ST. PAUL, MINN. - It’s gut-check time for the Ottawa Senators.
Hit by injuries — including the loss of captain Erik Karlsson — the Senators took a 5-1 pounding from the Minnesota Wild on Thursday night in a terrible loss at the Xcel Energy Center, which raises some concerns about the club’s road to the post-season with only six games left on the schedule.
Not only did the Senators start the game without Karlsson, who blocked a shot on Tuesday in Philadelphia and couldn’t suit up, they also were without winger Alex Burrows, who was out with an upper-body injury.