Zdeno Chara and the Boston Bruins left Ottawa with their customary two points.
This time, Dennis Seidenberg scored with 1:04 left to help the Bruins beat the Senators, 2-1, on Thursday night. Boston last lost at Scotiabank Place on April 7, 2009, and the Bruins have taken 12 of the last 13 games overall in the series, including the first three this season.
''The way we look at it, it's just another game and we want to win,'' said Chara, who spent four seasons with the Senators before joining the Bruins. ''It was a hard-fought game, and they competed extremely hard. It was one of those games that any play could decide the result of the game, and it happened for us.''
On the winning goal, Patrice Bergeron won a faceoff in the offensive zone back to Chara, who fed Seidenberg for a shot that found its way past goalie Robin Lehner through a maze of players.
''At the end of the second period and at the end of the game we stopped playing for a little bit and that ends up being the difference in the game,'' Senators coach Paul MacLean said. ''Against the Boston Bruins you have to play the whole game.''
Daniel Paille also scored for the Bruins, and Anton Khudobin made 27 saves. The Bruins improved to 20-6-3 to pull within three points of Eastern Conference-leading Pittsburgh.
Kaspars Daugavins scored for Ottawa, and Lehner also stopped 27 shots. The Senators dropped to 16-9-6 after winning their previous three games.
''We wanted to take two points away, but live and learn,'' Lehner said. ''It came down to one goal and we just need to be on the other side of that goal.''
After an uneventful first period, Daugavins opened the scoring at 4:55 of the second with his first goal of the season on a shot from the side boards that beat Khudobin high.
Daugavins was the talk of the NHL for his ringette-style spin-o-rama move that failed to connect in the shootout when the two teams last met March 11.
His goal Thursday ignited the 19,603 on hand, but the crowd was deflated after Paille beat Lehner with just over a minute remaining in the period.
The Senators had a couple of great chances to regain the lead in the dying seconds, but Khudobin made some solid stops to keep the score tied.
''For the first two periods, we had our share of problems,'' Bruins coach Claude Julien said. ''In the morning I had asked the players to work hard and to find ways to work through things. I think we did that and I thought our third period was good and we want to build off that third period.''
With an assist on Daugavins' goal, Sergei Gonchar extended his point streak to nine games. He also set a franchise record for defensemen with assists in nine straight games.
Gonchar was injured late in the third period and MacLean said he would be evaluated overnight, but added he wasn't overly concerned.
''Hopefully, it's nothing too serious,'' Senators defenseman Chris Phillips said. ''You know to pile it on top of other injuries that we already have, but we'll see what we're dealt with and move on.''
NOTES: After missing the last eight games with a concussion, defenseman Mike Lundin returned to the lineup for Ottawa to replace the injured Marc Methot. ... The game marked the first in a five-game homestand for the Senators. Ottawa hosts Tampa Bay on Saturday.
