NEW YORK – They call it the “Kanata Wall.”
And the Ottawa Senators hope they’ve brought enough components across the border to construct it here in the neutral zone at Madison Square Garden.
It’s part of the charm of a team that carries a 2-0 series lead over the New York Rangers into Game 3 on Tuesday night. They have a remarkable amount of self-awareness. They recognize that head coach Guy Boucher has implemented a system designed to level the playing field against more skilled opponents, and somewhere along the way the players slapped a nickname on it.
The “Kanata Wall” was born.
“We’re just after games sometimes, we’re laughing, and we’re like ‘we brought the wall tonight boys,”’ said centre Derick Brassard. “No one went through it.”
“At some point during the year, when teams were getting eight to 12 shots a night on us, we just started to think something’s working,” added winger Clarke MacArthur.
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The wall, by their own admission, was breached during a wild Game 2 on Saturday that saw the Rangers hold three different two-goal leads. Several players inside the Ottawa dressing room spoke of being “lucky” to rally and win that one in double overtime.
With so much now on the line in Game 3, it’s reasonable to expect a much more controlled game on both sides of the puck.
This one will probably finish 2-1, one way or the other. It’s the kind of situation the “Kanata Wall” was designed for.
“It takes a lot of focus,” said Brassard. “We have to be at the right place. Our structure, the 1-3-1 in the neutral zone, we try to jam that. We always have numbers. If they have one we want two.
“We’re always in your face and sometimes we can frustrate teams like that, and that’s how we create turnovers.”
It harkens back to the days when the New Jersey Devils squeezed the life out of opponents on their way to winning Stanley Cups.
Inside the Senators dressing room, you’ll hear plenty of cracks about the similarities. One player referred to their style as a “muck fest.”
And yet, we’ve reached the time of year where the only thing that matters is winning. There are no style points to be awarded and you won’t hear any apologies coming from a Senators team that few had pegged as a potential conference finalist.
“Just clog it up,” said MacArthur. “The ‘Kanata Wall’ or whatever you want to call it. If we’re playing well, we’re going to have three guys back all the time and a fourth guy coming. It’s tough to create anything off the rush.
“That’s what’s worked all year.”
In explaining the system, Brassard offered a hint at why the Senators were viewed as a poor puck possession team this season. Essentially, they’re comfortable playing in their own zone under certain terms.
“Our defensive zone is more passive, too,” said Brassard. “You’re going to see teams skating around a lot. We just want to protect the house and protect the slot. We block shots. We’re trying to put everything to the side and we want to own the middle all the time.”
A former member of the Rangers, he has a lot of respect for what that team is capable of. He was part of a team that erased a 2-0 series deficit to Washington in 2013 and climbed out of 3-1 holes against Pittsburgh in 2014 and the Capitals in 2015.
Even though Ottawa finds itself in a comfortable position, it’s a good thing for them to keep in mind while trying to put away a playoff-hardened opponent.
However, Brassard also has an inclination about how his former teammates are probably feeling about the Senators right now. He suspects they aren’t too fond of the “Kanata Wall.”
“Offensive players, they want space,” said Brassard. “And we don’t give a lot. If you look from up top, you can see it’s annoying. I know they don’t like it because I know a lot of guys on the other side.
“We played them three teams this year [in the regular season] and they don’t like it.”
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