Senators’ goaltender Joonas Korpisalo not happy with his play

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Joonas Korpisalo is a man of few words.

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But the Ottawa Senators’ top goaltender is well aware the job he’s done this season hasn’t been nearly good or consistent enough.

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“I need to be better,” Korpisalo said Thursday. “It’s nothing crazier than that.”

There are a lot of players on the Senators’ roster that have had their share of struggles this season, but one of the biggest areas of concern has been the lack of consistency in the club’s net.

It’s been an issue for the Senators all season and if it doesn’t turn around, it’s something Steve Staios, the club’s president of hockey operations and general manager, will have to take a long, hard look at in the off-season with his closest advisors.

Staios has been looking at every aspect of his team with trusted senior advisor Dave Poulin and associate general manager Ryan Bowness. With the National Hockey League trade deadline set for next Friday at 3 p.m EST, you have to think they’ve kicked tires on the goalie market.

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The Senators will miss the playoffs for the seventh straight year, despite the belief that goaltending would be a strength of this team. It’s one of the reasons so many people picked the Senators to make the post-season; Korpisalo was supposed to be part of the solution.

Signed to a five-year, $20-million deal on July 1, Korpisalo was brought to Ottawa after a late-season run to the playoffs with the Los Angeles Kings to form a strong tandem with Anton Forsberg.

As the Senators prepare to host the Arizona Coyotes Friday night at Canadian Tire Centre, kicking off a back-to-back series that will continue Saturday in Philadelphia, Korpisalo has posted a 13-19-3 record in 38 appearances in the Ottawa net.

He has a 3.41 goals-against average in that span and an .887 save-percentage. That has Korpisalo ranked No. 48 in the league in save-percentage and Forsberg is No. 46 at .889.

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The Senators are ranked No. 30 in the NHL with a 3.56 GAA. Only Columbus and San Jose are worse while the club is last in save-percentage.

Korpisalo was on the ice for nearly 90 minutes Thursday. You can’t fault his work ethic because he’s on the ice early every day with goalie coach Justin Peters and there are many times when he’s one of the last to leave.

“The basic building blocks are there,” Korpisalo said. “I need more wins. It’s as simple as that.”

Korpisalo is right on that front because winning solves a lot. If the Senators had more consistent play from both of their goaltenders, it would go a long way in helping this club make the next step.

The best bet for the Senators is for the answers to come from within and that’s why Staios brought Peters up from Belleville in January to work with both of the club’s netminders.

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Naturally, it would help if the Senators played better in front of Korpisalo and Forsberg.

“We win together and we lose together,” Korpisalo said. “The better we play as individuals, the better it is for the team to have a chance to win.”

True enough, and if the Senators can’t even register a shot on net, which was the case in the third period Tuesday in Nashville, then you can’t just point the finger at the goaltenders.

GET BACK ON TRACK

The Senators losses to the Washington Capitals Monday and Nashville were a step in the right direction. It’s the first time in franchise history the club has been without a shot for a whole period.

The players know they need a better push with the Coyotes in town.

“The game against Nashville, I thought we had a dominant second against them,” interim head coach Jacques Martin said. “We created several chances and we couldn’t score. They got a goal at the end of the period and I think that broke our back.

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“I give credit to Nashville, they made us play in the defensive zone a lot and then with (Josh) Norris out and then losing a couple of defencemen we just weren’t able to create a lot.”

THE FINAL BUZZER

Defenceman Jake Sanderson was paired with Artem Zub during the skate Thursday and it appears they’ll play together against the Coyotes. “It was nice to have him back on my right side,” Sanderson said. “He’s a huge addition for us. We’re building some good chemistry together. Hopefully, in the years to come we can keep building and building.” Sanderson added the job was more difficult with Zub missing three straight games. “When he’s not playing, we feel it,” Sanderson said. “There’s some big shoes to fill and we’re happy to have him back.” … The Senators closed out February with a 5-4-1 record and 11 points … Martin made his return to the Ottawa bench against the Coyotes on Dec. 19 in Arizona and the club dropped a 4-3 decision. The club is 14-14-3 since Martin took over from D.J. Smith and have earned 31 points in the standings.

bgarrioch@postmedia.com

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