BINGHAMTON -- The Binghamton Senators have outscored opponents 16-1 over their last three home games. They're up to third in the league in scoring with 3.35 goals per game, and they held the league's most potent offense to just five shots on goal over the opening 20 minutes Saturday night.
But one of the most important numbers these days might be 35.35.
As in Binghamton's shots per game, an average that now ranks first in the 29-team American Hockey League, and a number that reflects a concerted effort, teamwide, to get pucks to the net. That's the game plan that players and coaches say has helped the B-Sens find another gear over these past three weeks.
"The whole team's playing the same way," rookie center Jim O'Brien said. "We're holding everybody accountable, that when you have the puck in the offensive zone, you're thinking shoot first. And we're getting a lot of shots, and the more you shoot, the more it's going in."
And that puck's been going in with greater and greater frequency.
The B-Sens have averaged more than four goals a game these past three weeks -- a stretch during which they've gone 5-2-0-1 and climbed into a second-place tie with Albany entering Friday night's home game against Syracuse.
"I think the biggest thing has been our forecheck, and our funneling the pucks to the net," assistant coach Mike Busniuk said. "If you notice in our last 10 games, we've probably averaged close to 40 shots. And that's really been working out. It's tough to get a team ... at the very start, to go hard to the net. But now we have our guys going hard to the net, and I think it makes a huge difference."
A former NHL defenseman himself, Busniuk should know.
"I can remember when I was playing, if a shot goes to the net, and you don't know where it is, it's very tough for a defenseman to defend," he said. "If a guy's walking off the wall with the puck, it's easy because a defenseman stands in front of him, takes the guy one-on-one. But when things get thrown at the net, and everything gets scrambly all over, it's a real tough thing ... to defend against."
The offensive outburst is notable in part because the B-Sens have been playing without Ryan Keller, who was leading the AHL in goals on Nov. 25, when he was recalled to Ottawa. In his absence these past three games, the B-Sens have received four goals from Josh Hennessy, three from Denis Hamel and two each from Martin St. Pierre, Kaspars Daugavins and Erik Condra.
But not to be overlooked is the team's play in its own end as well.
Throw out a third-period collapse in Toronto last Friday night, and the B-Sens have allowed just two goals over their past 11 periods of play. Most notably, they blanked Rochester on Saturday night, when the Amerks arrived with the league's best record, its top offense and its second-best power play.
Goaltenders Andy Chiodo and Chris Holt each have a shutout over Binghamton's last three games, and the penalty kill has held opponents scoreless on 21 of their last 22 power plays.
"We're getting bailed out when we need to by the goaltenders, and defensively, we're just playing sound," defenseman Geoff Kinrade said. "I think we're comfortable and we're confident in our own end, and we're not running around as much. I think like when they start getting some momentum and they're in our end for say 30 seconds or something, that we don't really hit the panic button at all."
Added defenseman Derek Smith: "I think it all starts with everybody, finally, on the same page. With the system we've had all year ... finally everybody's starting to buy into it."
And those strides, both offensively and defensively, coupled with a few big fights and three convincing home wins have helped bring a buzz back to the Broome County Veterans Memorial Arena, where the B-Sens went six games and six weeks without a victory from Oct. 10 to Nov. 20.
"We heard a lot of catcalls from the fans, and we deserved it," Busniuk said. "We didn't play very well. And even when we were playing well, we weren't getting results. I remember outshooting Rochester almost two-to-one, ended up losing to them. And things just weren't going well for us.
"And it is nice. When you get seven goals and you get five goals in two games at home, as you're walking off the ice, it's nice to hear the fans cheering."
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B-Sens peppering net and salting away victories | pressconnects.com | Press & Sun-Bulletin
B-Sens peppering net and salting away victories
Hopefully, they keep this up (and Big Sens should take notes)
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