Key injuries and slow starts currently plague the Senators and Sabres as they meet on Wednesday night.
Fans of the Ottawa Senators and Buffalo Sabres haven't had a ton to cheer about in the early going. Not only are their teams sitting in the bottom two spots in the Atlantic Division, they've both absorbed key injuries to first line players. Here's what to expect in Buffalo.
SENATORS (1-2-0) at SABRES (0-3-0)
7 p.m. | SN1, RDS
Shock to the System for Both Clubs
Both the Senators and Sabres have been hit hard to start the 2025-26 season — and not just on the scoreboard.
Each team lost a key piece of its core to long-term injury during the opening week of the campaign. Sens captain Brady Tkachuk and Sabres centre Josh Norris — best friends off the ice — will both be sidelined for several weeks, leaving their clubs searching for answers on both replacements and shaky starts.
Ottawa enters Wednesday night’s matchup at 1-2-0, while Buffalo has stumbled out of the gate at 0-3-0, the two worst records in the Atlantic Division. The Sabres’ biggest problem has been offense — they’ve scored just two goals total through three games. But they ran the table on Ottawa last season so nothing will be taken for granted in this one.
Game Notes
- Drake Batherson will make his season debut for Ottawa after missing the first week with an upper-body injury from training camp.
- Brady Tkachuk is expected to be out at least four weeks after suffering a hand or wrist injury in Monday’s 4-1 loss to Nashville. It'll be a much longer absence if surgery is required. Michael Amadio will move up to play on the top line, alongside Tim Stutzle and Fabian Zetterlund.
- Leevi Merilainen makes his season debut for the Senators.
- Buffalo rookie Zach Benson returns to the lineup after missing three games with a facial injury sustained in practice on Oct. 8.
- Jiri Kulich draws in after practicing on the Sabres’ fifth line Tuesday.
- Goalie Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen and forward Jordan Greenway both returned to practice Tuesday but remain out indefinitely.
Projected Lineups (from NHL.com)
Ottawa Senators
Forwards
Fabian Zetterlund – Tim Stützle – Michael Amadio
David Perron – Dylan Cozens – Drake Batherson
Ridly Greig – Shane Pinto – Claude Giroux
Nick Cousins – Lars Eller – Olle Lycksell
Defensemen
Jake Sanderson – Artem Zub
Thomas Chabot – Nick Jensen
Tyler Kleven – Jordan Spence
Goaltenders
Leevi Meriläinen
Linus Ullmark
Buffalo Sabres
Forwards
Zach Benson – Tage Thompson – Alex Tuch
Jason Zucker – Ryan McLeod – Josh Doan
Jack Quinn – Jiri Kulich – Justin Danforth
Beck Malenstyn – Tyson Kozak – Peyton Krebs
Defensemen
Bowen Byram – Rasmus Dahlin
Owen Power – Conor Timmins
Jacob Bryson – Ryan Johnson
Goaltenders
Alex Lyon
Colten Ellis
Scratched: Josh Dunne, Mason Geertsen