 29 shots.
What If Streaks and Milestones Tilt the Game Late?
Several individual runs and milestones sit close to the surface in this matchup, and they intersect with the possibility of another tight finish.
Sidney Crosby enters Thursday on a four-game point streak (1G-4A) since returning from injury and is two assists shy of becoming the eighth player in NHL history to record 1, 100 career assists. Pittsburgh also brings multiple other hot hands: Rickard Rakell has points in nine of his last 10 games (4G-7A), while Bryan Rust rides a career-long eight-game point streak (5G-7A) and has points in 13 of his last 14 games (7G-11A) dating back to Feb. 28.
On the Ottawa side, the club has won four in a row and is 10-2-1 in its last 13 games. Tuesday’s 3-2 win over Detroit included goals from rookie Carter Yakumchuk (his first NHL goal), Lars Eller, and Brady Tkachuk. Tkachuk also had a goal and an assist in that win and has five goals in his last 10 games for Ottawa, with two goals against Pittsburgh this season.
Pittsburgh’s Erik Karlsson also enters with momentum after tallying two goals and an assist Wednesday against Carolina and posting nine assists in his last nine games overall. He has seven assists in 15 career games when playing the Senators, his former team. Another Pittsburgh uptick has come from Egor Chinakhov, who has scored in three straight games (3G-1A), with his 17th goal setting a new single-season career high.
How viewers can follow: the game is scheduled for 7: 00 PM ET, available on SportsNet Pittsburgh, with radio coverage on 105. 9 The X and the Penguins app.
For El-Balad. com readers watching the playoff picture tighten, the most immediate takeaway is that the ottawa senators and Penguins are meeting at a moment when a single result can meaningfully change the cushion, the chase, and the urgency on both benches.
