Buffalo Sabres - Boston Bruins Game Preview - Sabres lead series 1-0
4/21/26 - 7:30 pm at KeyBank Center, in 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 4 - 0% (8th)
Penalty Kill(Reg) – 81.9% (4th)
Penalty Kill(Playoffs) - 2 for 3 - 66.7% (10th)
Boston
Power Play(Reg) – 23.4% (9th)
Power Play(Playoffs) - 1 for 3 - 33.3% (5th)
Penalty Kill(Reg) - 77.0% (24th)
Penalty Kill(Playoffs) - 100% - 4 for 4 (1st)
Top Scorers
Buffalo
Tage Thompson: 1 GP, 2 G, 1 A, 3 PTS
Alex Tuch: 1 GP, 1 G, 1 A, 2 PTS
Mattias Samuelsson: 1 GP, 1 G, 0 A, 1 PTS
Boston
David Pastrnak: 1 GP, 1 G, 2 A, 3 PTS
Morgan Geekie: 1 GP, 1 G, 2 A, 3 PTS
Elias Lindholm: 1 GP, 1 G, 0 A, 1 PTS
Starting Goalies
Buffalo – Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen (1-0, 3.01 GAA, .850 Sv %)
Boston – Jeremy Swayman (0-1, 3.06 GAA, .919 Sv %)
Other Sabres Stories
Sabres Line Combinations and Pairings (projected)
Forwards
Peyton Krebs - Tage Thompson - Alex Tuch
Zach Benson - Josh Norris - Josh Doan
Jason Zucker - Ryan McLeod - Jack Quinn
Jordan Greenway - Josh Dunne - Beck Malenstyn
Ex., Tanner Pearson, Tyson Kozak
Defense
Mattias Samuelsson - Rasmus Dahlin
Owen Power - Bowen Byram
Logan Stanley - Conor Timmins
Ex. Luke Schenn, Michael Kesselring, Zach Metsa
Goaltenders
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen
Alex Lyon
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)
Noah Ostlund (upper body, Mar. 25; day-to-day)
Notes
On April 4, Buffalo clinched a spot in the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time since 2010-11. The Sabres have compiled 125 playoff wins all-time, 93 of which have come in regulation. Game 1 marked just the second time the Sabres overcame a third-period deficit of two or more goals in a playoff game in franchise history.
The Sabres’ four-goal third period marked the third-fastest four-goal
stretch (6:46) in Sabres playoff history. The team scored four goals in 6:38 vs. Boston on April 29, 1992 and in 5:28 vs. Philadelphia on April 27, 1998. The Sabres registered 53 hits in Game 1, the most by Buffalo in a single playoff game since the league began tracking hits in 2005-06.
Alex Tuch’s 10 hits were the most by a Sabres skater in a single playoff game. Entering Game 1. Tuch had never recorded more than six hits in any game of his career (regular season and playoffs).
Tage Thompson’s three points (2+1) in Game 1 were the most by a Sabres forward in a playoff game since Daniel Briere on May 6, 2007 at NY Rangers (0+3). A multi-point performance tonight would make Thompson the first Sabres forward to record back-to-back multipoint games in the playoffs since Mike Grier from May 2 to 5, 2006 (2+5).
Peyton Krebs and Thompson each posted a plus-3 rating in Game 1, the highest plus/minus all-time by a Sabres skater in their first career playoff contest.
Mattias Samuelsson’s Game 1 goal was the first playoff point of his career and it made him the first Sabres defenseman since Jason Woolley on April 30, 2001 at Pittsburgh to score a go-ahead goal in the third period of a playoff game.
Owen Power (0+1) and Jack Quinn (0+1) also registered their first career playoff point in their first career playoff game.
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