Florida are winners of seven of their last eight games and are led by Sam Reinhart with 39 goals
The Buffalo Sabres appeared to be a more confident group after a lopsided 7-0 victory over the Los Angeles Kings on Tuesday and although they remain extreme longshots to get back into the Eastern Conference playoff race, they are looking to finish off their four-game homestand with a win over the red-hot Florida Panthers at Key Bank Center on Thursday.
The Atlantic Division rival has won seven of their last eight games and are just two points behind the first-place Boston Bruins, and are being led by former Sabre Sam Reinhart, who is second in the NHL with 39 goals.
"(I'm) happy for him. It's been a long time coming for him. He worked very hard through his career." Sabres head coach Don Granato said about the 2014 second overall pick. "He's getting rewarded for all that and that's certainly nice to see for him, although we would love to keep (him at) zero tonight."
The 28-year-old was dealt to the Panthers in the summer of 2021 for goalie Devon Levi and a 2022 first-round pick (Jiri Kulich) after four consecutive 20+ goal seasons in Buffalo, but Reinhart has reached a new level with Florida, scoring 30+ goals in three seasons and is on pace to score 50 for the first time.
Another couple of former Sabres have big roles under veteran head coach Paul Maurice. Defenseman Brandon Montour was a key contributor in Florida’s surprising run to the Stanley Cup Final last season but missed the first month recovering from off-season surgery and has been slow to regain his previous form. Evan Rodrigues was signed as a free agent and has 32 points (8 goals, 24 assists) in 53 games.
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