Technically, the Thrashers still are alive for a playoff spot.
After Thursday night’s 3-1 home loss to Ottawa -- the worst team in the Eastern Conference -- their chances are precarious at best.
The Thrashers are 1-2-1 on a five-game homestand -- not exactly the way to re-enter the playoff race. They are 11th in the conference, seven points behind the eighth-place New York Rangers. They also trail Buffalo and Toronto by five and four points, respectively.
“It’s very somber at the moment,” Thrashers coach Craig Ramsay said of the mood of the team. “That was a game we felt we should win.”
The Thrashers (26-28-11, 63 points) have lost their past two and seven of their past eight and they are 7-17-6 in the past 30 games. There are 17 games remaining in the regular season.
The Thrashers have reached DEFCON 1.
Asked if he was worried about missing the playoffs, Ramsay said: “I’m worried about the very next game. We have to be so focused on the very next game. We can’t look at anything else. Nothing.
"Right through the rest of the season you have to show everybody what you’ve got. We can’t be satisfied that we got another 40 shots. We have to be satisfied when we win.”
The Senators opened the scoring 2:56 into the game -- on their second shot -- as Colin Greening scored his first NHL goal. Greening slid in the puck in front of the Thrashers' goal, and it was directed straight into the net off defenseman Dustin Byfuglien’s skate.
Once again the Thrashers, who have been held to one goal in four of their past five games, pushed much of the action, but could not score. They finished with a 43-27 shots-on-goal advantage.
For the fifth consecutive game, the Thrashers took more than 40 shots on goal. For the 10th consecutive, they outshot their opponent. That mattered little.
“We got 40 shots again, but we didn’t have enough chances,” Nik Antropov said. “We didn’t go to the net hard, so he probably saw every possible shot. We didn’t make it hard for him.”
Ottawa goaltender Craig Anderson stopped 42 of 43 shots. He has allowed seven goals in six games since joining the Senators and has a .966 save percentage. He stopped three Thrashers breakaways, with Andrew Ladd, Bryan Little and Tim Stapleton all missing one-on-goalie chances.
The Thrashers also had three prime scoring opportunities while short-handed on a Senators’ second-period power play and came away empty.
“To score goals, no matter what goaltender you face, it’s going to be tough to score if they can see the puck,” Thrashers goaltender Chris Mason said. “You have to take away their vision, make them fight to see it and be there for rebounds. That’s how most goals are scored.
"We are getting a lot of shots, but at the same time you have to get the quality and you have to shoot with a purpose. It’s not for lack of trying. I just think we could cause a bit more havoc around the net.”
The Senators jumped on the Thrashers a minute into the third period to put the game away. Bobby Butler beat Mason to the high glove side at the 19-minute mark.
“It’s frustrating,” Mason said. “We are losing these games, and we are losing ground in the standings. It’s just tough to swallow.”
Byfuglien pulled the Thrashers back to within a goal 6:46 into the third period. After winning a faceoff, the puck came to Byfuglien, who blasted a shot that beat Senators goaltender Craig Anderson. It was the defenseman’s 19th goal of the season and his third in the past 23 games.
The Senators (22-33-9, 53 points) answered 4:35 later when Nick Foligno beat Mason, who was screened.
Game over. The season could be next.
