Sabres finish up their four-game homestand against the NY Islanders on Tuesday.
The Buffalo Sabres hope to finish off their four-game homestand on a winning note, as they will face the New York Islanders at KeyBank Center on Tuesday. The Isles are in a tight battle for a top-three spot in the Metropolitan Division, and will face off with the Pittsburgh Penguins at home on Monday. Playing a club on the second of back-to-back games is normally an advantage for the rested club, but the Sabres lost to Boston last week after they had played the previous night.
The Sabres made a roster move, recalling defenseman Zach Metsa from the AHL Rochester Americans. The 27-year-old has been a steady presence on the blueline for Buffalo. While only posting six points (2 goals, 4 assists) in 38 games, Metsa is second behind Mattias Samuelsson in plus/minus (+20) and, more importantly, the club has a 29-5-4 record with him in the lineup.
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Head coach Lindy Ruff spoke after practice on Monday:
With a win, the Sabres will hit the 100-point mark. What will it be like to achieve that mark?
It says a lot about where we came from. We've dealt with a lot of adversity early in the year, we stayed the course, and we've been able to put together some real good strings, (with a) couple almost 10-game or 10-game strings and other strings where you're getting points in seven, eight straight games. That put us in a position where we're a win tomorrow gets us there.
Why has this club thrived through adversity?
A lot of underlying numbers, if we continue to improve, should lead to wins. A lot of that is believing how you're playing, believing if we keep doing the right things at the right time. We've talked a lot about managing the puck, a lot about the game situation, late in games, third periods, giving yourself a chance to win, and we've done a lot better job of that. We did a lot better job of that late in the year last year, even this year early on, where we got points and games without a lot of people in the lineup, that gave us an opportunity to be where we're at right now.
What was your reaction to the news of the hiring of John Tortorella in Vegas?
Texted him and said ‘welcome aboard, old man’. I have all day long, respect for how he coaches and how he operates, (he's) honest with the players, fair, demanding, tough, believes in what he's doing. I think that those are all great qualities.
How would you evaluate the energy that Peyton Krebs provides the lineup?
I think some of the energy on a down day, even annoys some of the players. 'Quit competing so hard, I don't feel as good as you do', but that energy is infectious. I mean, I love it. Not once do you have to tell the guy 'come on, pick it up a little bit'. It's what drives teams. He's a driver.
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