Maybe the Ottawa Senators have finally found the secret sauce

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Scrambling to find the right mix to get into the playoffs for the first time since a superb 2016-17 NHL season, the Ottawa Senators may finally be on the right track to figuring out the secret sauce.

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At least that’s what a starving fan base hopes, following a painfully long drought of mis-steps and ineptitude.

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It’s extremely unlikely the playoffs are in the cards for the Senators this season — the hole that’s been dug is probably too deep. But …

While a poor start to this season got GM Pierre Dorion and coach D.J. Smith fired, the team is showing signs of life. A 4-1 win over the very-good Dallas Stars on Thursday was about as good an effort as we’ve seen from this underachieving team.

With Saturday’s thrilling 4-3 home shootout win over the Vegas Golden Knights, a good team battling injury issues, the Senators continued their run of solid play against quality opponents.

The Senators have been pointed in the right direction by interim head coach Jacques Martin, who went behind the bench when Smith got his walking papers the day after a 6-3 loss in Vegas in the middle of a western road trip in mid-December. The Senators are 7-2-1 in their past 10 games and 14-12-3 in 29 games since Martin’s return.

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Success can’t always be calculated by goals and assists. The stat that counts most: Wins, something we haven’t seen nearly enough of in many years.

It all comes back to the team. Not any one player. It’s got to be a collective effort.

“We have a tendency from the outside to just look at the production — the goals, the assists,” said Martin. “I know that’s what some players are paid for. How I like to look at the game; we definitely need production from those key guys. At the same time, I like to see improvement away from the puck, improvement on their game as a whole.

“You have a really good team when you feel like you have any line that can play against any line from another team. When you get into a playoff game, that’s really important. When you play on the road, you have to be able to defend.

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“I give the guys credit, they’re working hard on that aspect. They’re getting better.”

Martin has been pushing the players to be smarter, especially from the neutral zone back. Control the puck in the offensive zone. If you lose possession, chase down the puck and work hard to get it back.

The Senators have also started to not only minimize the shots on goal against, they’re also cutting down on opponents freewheeling in the offensive zone. Plus, they’re getting better goaltending, with big saves in big moments.

Simple, right?

“I don’t think (the players) need to play a different style,” said Martin. “When you play well away from the puck, you’re still going to get a lot of chances. It’s about getting to a maturity level to understand it’s not all about points, it’s about how you play the game and what you bring. Some nights, you may feel like you’re missing something. But if you have a good base and understand how to play the game properly, you can still be effective.”

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The Senators are now 14th of 16 teams in the Eastern Conference, 14 points behind Tampa Bay for the second wild-card playoff position.

Outside of a couple of bad outings, there is a noticeable difference in the way the team has played.

A team that seemed to be without direction, with a lack of accountability, now has an overseer who is unafraid to stand up to the players. If Martin isn’t getting the standard of play he expects, he makes necessary changes. Even Tim Stutzle has paid the price with reduced ice time when Martin wants to send a message.

Josh Norris was dropped to the team’s third line, alongside Ridly Greig and Drake Batherson, and it paid dividends Thursday with Norris scoring twice. He scored again Saturday on a deflection and added an assist.

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In the early stages of an eight-year, $63,600,000 contract that averages out to a $7,950,000 salary cap hit, Norris, who will be paid $9.5 million next season, is under considerable pressure to produce. To earn the whopping deal, the 24-year-old former first-round draft pick scored 35 goals in 2021-22. There hasn’t been enough since, due in no small part to a shoulder injury and surgery that wiped out last season and delayed his start this year. Elevating his game in recent days, he now has 16 goals and 14 assists.

“Definitely, I think there’s more there (with Norris), (there’s more there) with everybody, really,” said Martin.

For Norris, who admits he’s been frustrated, the mindset is, “Just compete.”

“As the season goes along, it gets harder for everyone,” he said. “The pace of play picks up and teams are tighter defensively. Personally, it’s taking it a day at a time, doing your job and not getting ahead of yourself. Whenever you score, it helps with your confidence. You try to find the sweet spot. Hopefully I can get on a roll and help out.”

While the Senators keep trying to perfect that secret sauce, there’s still plenty of work to be done to improve the lingering sour taste.

Maybe then the playoff promised land won’t seem like such a pipe dream.

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