Blackhawks Vs Sabres: Projected Lineup, How To Watch, & More Ahead Of Game 19

The Chicago Blackhawks (4-13-1) have had an eventful week. Whether it was a vote of confidence for Jeff Blashill from the organization, Arvid Soderblom being put on waivers, or a "State of the Union" style press conference for GM Kyle Davidson, things have a different feel. 

It is never going to be pretty when a team is 4-13-1. They are in the conversation for the worst team in the league, even though they claimed that this year would be an improvement. So far, they've only gone backwards. 

Now, in an effort to bounce back, they will host the Buffalo Sabres at the United Center. Chicago hasn't played since Saturday, when it suffered a 9-2 loss to the Carolina Hurricanes, which sparked the events of the week. 

Scouting Buffalo

The Buffalo Sabres (8-7-3), like the Blackhawks, are coming into this game with a sour taste in their mouth. Buffalo was beaten by the Tampa Bay Lightning one night prior by a score of 8-3. The Sabres aren't in as bad a stretch as the Blackhawks, but their start to the season hasn't been what they were hoping for following a massive step forward in 2026-27. 

For everyone in the league, the Blackhawks present an opportunity to "get right". When the Blackhawks visited Buffalo back on October 3rd, the Sabres won 4-3. Now, they are looking for the season sweep, as this will be the last matchup between the two this year. 

Krebs - Norris - Thompson

Benson - Ostlund - Quinn

Zucker - McLeod - Doan

Malenstyn - Kozak - Carrick

Dahlin - Samuelsson

Zellweger - Power

Timmins - Crevier

Ellis

Luukkonen

Whether it's their superstar forward in Tage Thompson or superstar defenseman in Rasmus Dahlin, or someone else, they have guys who can make massive impacts offensively. Jack Quinn is the type of forward who has never met a shot he doesn't like, but the whole group is going to make life hard on the Chicago defense with a relentless forecheck. 

Behind Dahlin, Buffalo has a solid group of defensemen. Owen Power, Mattias Samuelsson, and Olen Zelweger form a high-end top six when everyone is playing well. 

Matt Grzelcyk won't be making his return to the United Center as he is injured, but this will be a chance for Louis Crevier to face his former team in his old home. 

Buffalo certainly could get more from their goaltending if they want to get back on track. They made a chance in the third period during Wednesday's game, but we'll see who gets the nod once warmups begin. 

Projected Lines, Defense Pairs, & Goalie For Chicago

The Blackhawks have no excuse. The GM played that final card of small changes and a press conference. Now, it is on the players to save some jobs. 

Patrick Kane is going to return to the Blackhawks lineup in time to play against his hometown team. Teuvo Teravainen will come out. 

Kantserov-Bedard-Bertuzzi

Mangiapane-Frondell-Kane

Moore-Nazar-Donato

Smith-Greene-Greenway

Vlasic-Cole

Del Mastro-Levshunov

Kaiser-Rinzel

Knight

Commesso

With the Blackhawks being off for a couple of days, expect to see Spencer Knight in between the pipes. Drew Commesso will soon get his season debut, but Knight is sure to start this one. The morning skate was optional, so we won't know for sure until warmups. 

Bowen Byram took the optional skate and went in a non-contact sweater. He won't return for this game, but it does seem like he's getting closer. Nobody within the organization will say anything other than that he's day-to-day. 

Kane will jump on the second line with Andrew Mangiapane and Anton Frondell. That line should have a nice balance of everything that makes a line go. They are sure to see a lot of Tage Thompson and Josh Norris. Tyler Bertuzzi will continue to skate on the top line with Connor Bedard and Roman Kantserov. 

The bottom six will feature a lot of speed and toughness. It's on the veterans in this group to step up if the team is going to get the most out of their young players. 

With Buffalo in the second half of a back-to-back with travel, their goalie uncertainty, and Chicago being as fresh as possible, there are no excuses for a bad effort in this one. If they get blown out again, this time at home, the negative narrative will only continue to get louder. 

How To Watch

The game can be heard locally on AM 720 WGN in the Chicagoland area. It can be seen locally on CHSN. Nationally, you can stream it on ESPN+. The puck will drop shortly after 7:00 PM CT. 

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