Colin Greening is doing the best he can.

Through this difficult stretch, he's positive, keeping his head up and working hard. At this juncture, the Senators winger has no other choice.

Back after a road trip through Western Canada, it wasn't easy for the 28-year-old Greening to play the role of spectator for all three games, but it happened and it's behind him.

His hope: Better days ahead.

Greening has suited up for only four games. The last time he was in the lineup was in back-to-back games against Winnipeg and Toronto on Nov. 8-9 when winger Alex Chiasson was injured.

It's fair to say Greening made contributions and looked comfortable. Once Chiasson was healthy, Greening was back to healthy scratch in Vancouver, Calgary and Edmonton.

"It's a different situation than I'm used to," Greening admits. "I've been sat out before but not for this length of period.

"But, this is a business, you have to be professional about it and this is a team that has a lot of depth. Guys have come up and they've played well. That's part of hockey people forget, there's only a finite number of spots that each team has. If guys are playing well, they are going to fill those roles."

Greening is definitely not a glass half-empty kind of guy. No, he's not living up to the expectations that go with a cap hit of $2.65 million per-season, but he's not about to mope around either.

"You have to stay positive," he said. "If you let negative thoughts get too much inside your head it can be toxic, not only in the dressing room, but in your home life as well.

"I'm very fortunate that I have a very supportive wife (Tissy) and a very supportive family through this whole situation. At the end of the day, you have to come to the rink, be professional about it. I'm still part of this team and that's the most important thing to me."

Make no mistake, the Senators don't love the fact Greening is sitting in the stands because they want him to be a regular contributor. Management admires the fact he's working hard.

"He has been a total pro about this situation," said assistant GM Pierre Dorion Monday.

Greening isn't alone here. Winger Erik Condra, who is making $1.2 million and will be a unrestricted free agent on July 1, is in the same spot. They are the last ones off the ice every day.

The Senators aren't going to keep 14 forwards here forever. GM Bryan Murray attended Tuesday's meeting in Toronto with an eye towards finding out just how much interest their is in his players.

Ideally, if the Senators move Greening or Condra, they'd like to get a player who can help in return. At some point or another, they will also have eight healthy defencemen.

Until a decision is made, Greening isn't going to let his work ethic drop and he's making the most of practice.

"That's what I have to do," said Greening. "When you're not getting the game-like situations you have to try and mimic that in practice.

"That's something I try to do with (skating coach) Mark Power and (skills coach) Shean Donovan staying out a little extra by playing those 2-on-2s and 1-on-1s and relishing the moment when I get those chances. Right now, I'm getting the game-like situations that get you in the comfort zone when you're playing well."

Greening is aware he has to make an impact when he does get the chance. He's had several discussions with coach Paul MacLean and the staff about what can be done to stay in the lineup.

"I'd like to define myself as a person that can be an energy guy and a two-way player," said Greening. "A lot of people allude to the fact you need to score goals and get points.

"I don't want to define myself by that. If, and when, I do get back in the lineup I want to be a guy who is good at both ends of the ice. I want to be a puck-possession guy who is good in the corners and I want to be able to compliment the guys I play with."

You have to admire Greening's attitude.

SENS STAYING IN PLAYOFF HUNT

A break in the schedule gave the Senators a break Tuesday.

After making the long-trip home from Calgary on a red-eye late Saturday and holding a one-hour practice Monday, the Senators had time to get rested and ready for a visit by Nashville Thursday.

While they were outside of a playoff spot when they left on the three-game trip, the Senators were back sitting in a good spot by getting 3-of-6 points but now they have plenty of racetrack ahead.

“We ended up being .500. That’s the big picture,” said goalie Craig Anderson. “That’s a satisfactory number. We’d like to be better.”

The schedule doesn’t get any easier for the Senators and the key is to stay in the hunt. After this two-game homestand against Nashville and St. Louis, they’ll play six of their next seven on the road.

It starts Monday with back-to-back stops in Detroit and St. Louis. By the time U.S. Thanksgiving arrives next Thursday, they club wants to remain in the hunt for a spot in the post-season.

Why is that so important?

Statistically, it has been proven that if you’re not in a playoff spot by the American holiday, then it can be tough to get into one. It’s not written in stone, but the stat is pretty reliable.

“One thing we’ve learned is that we’re resilient and we’ve found ways to get points when maybe we shouldn’t,” said winger Bobby Ryan. “Hopefully, these are just building blocks.”

An area that has to improve is the power play. The club went 0-for-6 in the loss to Calgary Saturday night. That just doesn’t cut it and isn’t acceptable.

“Our power play has been a positive for us this year,” said Ryan. “We’ve found ways to produce goals in games where we were behind, trailing or tight.

“It finally let us down. We got away from some of the things that made us successful. We held onto the puck a little too long and we were way too stationary. You could see the trickle effect of the last three games into that game.”

The Senators hope practice makes perfect when they return to the ice Wednesday.

Twitter: @sungarrioch