Sitting six points out of a playoff spot with just 15 games to play, Ottawa will need a miracle run -- much like last season -- to qualify for the postseason.
And now, the Sens will have to do it without one of their most rugged rearguards.
On Monday, Mark Borowiecki announced he’d be out “long-term” with a torn MCL, suffered after banging into the boards following a bump from Tampa Bay’s Matt Carle last week.
Per the Ottawa Sun, the tear won’t require surgery.
Borowiecki, 26, had been a pretty regular fixture in the Sens lineup this season. He’s one of just three blueliners to have appeared in 60 games -- Erik Karlsson and Cody Ceci are the others -- and while he’s not much on offense, he did average more than 14 minutes per night and led the team in hits.
With Borowiecki out, Ottawa rolled with a six-man defensive unit of Karlsson, Ceci, Marc Methot, Dion Phaneuf, Mike Kostka and Chris Wideman in Sunday’s 2-1 loss to Dallas.