The set-up
The Sens (19-26-5) are coming off of a 4-3 win over the Wild Tuesday night as they snapped a five-game winless streak at home.
Montreal (12-33-7) own the worst record in the NHL but under new head coach Martin St. Louis have won four straight. They beat Buffalo 4-0 Wednesday night in their last game.
This season, the Habs have the second worst power play (12.6 per cent) and third worst penalty kill (74.4 per cent) in the NHL while their 3.79 goals against are the most in the league.
Under St. Louis, their power play continues to struggle with just one goal on the man advantage in 19 attempts but their penalty kill has climbed to 85 per cent. The Sens scored just its second power play goal in February Tuesday while their penalty kill this month has operated at 80 per cent.
Over their four-game winning streak, the Habs have scored 15 goals, significantly better than their 2.29 goals per game average this season. The Senators are the fourth lowest scoring team this month at 2.27.
The Sens have claimed 14 of their 19 wins when scoring first this season while 10 of Montreal's 12 victory's have come when they get the opening goal.
Tonight is Ottawa's 12th game in February, the most in the NHL.
Roster notes
The Sens will finally welcome Colin White back to their lineup tonight after he has missed the first 50 games of the season due to a shoulder injury suffered in preseason.
"It's good to have him back," Sens head coach D.J. Smith said. "He's excited and he'll give us some energy."
In Friday's practice, White centered a line alongside Parker Kelly and Austin Watson.
Matt Murray will start in goal for the Sens. Since Jan. 13, Murray is 5-3-2 with a 2.01 GAA and a .942 save percentage.
Previous history
The Sens and Habs will meet for the 157th time tonight, as Montreal continues to be the opponent the Senators have faced the most in their franchise history.
Ottawa is 72-68-11 with five ties all-time while they have won 30 of 41 home games.
Tonight is the first meeting between the two sides this regular season. Last year, Ottawa went 6-3-1 versus Montreal.
In 17 career games against Montreal, Brady Tkachuk has seven goals and 12 points while Tim Stützle and Artem Zub each have seven points (two goals) in 10 contests against the Habs.
Who to watch
The return of Colin White will be much welcomed by a Sens team that has been depleted all season down the middle.
In 200 career games, White has 88 points (33 goals) while he is expected to be used on the wing too over the course of the remainder of the season in addition to his natural position of centre.
Where to watch
Saturday's game can be seen live on City, Sportsnet East, Sportsnet ONE and TVAS at 7 p.m. Fans can also tune into the radio call on TSN 1200 and Unique FM 94,5.
