Game #24
Buffalo Sabres (11-10-2) vs. New York Islanders (8-10-6)
Puck Drop: 7:30 PM EDT | UBS Arena, Elmont NY
TV: MSG, ESPN+
Know Your Opponent
New York Islanders
Record: 8-10-6 | 22 PTS
Last Game: 5-4 OT loss at the Capitals
Division Ranking: 7th, Metropolitan
PP: 32nd, 11.9% (8/67 opps) [Sabres: 26th, 15.7% (11/70 opps)]
PK: 31st, 68.6% (35/51 killed) [Sabres: 11th, 80.5% (62/77 killed)]
What to Watch
1. Break the Slump
After recording their third three-win streak this season coming back from California, things were looking very positive in Sabreland. Two difficult home games against Western Conference teams awaited and Buffalo found a way to grit out one point out of those two losses, making it eight games in the last eleven they’ve gotten at least a point. That is the kind of can-do attitude we need from Lindy Ruff’s boys, but they will need more to be considered a true playoff contender.
Following the Islanders game tonight Buffalo have a five-game homestand where they will play three straight Central division opponents followed by playoff rivals Red Wings and Rangers. Anything short of a win in New York tonight will put the Sabres in a tough position.
2. Isles Receding
There is only one way to look at the Islanders and their rapid decline. They’ve gone 2-4-4 in the last ten, and are a paltry 3-5-2 over the last ten games at home. Their special teams are truly not special at this time, 32nd in power play and 31st in penalty-killing.
At this point in time, for the Sabres to get to the playoffs they have to be pouncing on teams that are inferior to them, and tonight’s opponents are exactly that. Which then brings us to the next point.
3. Where Will The Goals Come From?
Alex Tuch is on a tear, and before his injury Tage Thompson was in league-leading territory. Aside from that pair, who else would you call a hot hand right now? JJ Peterka has one goal in the last ten games and is still fourth on this team in scoring. Dylan Cozens is only just overcoming a brutal start to the season to record six points in ten games, but Jack Quinn sees himself pushed further down the chart with just one goal this season, an empty-netter to boot. Zach Benson tends to be a livewire, but his two points yesterday were his first in six games.
The Sabres have been lucky to get massive contributions from their defensive corps, with Buffalo’s dmen 4th in the league in blueline scoring contributions (58), but they are shooting at a league 2nd highest rate of 7.6% and that tends to regress to the mean, so they can’t quite bank on that being a consistent contributor. Rasmus Dahlin (2nd), Owen Power (5th) and Bowen Byram (7th) being in the top ten point-getters for the Sabres reflects poorly on the rest of the forwards.
Which then brings us back to, where will the goals come from? After working out their power play issues to being the campaign the Sabres went on a run of scoring eleven power play goals in eleven games, but that well has been dry over eleven power play opportunities in the last four games. Getting Tage back should help that, but it’s time for someone else to stand up and be counted for Buffalo.
Projected Lineups
Buffalo Sabres
Forwards
JJ Peterka – Tage Thompson – Alex Tuch
Zach Benson – Dylan Cozens – Peyton Krebs
Jason Zucker – Jiri Kulich – Jack Quinn
Beck Malenstyn – Ryan McLeod – Tyler Kozak
Defense
Rasmus Dahlin – Bowen Byram
Owen Power – Henri Jokiharju
Jacob Bryson – Connor Clifton
Goalies: Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, James Reimer (projected starter)
New York Islanders
Forwards
Anders Lee – Bo Horvat – Simon Holmstrom
Maxim Tsyplakov – Brock Nelson – Kyle Palmieri
Pierre Engvall – Casey Cizikas – Oliver Wahlstrom
Matt Martin – Kyle MacLean – Hudson Fasching
Defense
Isaiah George – Noah Dobson
Alexander Romanov – Ryan Pulock
Dennis Cholowski – Scott Mayfield
Goalies: Ilya Sorokin (projected starter), Semyon Varlamov