Stanley Cup Playoffs - Eastern Conference Quarter-Final - Game 5
Buffalo Sabres - Boston Bruins Game Preview - Sabres Lead Series 3-1
4/28/26 - 7:30 pm at KeyBank Center, Buffalo, NY
Buffalo – 50-23-9 | - 109 points – 1st place in the Atlantic Division
Boston – 45-27-10 | - 100 points – 4th place in the Atlantic Division
Special Teams
Buffalo
Power Play(Reg) – 19.5% (21st)
Power Play(Playoffs) - 0 for 17 - 0% (16th)
Penalty Kill(Reg) – 81.9% (4th)
Penalty Kill(Playoffs) - 11 for 13 - 84.6% (6th)
Boston
Power Play(Reg) – 23.4% (9th)
Power Play(Playoffs) - 2 for 13 - 15.4% (11th)
Penalty Kill(Reg) - 77.0% (24th)
Penalty Kill(Playoffs) - 100% - 17 for 17 (1st)
Top Scorers
Buffalo
Alex Tuch: 4 GP, 3 G, 3 A, 6 PTS
Bowen Byram: 4 GP, 3 G, 2 A, 5 PTS
Peyton Krebs: 4 GP, 2 G, 3 A, 5 PTS
Boston
David Pastrnak: 4 GP, 1 G, 4 A, 5 PTS
Morgan Geekie: 4 GP, 2 G, 2 A, 4 PTS
Viktor Arvidsson: 4 GP, 2 G, 0 A, 2 PTS
Starting Goalies
Buffalo – Alex Lyon (2-0, 0.89 GAA, .964 Sv %)
Boston – Jeremy Swayman (1-3, 3.50 GAA, .900 Sv %)
Other Sabres Stories
Sabres Line Combinations and Pairings (projected)
Forwards
Peyton Krebs - Tage Thompson - Alex Tuch
Zach Benson - Noah Ostlund - Josh Doan
Jason Zucker - Ryan McLeod - Jack Quinn
Jordan Greenway - Tyson Kozak - Beck Malenstyn
Ex., Tanner Pearson,, Josh Dunne, Josh Norris
Defense
Mattias Samuelsson - Rasmus Dahlin
Owen Power - Bowen Byram
Logan Stanley - Conor Timmins
Ex. Luke Schenn, Michael Kesselring, Zach Metsa
Goaltenders
Alex Lyon
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen
Colten Ellis
Injuries
Justin Danforth (lower body, Oct. 18; injured reserve)
Jiri Kulich (blood clot, Nov. 4; injured reserve - out for the season)
Sam Carrick (upper body, Mar. 31; injured reserve)
Notes
Tonight’s game will be Buffalo’s first opportunity to clinch a playoff series at home since the team beat the New York Islanders on April 12, 2007 to take the Eastern Conference Quarterfinal series four games to one. A win today would give Buffalo three consecutive playoff wins for the first time since the team won five straight from April 16 to 27, 2007. Buffalo is 7-0 in playoff series all-time when leading 3-1 and 2-0 at home when leading 3-1 entering Game 5.
Bowen Byram would match the longest playoff goal streak by a Sabres defenseman (Mike Ramsey; four games; April 9 to17, 1983; 4+0) and the most goals by a Buffalo defenseman in a single playoff year (Ramsey, four in 1983; Jason Woolley, four in 1999; Alexei Zhitnik, four in 1999) all-time with a goal tonight. Byram would be the first Sabres skater since Alexander Mogilny from April 18 to 24, 1993 (four games; 6+1) to register a goal streak of four or more games against the Bruins in the playoffs.
With an assist tonight, Owen Power would match the NHL record for
the longest playoff assist streak by a defenseman to begin a career (Ron Stackhouse; five games; April 8 to 17, 1975; 2+6). With any point tonight, Power would extend his playoff career-opening point streak to five games, two shy of Buffalo’s all-time record (Danny Gare;
seven games; April 13 to 29, 1975; 5+3). Peyton Krebs (2+3) has recorded one point in every game of the series and can also climb within two games of Gare’s streak with a point tonight.
Alex Tuch has posted at least one point in all four games of the series
(3+3) and a point today would give him the first five-game point streak by a Sabres skater in the playoffs since Thomas Vanek from April 14 to 27, 2007 (six games; 5+2). With a point today, Tuch would become the first Sabres skater to register seven or more points in their first five playoff games with Buffalo since Daniel Briere from April 22 to 30, 2006 (3+5).
A win tonight would make Alex Lyon the first Sabres goaltender to earn at least three straight playoff victories since Ryan Miller from April 16 to 27, 2007 (five consecutive wins).
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