Monday, March 17, 2014
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Avs' Benoit scores in win over former team, Senators

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[March 17, 2014]  OTTAWA — Colorado Avalanche defenseman Andre Benoit continues to prove his former team made a mistake by not re-signing him last summer.

On Sunday, he showed the Ottawa Senators in person.

Benoit, who did not get a sufficient contract offer from the Senators in July, scored his sixth of the season to lead Colorado to a 3-1 victory over Ottawa at Canadian Tire Centre.

Benoit has been a steady player on the Avalanche blue line all season.

"It's always fun to score against an old team, and I had lots of family and friends here," said Benoit, who is from St. Albert, Ontario, just outside of Ottawa. "Hopefully they keep going in."

Defensemen Nick Holden and center John Mitchell scored the other Colorado goals.

Colorado (44-19-5) was coming off a 6-4 loss to the Anaheim Ducks. The Senators (28-26-13) were unable to regroup from blowing a 4-1 lead in the final 3 1/2 minutes of Saturday's game against the Montreal Canadiens, one of the biggest collapses in NHL history.


The Senators are now seven points behind the New York Rangers, who hold the last wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference.

"Right now, we're finding ways to lose games," said Senators center Jason Spezza, whose team outshot the Avalanche 39-22. "We played great, we were all over them, but it's not enough.

"If we did that to close the game out (Saturday), then there's less pressure on this game, but if you have sloppy games and incomplete efforts, there's no moral victories when you are in our position."

Colorado goalie Semyon Varlamov turned in another superb performance, but had his bid for a shutout was foiled with six seconds left when Senators center Mika Zibanejad scored with a shot from the point. Varlamov stopped 38 shots, while Senators goalie Robin Lehner made 19 saves in his second loss in less than 24 hours.

"We can't give up a goal like that with less than 10 seconds left," Avalanche center Nathan Mackinnon said. "We owed it to (Varlamov) to get that shutout.

"I don't think you can look at shots. I mean, they threw everything at the net. I'd like to see (totals) on the dangerous shots. We were probably pretty close in that area."

The game was scoreless through a first period that saw each team manage just four shots on goal.

The Senators outshot Colorado 20-8 in the second period, but Varlamov kept the visitors alive until Benoit connected with a wrist shot from the slot that beat Lehner high on the stick side at the 15:49 mark.

The Senators, who lead the NHL in minor penalties, didn't take their first of the game until the 2:25 mark of the third, when winger Chris Neil was called for delay of game after closing his hand on the puck in the neutral zone. It took the Avalanche just 45 seconds to capitalize on the opportunity.

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After center Matt Duchene's pass from behind the net was blocked, winger Jamie McGinn knocked the loose puck across the crease to Holden, who deposited it into the open side.

It was Holden's seventh of the season.

Mitchell tapped a centering pass from winger Gabriel Landeskog between Lehner's legs at 17:02 of the third.

Zibanejad's goal came with Lehner on the bench in favor of an extra attacker.

"I was surprised, I thought when we scored that third goal that we were home free (for the shutout) because I thought that they wouldn't pull their goalie," Duchene said. "I haven't seen that very often, but they're in dire straits right now trying to make the playoffs, and it shows the players that the coach hasn't given up no matter what the situation is."

The Senators, despite the odds, say they haven't given up either.

"I wish I had some answers," defenseman Marc Methot said. "I'd like to think the way we came out we were structured, we were moving the puck very well and we actually felt good about our game.

"It just takes a couple of breakdowns, and that was the difference. No matter what, at least in my position, I don't see any reason to give up on the year. Crazy things have been done in this league. We're professionals, and we've got to play as such."

The Avalanche's next game is Tuesday in Montreal, where Colorado coach Patrick Roy starred between the pipes for the Canadiens from 1984-95. The Senators' homestand continues Tuesday when the New York Rangers visit.


NOTES: The goal by Avalanche D Andre Benoit was the ninth of his 107-game NHL career. He has four in his past nine games. ... The Avalanche had five shots on goal through the first 32:57. The Senators had 19 to that point. ... Senators G Craig Anderson missed his second consecutive game with a shoulder injury. G Nathan Lawson, up from AHL Binghamton, was the backup to G Robin Lehner. ... Erik Karlsson played his 300th NHL game. He is the fifth Senators defenseman to reach the mark. ... The Avalanche improved to 22-6-4 in weekend games. ... Colorado is the only NHL team that has not been shut out this season.

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