OTTAWA -- There seemingly were a number of different competitions held Tuesday at Scotiabank Place.
The Senators beat the Canes 3-2 in the hockey game, getting a first-period goal from Mika Zibanejad and second-period goals by Milan Michalek and Chris Neil.
Then there were the fights. There were five. The only clearcut win may have come from Neil against the Canes' Tim Gleason in the final seconds of the second.
OTTAWA -- Dan Ellis just can't stay away from injuries, but he keeps bouncing back.
Last season, while playing for the Anaheim Ducks, he tried to play through a groin injury, only to suffer a severe muscle tear. He had abdominal surgery. He had surgery for a sports hernia.
An unrestricted free agent, Ellis found himself without a team before the 2012-2013 season and wondered if his career might be at an end at 32. He was determined it wouldn't be, a big reason he's the Carolina Hurricanes' nominee this year for the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy.
OTTAWA -- A week ago Monday, the Carolina Hurricanes were the visiting team in Boston.
For the Canes, it would be a normal game day. They played the Boston Bruins at TD Garden and flew home. Strictly routine.
Tonight, the Canes face the Ottawa Senators at Scotiabank Place. For the Sens, this Monday was anything but normal after the tragic circumstances at the Boston Marathon and the bombings that left three dead and at least 176 injured. They were the visiting team in town, the team suddenly in the middle of it all.
"You really feel for the victims and their families," Canes captain Eric Staal said today. "It's sad to see and scary to think you can go to a sporting event and something like that can happen. Obviously our thoughts and prayers are with the families and their friends who are dealing with these things."
OTTAWA -- A day after the tragic events in Boston, the Ottawa Senators still are trying to come to grips with all that happened Monday.
The Sens were in Boston and were to have played the Boston Bruins on Monday night at TD Garden. The team hotel was not far from the Boston Marathon route. But by Monday afternoon, everything changed. Two bombs blasts near the marathon finish line, leaving three dead and many injured, resulted in the NHL canceling the game and the Sens flying back to Ottawa on Monday night.
"It's one of those things you don't know how to handle," Sens defenseman Marc Methot said Tuesday, after the team's morning skate at Scotiabank Place.
For the Carolina Hurricanes, the losing streak is over -- two of them, in fact.
The Canes took a 4-2 victory Saturday over the Boston Bruins at PNC Arena, snapping a seven-game losing skid and ending the eight consecutive home losses that set a franchise record.
Jiri Tlusty scored a pair of goals, including an empty netter in the final minutes, and Joe Corvo and Jeff Skinner both had power-play scores for the Canes. Justin Peters allowed an early score to Milan Lucic but battled his way to a 28-save game, making arguably the best save of his NHL career by robbing Jaromir Jagr with a glove save in the second.
"I'm happy for the guys," Canes coach Kirk Muller said. "They've been playing like that for a while. They stuck with it and played an intense, energized game against a good hockey club. They played the game the right way and finally got some reward from it."
Canes goalie Justin Peters was pulled after eight minutes Monday, after allowing two goals on four shots against the Boston Bruins at TD Garden.
The starter tonight against the Bruins at PNC Arena: Justin Peters.
After the debacle in Boston, Peters was forced into action Tuesday against Pittsburgh when Dan Ellis was sidelined by a sore knee in the pregame warmup. Peters then stopped 28 of 30 shots Thursday in the Canes' 3-1 loss in Washington.
"He's been battling," Canes coach Kirk Muller said after today's morning skate. "He has a tough game, he battled back and had a really good game in Washington. Just like the rest of the guys, if you're going to keep battling back and fighting, I think he deserves another crack at it."
WASHINGTON -- It has been a season of turnarounds for the Carolina Hurricanes and Washington Capitals.
The Canes' season has made a big turn for the worse in the past month. As for the Caps, things couldn't be better or brighter.
The Caps topped the Canes 3-1 Thursday at the Verizon Center, getting big saves from goaltender Braden Holtby and making what proved to be a decisive second-period surge.
WASHINGTON -- Nicolas Blanchard stopped just outside the Canes' locker room late Thursday afternoon, getting a go-get-'em pat on the back from team captain Eric Staal.
Blanchard will be 26 next month. After all the years of junior hockey and more than 400 games in the American Hockey League, the forward will making his NHL debut Thursday night for the Canes against the Washington Capitals.
"It has been a long journey and I finally get my chance," he said, smiling. "I'm pretty excited. The first NHL game. It's always like a dream come true."
The Canes will hold will hold their Alumni Fantasy Game on Sunday at 3 p.m. at PNC Arena.
Admission and parking are free. Fans can make an optional donation to the Carolina Hurricanes Kids ‘N Community Foundation at the door.
Doors open at 2 p.m., and seating is general admission on the East side of the arena.
Twelve Hurricanes alumni are scheduled to participate.
WASHINGTON -- The Canes, looking to end in six-game losing streak, will have Justin Peters in net tonight to face the Washington Capitals, coach Kirk Muller said.
An easy decision, perhaps. When the Canes were last at the Verizon Center, on March 12, Peters shut out the Caps 4-0 with a 26-save game.
A lot has happened since that March night in D.C., of course. The Caps have gone 11-3-1, bolting to the top of the Southeast Division. The Canes have tumbled into a 1-12-1 tailspin that should keep them out of the playoffs again.
