SNAPSHOT: Cam Talbot closes in on return from rib injury suffered at camp

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It was a good sign to see Cam Talbot on the ice Wednesday at the Bell Sensplex in full gear and even facing a few shots from his Ottawa Senators teammates.

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If the veteran goaltender is successful, he would tee off with his former Minnesota Wild teammates in town Thursday night at the Canadian Tire Center, but he’s not ready to return from a rib injury he suffered in training camp, which means we’ll have to wait for his debut with the Senators.

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Make no mistake, if the 35-year-old Talbot were successful, he would face the Wild as the Senators closed that homestand trying to extend their winning streak to a franchise-record five straight home games early in the season. ‘a season.

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» He is doing very well. If you asked him, he would play,” coach DJ Smith said. « It was the coaches who kept him away from himself. »

goalkeeper coach Zac Bierk was impressed with Talbot’s work ethic. Smith said Talbot is likely about two weeks away from playing.

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« He can’t believe how hard he pushes himself every day, » Smith said. “That’s clearly why he’s still at the level he’s been at for so long in the NHL. It’s because of how hard he works and he pushes (Bierk) harder and harder every day, and he begs to come in.

« As soon as they clear him, he’ll be in there. »

Smith said it probably hurt Talbot not being able to face his old team.

« He’s a competitive guy and after doing everything he’s done, he’s then on the bike. He’s taken care of himself and he wants to play for a long time, » Smith said. and to say that he is done playing. He looks like a guy who wants to play for another five, six or seven or eight years.

« He wants to prove to each of his teammates that he can do the job. »

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Talbot left the ice before the start of official practice, but the Senators should have Anthony Forsberg back to face the Wild. He was knocked out late with an undisclosed injury in Monday’s 4-2 win over the Dallas Stars, but looked great during the skate that lasted just over 45 minutes.

DO NOT LET GO

The Senators would love to pull off the sweep on Thursday night.

With the victory over the Stars on Monday, the Senators extended their winning streak to four games at the Canadian Tire Center, and it’s the first time they’ve achieved the feat since the start of the season since the 2005-06 campaign.

The Wild is coming off a 3-1 victory over the Montreal Canadiens on Tuesday at the Bell Center and the club has points in three straight games. The Senators are playing with a lot of confidence right now and they would like that to continue.

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« The guys in this room who have been here for a while are starting to understand, » the winger said Duck Bather, who has three goals and eight points in his last four games. “The new players who arrived brought a lot of experience, and at the start of the third period, we knew exactly what we had to do, especially in the last three games where it was tight.

“We did the job and we know we can do it. We just have that confidence. We are looking to do five in a row and that would be great.

The key for the Senators is the ability to stay balanced.

« Guys have been resilient, » he said. “We came back from a few leads or being down early and I don’t think there was any panic in those four games. Even in the home opener (7-5 ​​win over Boston) they came back and we could have freaked out a bit there, but we didn’t.

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« Hopefully we can do that and continue to show how mature our team is. »

THE LAST WORDS

We probably won’t see a goalkeeper Philippe Gustavsson against his former Senators teammates. Sold to the Wild by Ottawa in exchange for Talbot in July, Gustavsson has played two games this season and is 0-2-0 with an .860 save percentage and a 5.60 goals-against average. Minnesota didn’t skate Wednesday, but the expectation is Marc-Andre Fleury will be between the pipes in Ottawa. He stopped 26 of 27 shots in the club’s 3-1 win in Montreal, including a penalty shot from the former Senators winger. Mike Hoffman. « It’s a huge save, » Minny’s coach said Dean Evason. « God, we can’t even get a penalty on our penalties, let alone a penalty shot. But (Fleury) is (Fleury) and he played very well for us. …with center Josh Norris long-term with a shoulder injury, Smith confirmed that one option he may consider is to use Claude Giroux between. He plays winger, but has played a lot in the center in his career and collects important face-offs… The status of D Erik Brannström will be determined Thursday morning. He took a puck in the mouth at the end of skating on Wednesday and left immediately. Smith hoped Brannstrom would be fine, but had to speak with medical staff to get confirmation. If he can’t go, then the club has a defender Nikita Zaitsev. He was ruled out in four straight games… The Senators won 4-3 over the Wild at home last season on Feb. 22.

BGarrioch@postmedia.com

Twitter: @sungarrioch