Buffalo looking to keep their longshot playoff hopes alive with win over Ottawa
3/27/24 – 7:00 pm EST at Key Bank Center in Buffalo, NY
Record
Buffalo – 34-33-5 | 73 points – 6th place in Atlantic Division
Ottawa – 30-36-5 | 64 points – 8th place in Atlantic Division
Special Teams
Buffalo
Power Play – 16.3% (27th)
Penalty Kill – 78.6% (20th)
Ottawa
Power Play – 17.7% (24th)
Penalty Kill – 73.0% (31st)
Top Scorers
Buffalo
Rasmus Dahlin: 71 GP, 17 G, 35 A, 52 PTS
Alex Tuch: 65 GP, 19 G, 29 A, 48 PTS
Tage Thompson: 61 GP, 22 G, 23 A, 45 PTS
Ottawa
Tim Stützle: 70 GP, 18 G, 50 A, 68 PTS
Brady Tkachuk: 69 GP, 31 G, 30 A, 61 PTS
Claude Giroux: 70 GP, 19 G, 40 A, 59 PTS
Starting Goalies
Buffalo – Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen (24-18-3, 2.48 GAA, .913 save %)
Ottawa – Joonas Korpisalo (17-21-4, 3.33 GAA, .888 save %)
Line Combinations and Pairings
Buffalo
Forwards
Jordan Greenway-Tage Thompson-Alex Tuch
JJ Peterka-Dylan Cozens-Jack Quinn
Jeff Skinner-Peyton Krebs-Zach Benson
Eric Robinson-Zemgus Girgensons-Victor Olofsson
Ex. Tyson Jost
Defense
Bowen Byram-Rasmus Dahlin
Owen Power-Henri Jokiharju
Jacob Bryson-Connor Clifton
Ex. Kale Clague
Goaltenders
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen
Devon Levi
Eric Comrie
Injuries
Lukas Rousek (day-to-day – lower body)
Notes
The Sabres have earned a win in three consecutive home games against the Senators. A win in tonight’s game would give Buffalo a win in four straight home games against Ottawa since the team earned seven consecutive home wins against the Senators from Jan. 28, 2000, to March 19, 2002.
Tage Thompson has recorded 10 points (4+6) in his last eight games. A point in tonight’s game would give Thompson a six-game point streak, which would be tied for the second-longest point streak of his career.
In his last seven games, Alex Tuch has tallied eight points (2+6) and he is riding a five-game point streak (1+6). Tuch has tallied at least one assist in five straight games and an assist in tonight’s game would give him the longest assist streak of his career.
JJ Peterka has posted four points (3+1) in his last four games. Peterka has recorded at least one goal in each of his last two games and a goal in tonight’s game would give him the longest goal streak of his career.
Connor Clifton has notched one point in each of his last two games (1+1). A point in tonight’s game would give him his second three-game point streak of the season, which is the longest of his career.
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen has allowed three or fewer goals in 27 of his last 29 games. Luukkonen recorded an assist on March 24 at Calgary and a point in tonight’s game would make him the first Sabres goaltender since Dominik Hasek from Feb. 6 to 11, 1994 to record a point in consecutive games. He would become the fifth Sabres goaltender to do so at least one time with Buffalo (Tom Barrasso, three times; Jacques Cloutier; Hasek; Clint Malarchuk).
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