The Senators are in need of bodies and three players from AHL-affiliate Belleville are on their way to fill the vacancies.
Ottawa recalled Erik Brannstrom, Vitaly Abramov and Filip Chlapik on an emergency basis for Thursday's matchup against the Calgary Flames.
Brannstrom, who was traded to Ottawa from Vegas for Mark Stone, made his NHL debut March 14. He was called upon to take the place of injured defenseman Cody Ceci who left the Senators' 7–4 loss to the Canucks on March 20 with an upper-body injury.
#Sens HC Marc Crawford has reiterated to media that @CraigAnderson41 will start in goal tonight @NHLFlames. D Cody Ceci will remain out due to injury (Erik Brannstrom will replace him on defence) while the remainder of the lineup will be determined later today.
— Sens Communications (@Media_Sens) March 21, 2019
Abramov will don a Senators sweater for the first time Thursday night. Acquired from the Blue Jackets in the Matt Duchene deal, the forward has 26 points in 61 AHL games during the 2018-19 season.
Another forward, Chlapik has millennia of experience compared to his fellow call-ups. A second-round pick by Ottawa in 2015, the Prague, Czech Republic native has logged 24 games over the past two seasons and accumulated five points (two goals, three assists).
All three players could see significant ice time as the Senators play for the second consecutive night Thursday in a matchup with the Western Conference-leading Flames.