Buffalo Sabres Vs. Minnesota Wild - Lineups And Game Notes

Game 3 - 10/6/26 - 7:00 pm at KeyBank Center in Buffalo, NY

Buffalo – 1-1-0 | - 2 points – 6th place in the Atlantic Division

Minnesota – 2-0-0 | - 4 points – 2nd place in the Central Division

Special Teams

Buffalo

Power Play – 0.0% (23rd)

Penalty Kill – 60.0% (29th)

Minnesota

Power Play – 42.9% (5th)

Penalty Kill - 100.0% (1st)

Top Scorers

Buffalo

Owen Power: 2 GP, 0 G, 3 A, 3 PTS

Jack Quinn: 2 GP, 2 G, 0 A, 2 PTS

Mattias Samuelsson: 2 GP, 1 G, 1 A, 2 PTS

Minnesota

Kirill Kaprizov: 2 GP, 3 G, 0 A, 3 PTS

Quinn Hughes: 2 GP, 1 G, 2 A, 3 PTS

Jared Spurgeon: 2 GP, 1 G, 1 A, 2 PTS

Starting Goalies

Buffalo –Colten Ellis (0-0-0, 0.00 GAA, .000 Sv %)

Minnesota  – Jesper Wallstedt (2-0-0, 1.01 GAA, .957 Sv %)

Other Sabres Stories

Mrtka Looking To Take The Next Step Towards The NHL 

Sabres Line Combinations and Pairings 

Forwards

Josh Norris - Tage Thompson - Josh Doan

Zach Benson - Noah Ostlund - Jack Quinn 

Peyton Krebs - Jiri Kulich - Konsta Helenius

Beck Malenstyn - Ryan McLeod - Sam Carrick

Defense

Mattias Samuelsson - Rasmus Dahlin 

Owen Power - Olen Zellweger

Matt Grzelcyk - Louis Crevier 

Ex. Zach Metsa

Goaltenders

Colten Ellis

Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen

Notes

The Sabres have earned at least one point in four of their last five home matchups against the Wild (3-1-1). • Five of the last eight meetings between Buffalo and Minnesota have been decided in overtime or a shootout.  Seven of the last eight games between the two teams have been decided by one goal. 

Tage Thompson has recorded two points (1+1) through two games in 2026-27 and he is one point away from his 400th point as a member of the Sabres.  With a point tonight, Thompson would become the 16th skater in franchise history to register 400 or more points with the Sabres.  Tonight’s game marks Thompson’s 491st contest with Buffalo and a point tonight would make him the 12th Sabres skater (Dave Andreychuk, Mike Foligno, Danny Gare, Phil Housley, Rick Martin, Gilbert Perreault, Jason Pominville, Rene Robert, Derek Roy, Miroslav Satan, Thomas Vanek) all-time to record 400 or more points within their first 500 games with the team. He would become the ninth Sabres skater all-time to reach 400 points in 491 or fewer games (Andreychuk, Foligno, Gare, Housley, Martin, Perreault, Robert, Vanek). 

In his last nine games against Minnesota, Rasmus Dahlin has registered nine points (2+7). Tonight’s game marks Dahlin’s 589th game played with Buffalo, which moves him into a tie with Richard Smehlik for the fifth-most by a defenseman in franchise history.  Dahlin’s four goals, eight assists and 12 points against the Wild in his career are all the most by a Sabres defenseman all-time. No other defenseman in franchise history has more than two goals, more than four assists or more than five points against Minnesota in their career. 

Jack Quinn has recorded a goal in two consecutive games and a goal tonight would make him the first Sabres forward since Cody Hodgson from Jan. 20 to 24, 2013 (three games) to record at least one goal in each of their first three games of a season. Quinn tallied two points (1+1) in his most recent game against Minnesota on Jan. 17, 2026. 

Owen Power ranks first among all Sabres skaters in points (3) and assists (3) this season. An assist in tonight’s game would make Power the first Sabres defenseman to record four or more assists in their first three games of a season since Colin Miller from Oct. 14 to 19, 2021 (4).  A multi-assist performance would make him the first Sabres defenseman to record five or more assists in their first three games of a season since Rasmus Ristolainen from Oct. 13 to 18, 2016 (5). 

Josh Norris has posted four points (3+1) in four career games against Minnesota, including a goal in each of his last two games against the Wild. Tonight’s game will mark his first game against Minnesota as a member of the Sabres. 

Colten Ellis made 22 saves on 24 shots and earned a 3-2 shootout victory in his only career appearance against Minnesota on Nov. 29, 2025. 

In seven career games against Minnesota, Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen has a 3-2-2 record, a .913 save percentage and a 2.78 goals-against average. 

Peyton Krebs is riding a two-game point streak against the Wild (1+1). 

Louis Crevier has posted three points (1+2) in his last three games against Minnesota 

Injuries

Alex Lyon (upper body)  

Conor Timmins (lower body; injured reserve) 

Jason Zucker (sports hernia; injured reserve) 

Topias Leinonen (lower body; injured reserve) 

Jack Rathbone (lower body; injured reserve) 

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