Too Little, Too Late for the Senators?

Since acquiring Dion Phaneuf in a trade with the Toronto Maple Leafs, the Ottawa Senators have sparked a four-game winning streak. With that in mind, is this team really ready for the post-season charge, with many better teams ahead?

This would depend on how well they do in the final part of this season. Their last decision was a 4-1 decision over the Edmonton Oilers. Not exactly a powerhouse team at that moment, despite getting Connor McDavid back. You might remember last year when the Senators erased a 14-point deficit in the standings to make the playoffs, one of the biggest runs in standings in NHL history. Good thing they don't have to be that good this time around. They are still four points out of a playoff spot, so panic time should not be on their minds.

Here's the bigger problem for the Senators going down the road: Playing really good teams. The team in front of them, the Pittsburgh Penguins, should be getting Evgeni Malkin back in the lineup sometime next week, so I don't see them falling out anytime soon. The Boston Bruins are six points ahead and have a game in hand. The Bruins, though, tend to go two ways. They are really good for a while, then they are really poor. I'm not even going to go to the Lightning, because I believe they'll get into the playoffs, winning their last four. The Detroit Red Wings will probably also get into the playoffs. There are also two teams ahead of the Senators but on the outside looking in: the New Jersey Devils and the Montreal Canadiens. They could get by the Canadiens, with the way the Canadiens's season has been going, but New Jersey will probably be a tough test as well. If I had to pick one or two teams they are likely to sneak by to get in, it is both the Montreal Canadiens and the Boston Bruins. Like I said, the Canadiens haven't played well at all this season and the Bruins tend to go up and down so they could go down before the playoffs.

The Ottawa Senators don't have an easy final part of the season ahead, so they're going to have to do some major work on ice in order to get into the playoffs. They're going to have to play well against these quality teams if they even have a shot. In the end, it does seem like it's too late for the Senators, but we're not even in March, so things can still go the Senators' way. They just got to keep playing well.