Senators hope to continue offensive roll vs. Canadiens

Ottawa Senators coach Travis Green would love a repeat start from his team on Saturday night at home against the Montreal Canadiens.

The Senators exploded for four first-period goals and tallied a season-high eight in an 8-4 triumph over the New York Rangers on Wednesday.

"We knew we had to be ready to play, and our power play did a great job to get us started," Green said. "We've been creating a lot more than scoring. It's nice to see some pucks go in the net."

Brady Tkachuk scored his 200th career goal and added three assists to lead Ottawa, which won for the second time in two nights following a comparatively tame 2-1 victory over the Vancouver Canucks on Tuesday.

It was a standout performance for Tkachuk, whose four-point game was a season high. The Senators' captain and veteran winger, set to play in the Milan Cortina Winter Olympics next month, missed 20 games earlier in the season following surgery on a torn thumb ligament.

Dylan Cozens had a goal and two assists, and Ridly Greig added three assists as Ottawa led 6-0 in the second period and got goals from eight different players. Leevi Merilainen, who started in goal for the ninth straight game with Linus Ullmark out for personal reasons, made 18 stops.

Ottawa had previously lost four straight before these two wins.

"When you go on a streak and lose a few, everything gets magnified. We've talked about certain parts of our game and talked about committing to really playing power hockey," Green said.

The Senators face Montreal for the third time this season, and the first time at home. The teams split their first two meetings, with Ottawa winning the last outing 5-2 on Dec. 2.

Montreal sits 10 points ahead of the Senators in the Atlantic Division, and it is 4-2-1 in its past seven, but coach Martin St. Louis' squad dropped its second in a row Thursday night with a 5-3 setback to the Buffalo Sabres.

Cole Caufield, the Canadiens' leading goal-scorer with 22, had one goal and one assist, as did Nick Suzuki. Lane Hutson contributed two assists.

For St. Louis, it was a tough matchup against one of the NHL's hottest teams, as Buffalo has won 15 of 17.

"I think it was a great game to watch with the talent on the ice and the kind of hockey that was being played," St. Louis said. "Overall, I felt our intentions were there. That was a game that could have gone either way."

If St. Louis sticks with his three-goalie rotation, Jakub Dobes (14-5-3, 3.01 GAA) would be in line to start against the Senators.