Rumor: DJ Smith sends a harsh message to Cam Talbot.

The Ottawa Senators may have sent a harsh message to veteran goaltender Cam Talbot, and we likely won't have to wait long to know for sure.

On Thursday night, the Senators suffered an ugly loss at the hands of the Florida Panthers, one in which they gave up 7 goals and only managed to score 2 of their own. Notably absent from that performance however was veteran goaltender Cam Talbot, who was made a healthy scratch by Senators head coach DJ Smith.

You could wave it off as a veteran being rested in a season that is, at least as far as the Senators are concerned, effectively already over, but Ottawa Senators insider Bruce Garrioch doesn't appear to think so.

From Garrioch:

This decision to scratch Talbot in Florida marked the beginning of the end for him with the Senators. It was a relationship that carried so much hope, but it will end in disappointment as both sides prepare for the breakup.

There are a number of potential reasons why the relationship between the two sides may have deteriorated, not the least of which is contract demands. According to Garrioch, the Senators were prepared to offer Talbot a 1-year extension at a discount earlier in the season, with Talbot's camp looking for a raise and multiple years on a new deal.

As if that wasn't bad enough, the Senators have to be looking back in the rearview mirror at the trade they made to acquire Talbot, a trade that sent goaltender Filip Gustavsson to the Minnesota Wild. Gustavsson has gone on to appear in 36 games for the Wild this season, recording a 2.03 goals against average and a .932 save percentage. Talbot, who was brought in to shore up the Senators' goaltending situation, appeared in just 35 games this season due in large part to a barrage of injuries, and recorded a 2.89 goals against average and a .900 save percentage.

All this appears to be pointing towards an ugly divorce in Ottawa, with Garrioch indicating on Saturday morning that he doesn't expect Talbot will play against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday, in spite of poor performances from goaltenders Mads Sogaard and Leevi Merilainen in their last outings.