Senators defenceman Artem Zub will be a game-time decision Monday.
Ottawa head coach Travis Green said following his team’s morning skate the shutdown blueliner’s availability will be determined after warm-ups with the Senators trailing the Carolina Hurricanes 1-0 in their first-round playoff series.
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Zub was injured in the first period of Saturday’s 2-0 loss to open the best-of-seven matchup after colliding with Hurricanes forward Seth Jarvis.
The 30-year-old ranked third for Ottawa in ice time during the regular season at 20 minutes 48 seconds, trailing only regular top-pair defence partner Jake Sanderson (24:50) and Thomas Chabot (22:35).
Tyler Kleven wore a regular jersey at the morning skate for the first time since taking a puck to the face in a game against the Buffalo Sabres in early April. The hulking defender sported extra protection for his jaw Monday, but Green said the 24-year-old will sit for an eighth straight game.
Ottawa had to go 12 skaters deep into its blue-line reserves at one point during the regular season because of a rash of injuries.
“We had a lot of new defencemen playing,” Green said. “You could tell that our group was a little bit concerned, even from the coaching standpoint.
“Now that we’ve gone through that, I think that’s prepared us now.”
The series shifts to Ottawa for Game 3 on Thursday night at Canadian Tire Centre. Game 4 is set for Saturday afternoon in the nation’s capital.