What - Game 23 (13-8-1)
When - 7 p.m., Saturday, Dec. 2
Where - PNC Arena; Raleigh, NC
How to Watch - Bally Sports South
The Carolina Hurricanes will face the Buffalo Sabres tonight at PNC Arena for their last home game until Dec. 15.
The Canes are coming off of a 5-4 OT loss to the New York Islanders Thursday night, a game which they thoroughly controlled yet were let down due to poor goaltending.
Antti Raanta is anticipated to make his first start since his 8-2 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning on Nov. 24.
UPDATE: Pyotr Kochetkov will get the start tonight due to Raanta not feeling 100% per head coach Rod Brind'Amour
The Sabres are coming off of a 6-4 loss to the St. Louis Blues on Thursday and as such, have moved back below 0.500.
The scoring talent is there for Buffalo but a combination of poor defense and goaltending leaves them still too inconsistent to be a true contender.
We could very well be in for a high-scoring affair tonight.
Streaks
- Sebastian Aho has points in three straight games (1g, 3a)
- Michael Bunting (1g, 2a) and Dmitry Orlov (2a) have points in back-to-back games
Milestone Watch
- Brent Burns is two assists shy of 600 career assists
- Seth Jarvis is three points shy of 100 career points
Game Notes
- The Hurricanes are 1-0-0 over the Sabres so far this season and are 15-2-0 in the last 17 meetings.
- The Canes won the last game between the two teams 3-2 on Nov. 7 thanks to a Martin Necas OT winner.
- Carolina will face Buffalo for the last time this season on Feb. 25.
Key Matchups
Starting Goalies
- Pyotr Kochetkov: 3-4-1; 0.878 Sv%; 2.93 GAA
- Eric Comrie: 1-3-0; 0.876 Sv%; 3.45 GAA
Leading Scorers
- Goals - Teuvo Teravainen (10) / JJ Peterka & Jeff Skinner (10)
- Points - Sebastian Aho (20) / Rasmus Dahlin & Casey Mittelstadt (20)
Power Play
- Carolina - 20.3% (15th)
- Buffalo - 15.2% (25th)
Penalty Kill
- Carolina - 75.3% (23rd)
- Buffalo - 83.3% (12th)
Hurricanes Projected Lineup
Michael Bunting - Sebastian Aho - Seth Jarvis
Andrei Svechnikov - Jesperi Kotkaniemi - Teuvo Teravainen
Jordan Martinook - Jordan Staal - Jesper Fast
Stefan Noesen - Jack Drury - Martin Necas
Jaccob Slavin - Brent Burns
Brady Skjei - Brett Pesce
Dmitry Orlov - Jalen Chatfield
Pyotr Kochetkov
Antti Raanta
Injuries and Scratches: Brendan Lemieux, Tony DeAngelo, Frederik Andersen (blood clotting issue)
Sabres Projected Lineup
Jeff Skinner - Casey Mittelstadt - Alex Tuch
Zach Benson - Dylan Cozens - JJ Peterka
Jordan Greenway - Peyton Krebs - Kyle Okposo
Brandon Biro - Tyson Jost - Victor Olofsson
Rasmus Dahlin - Mattias Samuelsson
Owen Power - Henri Jokiharju
Connor Clifton - Erik Johnson
Eric Comrie
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen
Injuries and Scratches: Isak Rosen, Ryan Johnson, Jacob Bryson, Tage Thompson (UBI), Zemgus Girgensons (LBI), Jack Quinn (achilles)
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