2011–12 Ottawa Senators season

2011–12 Ottawa Senators
Division	2nd Northeast
Conference	8th Eastern
2011–12 record	41–31–10
Home record	20–17–4
Road record	21–14–6
Goals for	249
Goals against	240
Team information
General manager	Bryan Murray
Coach	Paul MacLean
Captain	Daniel Alfredsson
Alternate captains	Chris Phillips Jason Spezza
Arena	Scotiabank Place
Average attendance	19,356 (101.1%)
Team leaders
Goals	Milan Michalek (35)
Assists	Erik Karlsson (59)
Points	Jason Spezza (84)
Penalty minutes	Zenon Konopka (193)
Plus/minus	Filip Kuba (+26)
Wins	Craig Anderson (33)
Goals against average	Robin Lehner (2.01)

The 2011–12 Ottawa Senators season was the 20th season of the Ottawa Senators of the National Hockey League (NHL). It was considered a rebuilding season for the Senators after an off-season of high player personnel turnover and the hiring of a new head coach. Although the Senators were not expected to make the playoffs, the team qualified eighth. The team lost, however, in the first round to the first-place New York Rangers, although they took the series to a seventh game. Three Senators were nominated for NHL awards: captain Daniel Alfredsson for the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy, Erik Karlsson for the James Norris Trophy and Head Coach Paul MacLean for the Jack Adams Award. The Senators hosted the NHL All-Star Game and its festivities. Alfredsson was named captain of one of the teams and five Senators played in the Game.

Team business

On May 19, 2011, the Ottawa Senators were awarded the Ottawa United Way Community Builder of the Year Award for over $60 million in charitable fund-raising in the past ten years, support of youth hockey and the founding of the "Do It For Daron" initiative for mental health in honour of Daron Richardson, the daughter of Ottawa Senators assistant coach Luke Richardson, who took her own life in November 2010. On May 20, 2011, the Senators announced the "Rink of Dreams" project to build an outdoor skating rink at Ottawa City Hall. The rink is to cost $1.25 million, $1 million of which would be funded by the Senators Foundation charity.

In December 2011, the Senators officially announced the replacement of the scoreboard at Scotiabank Place. The old scoreboard dated from 1996, and its replacement had been rumoured in the media since the time of the announcement that the All-Star Game would be played in the arena. The new scoreboard, to be supplied by Panasonic, uses four high-definition video screens, plus two LED "rings", one above the scoreboards and one below. While the old scoreboard had video screens, the new screens are much larger in size and have a larger number of pixels per screen. The scoreboard was first used for the December 27, 2011, game against the Montreal Canadiens. For the game, only the four video screens were in place; the LED rings were to be operational for the All-Star Game.

2012 NHL All-Star Game

The Senators were the hosts of the 59th NHL All-Star Game in January 2012. The Ottawa Convention Centre hosted a Fan Fair of fan activities from the Thursday until Saturday. The Rideau Canal had to close due to mild weather, but the Senators' new Rink of Dreams was able to be used in its place. Confederation Park was used for ice sculptures and displays.

In the annual All-Star Game voting, Senators fans voted four members of the team to the All-Star roster: Daniel Alfredsson, Erik Karlsson, Milan Michalek and Jason Spezza. Karlsson led all players in voting with over 939,591 votes cast. Colin Greening was added later by the NHL operations department. Alfredsson was named captain of one team and was able to put the Senators onto his team, except for Greening, who was selected at random for the other All-Star team, coached by former Senator Zdeno Chara. Senators' fans in attendance at the game were thrilled when Alfredsson scored two consecutive goals in the second period, giving him a standing ovation.

Off-season

After firing Head Coach Cory Clouston at the end of their 2010–11 season, the Senators began a search for a new head coach. According to media reports, Bryan Murray interviewed several candidates for the job, including Kurt Kleinendorst (coach of the Binghamton Senators), Dave Cameron (coach of the Mississauga St. Michael's Majors), Craig MacTavish (former coach of the Edmonton Oilers), Paul MacLean (assistant coach of the Detroit Red Wings) and Kirk Muller (assistant coach of the Montreal Canadiens). On June 14, 2011, the Senators announced the signing of Paul MacLean to a three-year contract as the new head coach. On June 23, 2011, Dave Cameron and Mark Reeds were hired as his assistant coaches. Reeds was the head coach of the Owen Sound Attack from the Ontario Hockey League (OHL).

The Senators unveiled a new third jersey on October 1, 2011. The new third jersey replaces the "SENS" design third jersey. The New Jersey is primarily black, with horizontal red and off-white stripes in a pattern reminiscent of the original Ottawa Senators jersey of 1926–27. The team will wear the jersey 11 times at home and once on the road. The symbolism of the number 11 corresponds to the number of Stanley Cup championships the original Senators won.

Pre-season

On June 22, 2011, the Senators announced that they would be playing seven games during the pre-season – three games at home, three games on the road and one neutral-site game. The team will play divisional rivals Toronto, Montreal and Boston twice each. Meanwhile, the Senators will also play the Winnipeg Jets once in Conception Bay South, Newfoundland, as part of the Kraft Hockeyville Celebrations. The game was moved to Mile One Centre by Conception Bay South to maximize the use of arena upgrade dollars for renovations, instead of preparing their arena for the exhibition game.

The Senators held a rookie camp in early September. The rookies participated in a rookie tournament in Oshawa, Ontario, with rookies of the Chicago Blackhawks, Pittsburgh Penguins and Toronto Maple Leafs. The team won all of its games in the tournament. All members of the rookie camp were invited to the main training camp, which started on September 16 at Scotiabank Place and the Bell Sensplex.

Regular season

The Ottawa Senators 20th Anniversary patch

The Senators opened the season on October 7, 2011, at the Detroit Red Wings. The Senators finished the season on April 7, 2012. 81 of 82 games were televised, either on CBC, RDS, Sportsnet, TSN or TVA. The sole game not televised was a visit to the Florida Panthers on February 15, 2012. The NHL later organized a video feed available to NHL Centre Ice subscribers in Ottawa for the Panthers game.

The Senators had their home opener on October 11, 2011, against the Minnesota Wild. Since it is the franchise's 20th anniversary season, the Senators had special celebrations. With 14 members of the 1992–93 team in attendance, Laurie Boschman, the 1992–93 team's captain, dropped the puck on the ceremonial face-off. The team went on to win the game 4–3 via shoot-out. It was head coach Paul MacLean's first win as a head coach in the NHL.

Nikita Filatov, a 21-year-old Russian player (and former first-round pick) acquired in a trade at the 2011 NHL Entry Draft, had an up-and-down season between Ottawa and Binghamton before being loaned to CKSA Moscow of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) in December; he played for CSKA for the remainder of the season. Filatov was to be a restricted free agent at the end of the season, and general manager Bryan Murray indicated that the club had not given up on Filatov, and would put in at least a qualifying offer at season's end.

The Senators made a trade in December 2011 for the Phoenix Coyotes' Kyle Turris in exchange for David Rundblad and a draft pick. After Turris arrived in Ottawa, the team won ten of 13 games, and had a nine-game unbeaten streak over the end of December into January. The run pushed the Senators up into a playoff position. On December 17, the Senators were in tenth position. On January 20, the Senators were as high as fourth in the Eastern Conference.

In February, goaltender Craig Anderson cut the pinky finger on his right hand while preparing food at home. The injury put him out of action as the cut made him unable to hold the goal stick while the injury healed. The Senators made a trade to improve the organizational depth at goaltender, trading for Ben Bishop of the St. Louis Blues. Bishop was playing for the Blues' American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate and was due to become an unrestricted free agent. Bishop had won the MVP award at the AHL 2012 All-Star Game and was considered one of the best prospects outside the NHL. Before the trade, the Senators had recalled Robin Lehner from Binghamton and Bishop reported to Binghamton. Although Lehner played well and earned his first NHL shutout, Lehner was sent to Binghamton in early March and Bishop recalled to Ottawa. While Ottawa continued to earn points, division leader Boston struggled, and the Senators found winning the division feasible. On March 16, the Senators moved past the Bruins into first place in the Northeast Division and second overall in the Eastern Conference. The lead lasted one day, but the Senators qualified for the playoffs, an unexpected development that made head coach MacLean a candidate for coach of the year.

Playoffs

The Senators succeeded in making the playoffs after missing them in the 2010–11 season, with a 5–1 win over the New York Islanders on April 1, 2012. The Hockey News had predicted that the Senators would finish last in the Eastern Conference and miss the playoffs.

Senators vs. Rangers

The Senators qualified in eighth place, drawing the first-place New York Rangers in the first round. Although the Senators won three out of four games during the regular season between the two teams, the NHL Network predicted the Rangers will win in five or six games. ESPN predicted the Rangers would win in seven games. It was the first New York–Ottawa series since the first Senators played the Rangers in 1927–28, and the last until 2016-17.

In the first game, the Rangers scored once in the first, and twice in the second to take a 3–0 lead into the third period. In the third, the Rangers scored to make it 4–0 before Daniel Alfredsson and Erik Condra scored in the last ten minutes. It was close until the middle of the game. The Rangers were leading 1–0 late in the second period and the Senators were pressing for an equalizer. The Rangers took a time-out and from there, scored three times in six minutes ( from the second into the third period) to build the lead the Senators could not overcome.

In game two, the Senators added two players known for fighting to the roster: Matt Carkner and Zenon Konopka, changes described by coach MacLean as done in response to the Rangers' Brian Boyle's rough treatment of Erik Karlsson. After only two minutes of play, Carkner was ejected from the game for fighting Boyle, who did not want to fight Carkner, and punching him after Boyle went down to the ice. The Rangers' Brandon Dubinsky jumped into the fight and was ejected for being the third man into a fight. In the second period, the Rangers' Carl Hagelin elbowed Alfredsson and was ejected. In the game itself, the Rangers took a one-goal lead after one period. The Senators equalized during the match penalty to Hagelin to leave the game tied after two. In the third, Boyle scored to put the Rangers ahead, but Nick Foligno tied the score with four minutes to play. In the overtime, the Senators applied pressure from the start, and Chris Neil scored to win the game for the Senators after only one minute of overtime. For their actions during the game, the NHL later gave Hagelin a three-game suspension, and Carkner a one-game suspension.

Alfredsson did not return for game three, as he was still suffering from a concussion from the Hagelin hit. The first star of the game was the Rangers' goaltender Henrik Lundqvist, who stopped all 39 Senators shots on net for a shutout. The game was scoreless until the third period when the Rangers' Boyle scored on a backhand after the puck bounced off the back boards directly to him nearly in front of the Senators' goaltender Craig Anderson, who stopped 21 of 22 shots. It was the only goal of the match. Lundqvist preserved the win with a save in the final minute on Kyle Turris, who was alone in front of the Rangers' goal with the Senators pressing and their goaltender pulled for an extra attacker.

In game four, it was the Ottawa goalie Anderson's turn to save a game. After giving up two power play goals by the Rangers in the first few minutes, he stopped the Rangers the rest of the way. In the second period, the Senators tied the game on goals by Milan Michalek and Sergei Gonchar. No goals were scored leading to the second overtime of the series. In the overtime, the Senators' Kyle Turris scored his first-ever overtime goal to tie the series after four games, ensuring a game six in Ottawa. Ottawa captain Alfredsson missed another game. It was the first victory at home by the Senators since the 2007 Stanley Cup Finals.

The fifth game, in New York, saw Anderson continue to hold off the Rangers, stopping all of their shots for a 2–0 shutout victory. Junior call up Mark Stone made an impression, setting up the winning goal of the game by Spezza in the first period. Spezza added an empty net goal to seal the victory. It was Stone's NHL debut.

Game six was played in Ottawa with the Senators having a chance to eliminate the Rangers. The Senators scored the first goal of the game in the first period on a power play. With Anderson continuing to hold off the Rangers, it appeared the Senators might have scored enough. It all changed in the second period with three goals by the Rangers, including a pair on the power play, to put the Rangers ahead 3–1. Anderson's shutout streak of the Rangers ended at 145 minutes, 27 seconds. In the third, Senators' coach Paul MacLean benched stars Spezza and Alfredsson in a ploy to turn their games around, but it was ineffective. Alfredsson himself showed a rare temper outburst on the bench, due to his frustration. The Senators scored a goal on a disputed play in the last minute, but it was too little, too late. The game was the NHL debut for Senators prospect Jakob Silfverberg, who had just finished playing in the Swedish Elitserien playoffs.

The series shifted to New York for the deciding game seven. Like game six, the deciding goals were scored in the second period. The Rangers scored a pair of goals to go ahead 2–0, while Alfredsson replied on the power play for the Senators. The third period was scoreless. Alfredsson was considered to be the best player for the Senators in the game, and there was considerable speculation after the game that it might be the last game of his NHL career.

Standings

Northeast Division

Pos	Team	GP	W	L	OTL	ROW	GF	GA	GD	Pts
1	y – Boston Bruins	82	49	29	4	40	269	202	+67	102
2	x – Ottawa Senators	82	41	31	10	35	249	240	+9	92
3	Buffalo Sabres	82	39	32	11	32	218	230	−12	89
4	Toronto Maple Leafs	82	35	37	10	31	231	264	−33	80
5	Montreal Canadiens	82	31	35	16	26	212	226	−14	78

Source: National Hockey League
x – Clinched playoff spot; y – Clinched division

Eastern Conference

Pos	Div	Team	GP	W	L	OTL	ROW	GF	GA	GD	Pts
1	AT	z – New York Rangers	82	51	24	7	47	226	187	+39	109
2	NE	y – Boston Bruins	82	49	29	4	40	269	202	+67	102
3	SE	y – Florida Panthers	82	38	26	18	32	203	227	−24	94
4	AT	x – Pittsburgh Penguins	82	51	25	6	42	282	221	+61	108
5	AT	x – Philadelphia Flyers	82	47	26	9	43	264	232	+32	103
6	AT	x – New Jersey Devils	82	48	28	6	36	228	209	+19	102
7	SE	x – Washington Capitals	82	42	32	8	38	222	230	−8	92
8	NE	x – Ottawa Senators	82	41	31	10	35	249	240	+9	92
9	NE	Buffalo Sabres	82	39	32	11	32	218	230	−12	89
10	SE	Tampa Bay Lightning	82	38	36	8	35	235	281	−46	84
11	SE	Winnipeg Jets	82	37	35	10	33	225	246	−21	84
12	SE	Carolina Hurricanes	82	33	33	16	32	213	243	−30	82
13	NE	Toronto Maple Leafs	82	35	37	10	31	231	264	−33	80
14	AT	New York Islanders	82	34	37	11	27	203	255	−52	79
15	NE	Montreal Canadiens	82	31	35	16	26	212	226	−14	78

Source: National Hockey League
x – Clinched playoff spot; y – Clinched division; z – Clinched conference

Schedule and results

Pre-season

2011 pre-season game log: 3–3–1 (Home: 1–1–1 ; Road: 2–2–0) Game Date Time (ET) Opponent Score Decision Location Attendance Recap 1 September 19 7:00 pm Toronto 2–4 Lehner Air Canada Centre 18,556 2 September 21 7:30 pm Boston 2 – 1 (OT) Auld Scotiabank Place 16,492 3 September 23 7:30 pm Montreal 3 – 4 (SO) Anderson Scotiabank Place 17,583 4 September 24 7:00 pm Montreal 3–2 Lehner Bell Centre 21,273 5 September 26 4:00 pm Winnipeg 1–3 Auld Mile One Centre (St. John's, NFLD) 6,275 6 September 27 7:30 pm Toronto 3–5 Lehner Scotiabank Place 18,831 7 September 29 7:00 pm Boston 2–1 Anderson TD Garden 16,763

Regular season

2011 regular season game log: 41–28–10 (Home: 20–15–4 ; Road: 21–13–6)
October (Games: 12; Home: 7; Road: 5) (Record: 7–5–0; Home: 5–2–0; Road: 2–3–0) Game Date Time (ET) Opponent Score Decision Location Attendance Record Pts Recap 1 October 7 7:00 pm Detroit 3–5 Anderson Joe Louis Arena 20,066 0–1–0 0 2 October 8 7:00 pm Toronto 5–6 Auld Air Canada Centre 19,324 0–2–0 0 3 October 11 7:30 pm Minnesota 4 – 3 (SO) Anderson Scotiabank Place 19,455S 1–2–0 2 4 October 13 7:30 pm Colorado 1–7 Anderson Scotiabank Place 19,239S 1–3–0 2 5 October 15 7:00 pm Washington 1–2 Auld Verizon Center 18,506 1–4–0 2 6 October 18 7:30 pm Philadelphia 2–7 Auld Scotiabank Place 18,059 1–5–0 2 7 October 20 7:30 pm Winnipeg 4–1 Anderson Scotiabank Place 17,919 2–5–0 4 8 October 22 7:00 pm Columbus 4–3 Anderson Scotiabank Place 18,867 3–5–0 6 9 October 25 7:00 pm Carolina 3 – 2 (SO) Anderson RBC Center 12,083 4–5–0 8 10 October 27 7:30 pm Florida 4–3 Anderson Scotiabank Place 18,165 5–5–0 10 11 October 29 3:00 pm NY Rangers 5 – 4 (SO) Anderson Madison Square Garden 18,200 6–5–0 12 12 October 30 7:30 pm Toronto 3–2 Lehner Scotiabank Place 19,522S 7–5–0 14
November (Games: 12; Home: 4; Road: 8) (Record: 5–5–2; Home: 1–2–1; Road: 4–3–1) Game Date Time (ET) Opponent Score Decision Location Attendance Record Pts Recap 13 November 1 7:00 pm Boston 3–5 Anderson TD Garden 17,565 7–6–0 14 14 November 4 7:30 pm Montreal 1–2 Anderson Scotiabank Place 20,329S 7–7–0 14 15 November 5 7:00 pm Buffalo 2 – 3 (SO) Anderson Scotiabank Place 18,805 7–7–1 15 16 November 9 7:30 pm NY Rangers 2–3 Anderson Scotiabank Place 19,543S 7–8–1 15 17 November 11 7:30 pm Buffalo 1–5 Anderson First Niagara Center 18,690 7–9–1 15 18 November 12 7:00 pm Toronto 5–2 Anderson Air Canada Centre 19,553 8–9–1 17 19 November 15 9:00 pm Calgary 3–1 Anderson Scotiabank Saddledome 19,289 9–9–1 19 20 November 17 9:30 pm Edmonton 5–2 Anderson Rexall Place 16,839 10–9–1 21 21 November 20 9:00 pm Vancouver 1 – 2 (OT) Auld Rogers Arena 18,890 10–9–2 22 22 November 25 7:00 pm Pittsburgh 3–6 Anderson Consol Energy Center 18,610 10–10–2 22 23 November 27 5:00 pm Carolina 4–3 Anderson Scotiabank Place 19,656S 11–10–2 24 24 November 29 8:30 pm Winnipeg 6–4 Anderson MTS Centre 15,004 12–10–2 26
December (Games: 15; Home: 9; Road: 6) (Record: 7–5–3; Home: 5–4–0; Road: 2–1–3) Game Date Time (ET) Opponent Score Decision Location Attendance Record Pts Recap 25 December 1 8:30 pm Dallas 2–3 Anderson American Airlines Center 10,490 12–11–2 26 26 December 3 7:00 pm Washington 2 – 3 (OT) Anderson Verizon Center 18,506 12–11–3 27 27 December 5 7:30 pm Tampa Bay 4–2 Anderson Scotiabank Place 18,742 13–11–3 29 28 December 7 7:00 pm Washington 3–5 Anderson Scotiabank Place 17,771 13–12–3 29 29 December 8 7:00 pm New Jersey 4 – 5 (SO) Auld Prudential Center 13,743 13–12–4 30 30 December 10 7:00 pm Vancouver 1–4 Anderson Scotiabank Place 19,171S 13–13–4 30 31 December 13 7:00 pm Buffalo 3 – 2 (OT) Anderson First Niagara Center 18,690 14–13–4 32 32 December 14 7:30 pm Boston 2–5 Anderson Scotiabank Place 18,088 14–14–4 32 33 December 16 7:30 pm Pittsburgh 6–4 Auld Scotiabank Place 19,710S 15–14–4 34 34 December 20 7:30 pm Buffalo 4–1 Anderson Scotiabank Place 18,474 16–14–4 36 35 December 22 7:30 pm Florida 4 – 3 (OT) Anderson Scotiabank Place 19,296S 17–14–4 38 36 December 23 7:00 pm Carolina 1 – 2 (OT) Anderson RBC Center 14,556 17–14–5 39 37 December 27 7:30 pm Montreal 2–6 Anderson Scotiabank Place 20,500S 17–15–5 39 38 December 30 7:30 pm Calgary 4–3 (OT) Anderson Scotiabank Place 20,500S 18–15–5 41 39 December 31 7:00 pm Buffalo 3–2 (SO) Anderson First Niagara Center 18,690 19–15–5 43
January (Games: 14; Home: 4; Road: 10) (Record: 8–5–1; Home: 3–1–0; Road: 5–4–1) Game Date Time (ET) Opponent Score Decision Location Attendance Record Pts Recap 40 January 2 7:30 pm New Jersey 3 – 2 (OT) Anderson Scotiabank Place 19,573S 20–15–5 45 41 January 5 7:30 pm Tampa Bay 4–1 Anderson Scotiabank Place 19,994S 21–15–5 47 42 January 7 1:00 pm Philadelphia 2 – 3 (OT) Anderson Wells Fargo Center 19,792 21–15–6 48 43 January 8 5:00 pm Philadelphia 6–4 Anderson Scotiabank Place 20,028S 22–15–6 50 44 January 10 7:00 pm Pittsburgh 5–1 Anderson Consol Energy Center 18,603 23–15–6 52 45 January 12 7:00 pm NY Rangers 3–0 Anderson Madison Square Garden 18,200 24–15–6 54 46 January 14 7:00 pm Montreal 3 – 2 (SO) Anderson Bell Centre 21,273 25–15–6 56 47 January 16 7:30 pm Winnipeg 0–2 Anderson Scotiabank Place 19,927S 25–16–6 56 48 January 17 7:00 pm Toronto 3–2 Anderson Air Canada Centre 19,615 26–16–6 58 49 January 19 10:30 pm San Jose 4–1 Anderson HP Pavilion 17,562 27–16–6 60 50 January 21 4:00 pm Anaheim 1–2 Anderson Honda Center 15,500 27–17–6 60 51 January 23 10:30 pm Los Angeles 1–4 Anderson Staples Center 18,118 27–18–6 60 52 January 24 9:00 pm Phoenix 2–3 Anderson Jobing.com Arena 8,061 27–19–6 60 53 January 31 7:00 pm Boston 3–4 Anderson TD Garden 17,565 27–20–6 60
February (Games: 12; Home: 8; Road: 4) (Record: 7–3–2; Home: 3–3–2; Road: 4–0–0) Game Date Time (ET) Opponent Score Decision Location Attendance Record Pts Recap 54 February 3 7:30 pm NY Islanders 1 – 2 (OT) Anderson Scotiabank Place 18,252 27–20–7 61 55 February 4 7:00 pm Toronto 0–5 Anderson Scotiabank Place 20,500S 27–21–7 61 56 February 7 7:30 pm St. Louis 1–3 Anderson Scotiabank Place 18,952 27–22–7 61 57 February 9 7:30 pm Nashville 4–3 Auld Scotiabank Place 18,592 28–22–7 63 58 February 11 2:00 pm Edmonton 3 – 4 (OT) Anderson Scotiabank Place 20,085S 28–22–8 64 59 February 14 7:00 pm Tampa Bay 4–0 Anderson St. Pete Times Forum 17,488 29–22–8 66 60 February 15 7:30 pm Florida 6–2 Anderson BankAtlantic Center 14,038 30–22–8 68 61 February 20 1:00 pm NY Islanders 6–0 Anderson Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum 15,818 31–22–8 70 62 February 22 7:00 pm Washington 5–2 Anderson Scotiabank Place 18,357 32–22–8 72 63 February 25 7:00 pm Boston 3–5 Auld Scotiabank Place 19,444S 32–23–8 72 64 February 26 5:00 pm NY Islanders 5–2 Lehner Scotiabank Place 19,660S 33–23–8 74 65 February 28 7:00 pm Boston 1–0 Lehner TD Garden 17,565 34–23–8 76
March (Games: 13; Home: 7; Road: 6) (Record: 6–5–2; Home: 3–3–1; Road: 3–2–1) Game Date Time (ET) Opponent Score Decision Location Attendance Record Pts Recap 66 March 2 7:00 pm Chicago 1–2 Lehner Scotiabank Place 18,788 34–24–8 76 67 March 4 6:00 pm Florida 2–4 Lehner BankAtlantic Center 15,811 34–25–8 76 68 March 6 7:30 pm Tampa Bay 7–3 Bishop St. Pete Times Forum 18,967 35–25–8 78 69 March 8 7:30 pm NY Rangers 4–1 Bishop Scotiabank Place 18,854 36–25–8 80 70 March 10 7:00 pm Buffalo 3 – 4 (SO) Bishop Scotiabank Place 19,951S 36–25–9 81 71 March 14 7:30 pm Montreal 2 – 3 (SO) Bishop Bell Centre 21,273 36–25–10 82 72 March 16 7:00 pm Montreal 2 – 1 (OT) Bishop Scotiabank Place 20,500S 37–25–10 84 73 March 17 7:00 pm Toronto 1–3 Bishop Scotiabank Place 20,500S 37–26–10 84 74 March 20 7:30 pm New Jersey 0–1 Bishop Scotiabank Place 19,834S 37–27–10 84 75 March 23 7:30 pm Montreal 1–5 Anderson Bell Centre 21,273 37–28–10 84 76 March 24 7:00 pm Pittsburgh 8–4 Anderson Scotiabank Place 20,076S 38–28–10 86 77 March 26 8:30 pm Winnipeg 6–4 Anderson MTS Centre 15,004 39–28–10 88 78 March 31 1:00 pm Philadelphia 4 – 3 (SO) Anderson Wells Fargo Center 19,822 40–28–10 90
April (Games: 4; Home: 2; Road: 2) (Record: 1–3–0; Home: 0–2–0; Road: 1–1–0) Game Date Time (ET) Opponent Score Decision Location Attendance Record Pts Recap 79 April 1 3:00 pm NY Islanders 5–1 Anderson Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum 14,210 41–28–10 92 80 April 3 7:30 pm Carolina 1–2 Anderson Scotiabank Place 19,484S 41–29–10 92 81 April 5 7:30 pm Boston 1–3 Bishop Scotiabank Place 20,500S 41–30–10 92 82 April 7 3:00 pm New Jersey 2–4 Anderson Prudential Center 17,625 41–31–10 92

Playoffs

Eastern Conference Quarter-final – #8 Senators vs. #1 Rangers – Rangers win series 4–3 Game Date Time Score Decision Location Attendance Record Recap 1 April 12 7 pm 2–4 Anderson Madison Square Garden 18,200 0–1 2 April 14 7 pm 3–2 (OT) Anderson Madison Square Garden 18,200 1–1 3 April 16 7:30 pm 0–1 Anderson Scotiabank Place 20,182S 1–2 4 April 18 7:30 pm 3–2 (OT) Anderson Scotiabank Place 20,340S 2–2 5 April 21 7 pm 2–0 Anderson Madison Square Garden 18,200 3–2 6 April 23 7 pm 2–3 Anderson Scotiabank Place 20,500S 3–3 7 April 26 7 pm 1–2 Anderson Madison Square Garden 18,200 3–4 Notes: S.^ Sell-out (over 19,153 at Scotiabank Place).

Player statistics

Source: Ottawa Senators. Source: NHL.

Scoring

Regular season

Player GP G A Pts +/− PIM Jason Spezza 80 34 50 84 11 36 Erik Karlsson 81 19 59 78 16 42 Milan Michalek 77 35 25 60 4 32 Daniel Alfredsson 75 27 32 59 16 18 Nick Foligno 82 15 32 47 2 124 Colin Greening 82 17 20 37 −4 46 Sergei Gonchar 74 5 32 37 −4 55 Filip Kuba 73 6 26 32 26 26 Kyle Turris† 49 12 17 29 12 27 Chris Neil 72 13 15 28 −10 178 Zack Smith 81 14 12 26 4 98 Erik Condra 81 8 17 25 11 30 Chris Phillips 80 5 14 19 12 16 Jared Cowen 82 5 12 17 −4 56 Bobby Butler 56 6 10 16 8 12 Kaspars Daugavins 65 5 6 11 −2 12 Brian Lee‡ 35 1 7 8 −2 27 Jesse Winchester 32 2 6 8 2 22 Jim O'Brien 28 3 3 6 6 4 Zenon Konopka 55 3 2 5 −4 193 Stephane Da Costa 22 3 2 5 −9 8 Peter Regin 10 2 2 4 3 2 David Rundblad‡ 24 1 3 4 −11 6 Matt Carkner 29 1 2 3 0 33 Matt Gilroy† 14 1 2 3 0 2 Rob Klinkhammer 15 0 2 2 0 2 Nikita Filatov 9 0 1 1 1 4 Mika Zibanejad 9 0 1 1 −3 2 Mike Hoffman 1 0 0 0 −1 0 Andre Petersson 1 0 0 0 0 0 Mark Borowiecki 2 0 0 0 −1 2

As of April 8, 2012.

Playoffs

Player GP G A Pts +/− PIM Jason Spezza 7 3 2 5 2 8 Sergei Gonchar 7 1 3 4 1 6 Nick Foligno 7 1 3 4 −1 8 Chris Neil 7 2 1 3 2 22 Kyle Turris 7 1 2 3 −1 2 Daniel Alfredsson 4 2 0 2 −3 0 Filip Kuba 7 0 2 2 1 10 Zenon Konopka 6 0 2 2 2 2 Milan Michalek 7 1 1 2 3 4 Chris Phillips 7 0 1 1 0 4 Matt Carkner 4 0 1 1 1 21 Colin Greening 7 0 1 1 1 0 Erik Condra 7 1 0 1 0 0 Jim O'Brien 7 0 1 1 0 0 Zack Smith 7 0 1 1 -2 10 Erik Karlsson 7 1 0 1 0 4 Jared Cowen 7 0 1 1 −3 4 Mark Stone 1 0 1 1 1 0 Kaspars Daugavins 1 0 0 0 −1 0 Jesse Winchester 4 0 0 0 -2 0 Matt Gilroy 3 0 0 0 0 0 Jakob Silfverberg 2 0 0 0 0 2 Bobby Butler 3 0 0 0 0 0

Goaltending

Source: NHL.

Regular season
Player GP Min W L OTL GA GAA SA Sv% SO G A Pts PIM Craig Anderson 63 3492 33 22 6 165 2.84 1917 .914 3 0 4 4 4 Alex Auld 14 645 2 4 2 36 3.35 310 .884 0 0 0 0 0 Ben Bishop† 10 532 3 3 2 22 2.48 243 .909 0 0 0 0 2 Robin Lehner 5 299 3 2 0 10 2.01 154 .935 1 0 0 0 0

Playoffs
Player GP Min W L GA GAA SA Sv% SO G A Pts PIM Craig Anderson 7 419 3 4 14 2.00 208 .933 1 0 0 0 0

^†Denotes player spent time with another team before joining Senators. Stats reflect time with Senators only.
^‡Traded mid-season.

Note:

Pos = Position; GPI = Games played in; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalty minutes; +/- = Plus/minus; PPG = Power-play goals; SHG = Short-handed goals; GWG = Game-winning goals

Min, TOI = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T,T/OT = Ties; OTL = Overtime losses; GA = Goals-against; GAA = Goals-against average; SO = Shutouts; SA = Shots against; SV = Shots saved; SV% = Save percentage;

Awards/Milestones

Awards

Regular Season
Player	Award	Awarded
Jason Spezza	NHL Second Star of the Week	October 24, 2011
Jason Spezza	NHL First Star of the Week	December 19, 2011
Craig Anderson	NHL Third Star of the Week	January 9, 2012
Craig Anderson	NHL First Star of the Week	January 16, 2012
Daniel Alfredsson	NHL Third Star of the Week	January 30, 2012
Jason Spezza	NHL Third Star of the Week	February 20, 2012
Erik Karlsson	NHL First Star of the Week	February 27, 2012
Erik Karlsson	NHL Second Star of the Month	February 2012
Craig Anderson	Molson Cup	April 2012

NHL awards

Norris Trophy	Erik Karlsson
King Clancy Trophy	Daniel Alfredsson
First All-Star team	Erik Karlsson

Records

The Senators set a new franchise record for the fastest two goals scored on October 8, 2011, in a 6–5 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs at the Air Canada Centre. The first goal was scored by Jason Spezza at 15:36 of the third period, while the second goal was scored eight seconds later by Daniel Alfredsson. The previous record was nine seconds, set the previous season.

On February 22, 2012, Erik Karlsson set a new franchise record for assists by a defenceman in a single season by tallying two assists, bringing his total to 47, in a 5–2 victory over the Washington Capitals. The previous record was held by Norm MacIver, who tallied 46 assists during the modern franchise's inaugural season in 1992–93.

On February 26, 2012, Erik Karlsson set a new franchise record for points by a defenceman in a single season by tallying two assists, bringing his points total to 65, in a 5–2 victory over the New York Islanders. The previous record was held by Norm MacIver, who tallied 63 points during the modern franchise's inaugural season in 1992–93.

Milestones

Regular season

Player Achievement Date Mika Zibanejad 1st NHL game 1st NHL assist 1st NHL point October 7, 2011 Stephane Da Costa 1st NHL goal 1st NHL point October 8, 2011 David Rundblad 1st NHL game October 11, 2011 David Rundblad 1st NHL assist 1st NHL point October 15, 2011 Craig Anderson 100th career win October 20, 2011 Zenon Konopka 200th NHL game October 22, 2011 Kaspars Daugavins 1st NHL goal 1st NHL point 1st NHL GWG October 30, 2011 Jared Cowen 1st NHL goal 1st NHL point November 1, 2011 Stephane Da Costa 1st NHL assist Kaspars Daugavins 1st NHL assist November 12, 2011 Jason Spezza 200th NHL goal November 27, 2011 David Rundblad 1st NHL goal Milan Michalek 300th NHL point November 29, 2011 Jared Cowen 1st NHL assist December 1, 2011 Zack Smith 100th NHL game December 8, 2011 Jared Cowen 1st NHL GWG December 13, 2011 Nick Foligno 300th NHL game Erik Karlsson 100th NHL point December 16, 2011 Chris Neil 100th NHL assist December 20, 2011 Mike Hoffman 1st NHL game December 23, 2011 Filip Kuba 300th NHL point Daniel Alfredsson 400th NHL goal December 30, 2011 Mark Borowiecki 1st NHL game January 19, 2012 Sergei Gonchar 1,100th NHL game Andre Petersson 1st NHL game January 21, 2012 Chris Neil 700th NHL game Daniel Alfredsson 1,100th NHL game Chris Phillips 250th NHL point January 24, 2012 Milan Michalek 500th NHL game February 7, 2012 Chris Phillips 1,000th NHL game February 9, 2012 Jim O'Brien 1st NHL goal 1st NHL point February 15, 2012 Erik Karlsson 100th NHL assist February 22, 2012 Jason Spezza 600th NHL point February 25, 2012 Robin Lehner 1st NHL shutout February 28, 2012 Erik Karlsson 200th NHL game March 2, 2012 Jim O'Brien 1st NHL assist March 4, 2012 Rob Klinkhammer 1st NHL assist 1st NHL point March 8, 2012 Filip Kuba 250th NHL assist March 14, 2012 Jason Spezza 600th NHL game March 23, 2012 Erik Condra 100th NHL game Colin Greening March 24, 2012 Zenon Konopka 250th NHL game

Playoffs
Player Achievement Date Zenon Konpoka 1st NHL playoff game 1st NHL playoff assist 1st NHL playoff point April 14, 2012 Mark Stone 1st NHL point April 21, 2012

Transactions

Trades

Date	Details
June 24, 2011	To Detroit Red Wings 2nd-round pick (35th overall) in 2011 2nd-round pick (48th overall) in 2011	To Ottawa Senators 1st-round pick (24th overall) in 2011
June 25, 2011	To Columbus Blue Jackets 3rd-round pick (66th overall) in 2011	To Ottawa Senators Nikita Filatov
December 2, 2011	To Chicago Blackhawks Conditional 7th-round pick in 2013	To Ottawa Senators Rob Klinkhammer
December 17, 2011	To Phoenix Coyotes David Rundblad 2nd-round pick in 2012	To Ottawa Senators Kyle Turris
February 26, 2012	To St. Louis Blues 2nd-round pick in 2013	To Ottawa Senators Ben Bishop
February 27, 2012	To Tampa Bay Lightning Brian Lee	To Ottawa Senators Matt Gilroy

Notes

Free agents signed

Player	Former team	Date	Contract terms
Alex Auld	Montreal Canadiens	July 1, 2011	1-year, $1 million
Zenon Konopka	New York Islanders	July 5, 2011	1-year, $700,000
Mark Parrish	Buffalo Sabres	July 8, 2011	1-year, $650,000 two-way
Mike McKenna	New Jersey Devils	July 8, 2011	1-year, $550,000 two-way
Lee Sweatt	Vancouver Canucks	July 11, 2011	2-year, $1.3 million two-way
Tim Conboy	Portland Pirates	July 11, 2011	1-year, $600,000 two-way
Cole Schneider	University of Connecticut	March 14, 2012	2-year, $1.85 million entry-level contract

Free agents lost

Player	New team	Contract terms
Ryan Potulny	Washington Capitals	2-year, $1.05 million
Curtis McElhinney	Phoenix Coyotes	1-year, $625,000
Ryan Keller	Edmonton Oilers	1-year, $625,000 two-way
Ryan Shannon	Tampa Bay Lightning	1-year, $625,000
Roman Wick	Kloten Flyers	3-years, undisclosed
Cody Bass	Columbus Blue Jackets	1-year, $600,000 two-way
Derek Smith	Calgary Flames	1-year, $700,000 two-way
Andre Benoit	Spartak Moscow	1-year

Claimed via waivers

Player	Former team	Date claimed off waivers

Lost via waivers

Player	New team	Date claimed off waivers

Player signings

Player	Date	Contract terms
Colin Greening	May 19, 2011	3-year, $2.45 million
Zack Smith	May 19, 2011	2-year, $1.4 million
Louie Caporusso	May 30, 2011	2-year, $1.13 million entry-level
Jakob Silfverberg	May 30, 2011	3-year, $2.59 million entry-level
Francis Lessard	July 1, 2011	1-year, $550,000 two-way
Erik Condra	July 6, 2011	2-year, $1.25 million
Mika Zibanejad	July 13, 2011	3-year, $2.775 million entry-level
Bobby Butler	July 14, 2011	2-year, $2.15 million
Kaspars Daugavins	August 3, 2011	1-year, $600,000 two-way
Mark Stone	September 19, 2011	3-year, $1.89 million entry-level contract
Stefan Noesen	December 29, 2011	3-year, $2.775 million entry-level contract
Matt Puempel	December 29, 2011	3-year, $2.775 million entry-level contract
Ben Bishop	February 26, 2012	1-year, $650,000 one-way contract extension
Chris Wideman	March 28, 2012	2-year, $1.18 million entry-level contract
Ben Blood	April 6, 2012	2-year, $1.65 million entry-level contract

Draft picks

The 2011 NHL Entry Draft was held in Saint Paul, Minnesota. The Senators picked sixth overall with their own draft pick, and 21st overall with the first-round pick of the Nashville Predators, acquired in exchange for a 2011 trade of Mike Fisher. After picking 21st, the Senators traded their 35th and 48th overall picks (the later pick acquired from the Chicago Blackhawks in exchange for Chris Campoli) to the Detroit Red Wings in exchange for the 24th overall pick. This marked the first time in franchise history that the Senators picked three times in the first round.

Round	Overall pick	Player	Position	Nationality	College/junior/club team (league)
1	6	Mika Zibanejad	Centre	Sweden	Djurgardens IF (Elitserien)
1	21 (from Nashville)	Stefan Noesen	Right wing	United States	Plymouth Whalers (OHL)
1	24 (from Detroit)	Matt Puempel	Left wing	Canada	Peterborough Petes (OHL)
2	61 (from Boston)	Shane Prince	Centre	United States	Ottawa 67's (OHL)
4	96	Jean-Gabriel Pageau	Centre	Canada	Gatineau Olympiques (QMJHL)
5	126	Fredrik Claesson	Defence	Sweden	Djurgardens IF (Elitserien)
6	156	Darren Kramer	Centre	Canada	Spokane Chiefs (WHL)
6	171 (from Phoenix)	Max McCormick	Left wing	United States	Sioux City Musketeers (USHL)
7	186	Jordan Fransoo	Defence	Canada	Brandon Wheat Kings (WHL)
7	204 (from Pittsburgh)	Ryan Dzingel	Centre	United States	Lincoln Stars (USHL)

See also

• 2011–12 NHL season