The Ottawa Senators aren't panicking - not yet - but they felt the need to talk some things through after another rough game Thursday.
With the opposition closing in for second place in the Atlantic Division, the club held a team meeting after being slapped around by the Minnesota Wild, according to Postmedia's Bruce Garrioch.
The Sens lost 5-1, and saw each playoff hopeful in the Atlantic win. The Canadiens clinched their playoff spot by beating Florida, the Lightning kept their hopes alive by taking down Detroit, the Bruins shut out Dallas, and the Maple Leafs secured a huge win on the road in Nashville.
Toronto, in fact, is now only two points back of the Senators, with both teams having played 76 games. Boston's three back, though Ottawa has a game in hand.
The end of Ottawa's schedule is far from kind, and the Senators have only a point to show through three games on a difficult five-game road trip. There are two more stops, in Winnipeg and Detroit - games against two non-playoff teams that Ottawa must take at least three points from. Four of Ottawa's remaining six games are away from home.
"They really took it to us," Dion Phaneuf said of Ottawa's effort Thursday against Minnesota, according to the Star Tribune's Michael Russo. "The score reflects really the whole game and if you look at how we got beat, they had more than us."
Ottawa finished with only 40 shot attempts and 19 shots on goal.
The Sens have been a strong club on the road this season, with 21 wins, but they're going to have to dig deep down the stretch, especially with a massive April 6 game looming against the Bruins in Boston.
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