Winning two out of the three games in California has put the Sens in a very good position. Doing so without Brady Tkachuk and Thomas Chabot – at certain times) in November – is just plain impressive. Unfortunately, the road trip still has a long way to go, and tonight will be quite a tough battle. The Knights have an even more dangerous offensive look to them this season with the addition of Mitch Marner, who has 21 points in VGK gold so far.
The Sens look to reverse the misfortunes of last season against the Knights, where they lost both games. The Golden Knights come into this game with 27 points and 4th in their division and a record of 3-3-1 in their last 7 games. They also hold the 3rd highest faceoff percentage, rivalling the Sens’ top league record.
While this is a tough game, the Sens have shown that they can win their matchups if they stay disciplined and defensively-focused. The two teams are closely matched, and one will have their captain return tonight.
The Sens are currently the only Canadian team in a playoff spot but in November, that’s still not a guarantee for anything. Now is the time to start solidifying their spot in the standings before the rest of the division starts figuring their issues out, and avoiding any kind of extended losing streak is a must to keep momentum going.
As expected, Linus Ullmark will be starting tonight; here’s the full lineup:
Our group against Vegas 💪#GoSensGo pic.twitter.com/Fa4Ofqs2gj
— Ottawa Senators (@Senators) November 26, 2025
Meanwhile, here’s how Vegas lined up at practice, with Akira Schmid in goal:
Stone is taking rushes on the same line as Marner. Appears he’ll be in tonight.
Barbashev-Eichel-Bowman
Marner-Howden-Stone⁰Saad-Hertl-Dorofeyev⁰Smith-Sissons-Kolesar
McNabb-Theodore⁰Hanifin-Whitecloud⁰Hutton-Korczak
— SinBin.vegas (@SinBinVegas) November 26, 2025
They’re missing Jeremy Lauzon, William Karlsson, and Adin Hill to injury.
Game Notes:The Sens need to figure out their power play; many of their losses or close games have been a result of missing golden opportunities to take leads. The Golden Knights are a top-10 team in PP%, and the Sens’ PK still has issues, so discipline is key in tonight’s game.Ullmark has played well as of late, which has been a big reason for the strong run. I expect another big game from him tonight.Thomas Chabot being re-injured is very bad news for the Sens. While Jake Sanderson has done great – shouldering the weight of the defence – wearing him out this early in the season is not an ideal situation.Fabian Zetterlund has found some magic in California. Can he continue his good play tonight?It seems to be a regular occurrence, but Mark Stone has missed time with injuries. It’s always sad to watch him face Ottawa, which he’ll return to the lineup to do tonight. Meanwhile, Brady Tkachuk will be spending his last game from the press box as he announced earlier today that he’ll return on Friday against the St. Louis Blues. It’s a night owl game tonight with the puck drop at 10:00 pm EST.You can catch the game at TSN5, RDS2 or listen live at TSN1200.