Game 10

October 26, 2006

Buffalo Sabres (9-0-0) vs. New York Islanders (3-3-2)

Puck Drop: 8:00 PM EST | Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum | Uniondale, NY

TV: MSG

Know Your Opponent

New York Islanders

Record: (3-3-2)

What to Watch

1. Make it Happen

The Buffalo Sabres have had an incredible start to the season. They’ve won all nine games this season to date and are coming off a 4-1 win over the Montreal Canadiens a few days ago. Overall, the Sabres have won three of the last nine in a shootout and in total, have outscored their opponents 46-23.

2. The Leaders

To no surprise, Chris Drury has been excellent so far this season. He leads the Sabres with 10 goals and has also added four assists. Six of his goals have come on the power play. Maxim Afinogenov is also tied for the team lead with 14 points, with nine of those coming as assists. Thomas Vanek (13 points) and Daniel Briere (12) are also stepping up nicely offensively for Buffalo.

3. Miller & Biron

Of course, the Sabres aren’t just using their strong offense to get through these games. Goaltending helps, too. Ryan Miller has a .915 save percentage and 2.49 GAA in seven games so far this season. Martin Biron has appeared in two games and has a .921 save percentage and 2.50 GAA. With those two at the helm, this season really could be something special.

Projected Lineups

Buffalo Sabres

Maxim Afinogenov
Daniel Briere
Brian Campbell
Chris Drury
Paul Gaustad
Jochen Hecht
Dmitri Kalinin
Ales Kotalik
Toni Lydman
Adam Mair
Jiri Novotny
Teppo Numminen
Andrew Peters
Jason Pominville
Derek Roy
Jaroslav Spacek
Henrik Tallinder
Thomas Vanek
Starting Goaltender: Ryan Miller

New York Islanders

Arron Asham
Shawn Bates
Jason Blake
Bruno Gervais
Andy Hilbert
Sean Hill
Trent Hunter
Viktor Kozlov
Radek Martinek
Richard Park
Tom Poti
Miroslav Satan
Mike Sillinger
Chris Simon
Brendan Witt
Alexei Yashin
Mike York
Alexei Zhitnik

Starting goalie: Rick DiPietro