Senators ride hot start, Ullmark into Thanksgiving matchup with Devils

NEWARK · The Ottawa Senators will start goaltender Linus Ullmark in net for their Monday night game against the New Jersey Devils. Head coach Travis Green told reporters the team will keep its lineup the same, with defencemen Artem Zub and Jake Sanderson remaining sidelined. Ullmark is undefeated in his four starts this season, posting a .942 save percentage and a 1.34 goals-against average. The Senators are coming off a 3-2 shootout victory over Nashville on Saturday.

Drake Batherson scored the tying goal with 1:23 left in the third period against the Predators. Tim Stutzle and Shane Pinto then scored in the shootout to secure Ottawa's fourth win in its first five games. "I think this has been our best start since I can remember," Batherson said. "So it's nice being on the other side of it. You know, there's so many games this month. We've just got to keep playing the way we're playing, and the more consistent we are, the better off we'll be."

The team has continued to thrive despite injuries to key players. Zub is still not ready to make his season debut as he recovers from a knee injury suffered during last year's post-season. Sanderson will not return after re-aggravating a lower-body injury in the season opener. Forward William Eklund is also set to miss an extended period with an ankle injury.

READ MORE: Senators defeat Devils 4-1 for fifth win in six games

READ MORE: Kochetkov's shutout gives Hurricanes 10th straight win in 7-0 rout of Jets

With Ottawa thin on the blue line, rookie Hoyt Stanley will stay in the lineup for his third career NHL game. He has yet to record a point and has two penalty minutes. The Senators' early success has been heavily reliant on Ullmark, the former Vezina Trophy winner. "He's always been sick, I've known that," Pinto said of Ullmark. "He's won a Vezina. To win a Vezina is not that easy to do and we know the talent level that he has. He knows we have his back and he's in a good place, and you could just tell by the way he's been playing."

The New Jersey Devils enter the matchup after a 4-1 home victory over the Vancouver Canucks on Saturday. That win helped the Devils avoid a third consecutive defeat and marked a milestone for veteran netminder Jake Allen, who played in his 500th career game. "It was a proud day for me," Allen said. "I think there was a point where I didn't know if I was going to hit (500 games). I didn't think it was in reach. I've extended my career a lot longer than I thought possible and I'm pretty proud of that."

Allen got plenty of offensive support in the win. Captain Nico Hischier finished with two goals and an assist, while Jesper Bratt had a goal and an assist and Jack Hughes picked up two assists. After starting the season 1-for-14 on the power play through three games, the Devils' man advantage found its footing on Saturday, capitalizing on three of four opportunities. "We put the work in and we did a lot of practice, a lot of routes, and I think that's when it just starts clicking," Hischier said. "You just need to stay patient sometimes. I think it's normal to go through stretches and we stayed patient, we worked on it." The Senators and Devils face off at 7 p.m. ET on Monday in Newark.

With files from Sportsnet and Big News Network.com