The April 6, 2025 clash between the Columbus Blue Jackets and the Ottawa Senators at Canadian Tire Centre stands as a late-season matchup ripe with meaning, tension, and playoff implications as both Eastern Conference teams jockey for position in a tight standings race. Ottawa, sitting at 81 points, is locked in a high-pressure fight for one of the final wildcard spots, while Columbus, with 75 points, remains in striking distance but with very little margin for error left. This is the first of back-to-back meetings between these two clubs, making the stakes even higher as a two-game swing could drastically shift momentum and trajectory for either franchise. The Senators come in with a rollercoaster record, playing strong hockey in stretches but plagued by inconsistency that has led to a recent 2-5 mark against the spread over their last seven games. Yet they are not short on talent or energy, especially when playing in front of their home fans. Captain Brady Tkachuk continues to drive the offense with 29 goals and his trademark tenacity, while Tim Stützle and Claude Giroux round out a top six that can match up with most in the league when they’re clicking. Ottawa’s power play has been efficient all season, converting at a 24.0% rate, good for 11th overall in the NHL, and their puck movement has improved noticeably since midseason.

On the flip side, their penalty kill—while aggressive—lags behind at 77.3%, which could be tested by Columbus’s transition-heavy style. Defensively, the Senators have been hard to predict: they’re capable of shutting down elite opponents, as evidenced by a recent shutout win over the Florida Panthers, but too often, they’ve given up soft goals or failed to clear rebounds, leading to losses in winnable games. Columbus arrives in Ottawa having dropped six of their last ten games and battling issues with scoring depth and defensive cohesion, yet they boast one of the league’s most impactful blue liners in Zach Werenski, whose 74-point season is a testament to his ability to contribute at both ends. The Blue Jackets have also been quietly successful against the puck line, covering in 40 of 67 games—demonstrating a tendency to stay competitive in games even when outmatched on paper. Their offense, while inconsistent, can be opportunistic, especially when opponents commit neutral zone turnovers or fail to match their pace in transition. They’ll need that quick-strike capability to generate offense against a Senators team that is dangerous when playing with a lead. Special teams could decide this one, and the Senators will be aiming to exploit any penalty trouble from Columbus while avoiding costly mistakes in their own end. While Ottawa holds the slight edge in the all-time head-to-head record, the Blue Jackets are 9-4-3 in their last 16 meetings with the Sens, proving that this matchup is anything but lopsided. With playoff dreams on the line, this is the type of game where urgency, physicality, and poise will dictate which team leaves the ice with their hopes intact and which sees the postseason slip further from reach.