1. Special Teams Battle
Though the Sabres’ third-ranked power-play was stymied by the Philadelphia Flyers this past weekend, they are still an extremely dangerous unit. On the flipside, the Rangers have one of the best penalty-kill units in the NHL this season.
The even-strength woes in Buffalo are well documented. On the year, they’re averaging a sliver more than one goal per game at five-on-five. Even against a less intimidating foe like the Rangers, the Sabres man-advantage unit will need to convert on their opportunities.
2. Krueger in Hot Water?
Following back-to-back shoutout losses this weekend, Ralph Krueger’s seat probably started feeling a little warm. It goes without saying that the Sabres’ current record is not reflective of the expectations that the organization had in place after adding Taylor Hall in the offseason.
2021/03/01 06:36 Philadelphia Flyers goalie Carter Hart (79) makes a pad save during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Buffalo Sabres, Sunday, Feb. 2. Philadelphia Flyers goalie Carter Hart (79) makes a pad save during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Buffalo Sabres, Sunday, Feb. 28, 2021, in Buffalo, N.Y. (AP Photo/Jeffrey T. Barnes) Philadelphia Flyers forward Sean Couturier (14) skates towards the net during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Buffalo Sabres, Sund. Philadelphia Flyers forward Sean Couturier (14) skates towards the net during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Buffalo Sabres, Sunday, Feb. 28, 2021, in Buffalo, N.Y. (AP Photo/Jeffrey T. Barnes)
Hart stops 28 shots; Flyers blank Sabres again
Carter Hart stopped 28 shots and the Philadelphia Flyers shut out the Buffalo Sabres on consecutive days following a 3-0 win on Sunday.
The Canadian Press Carter Hart , The Canadian Press
BUFFALO, N.Y. Flyers goalie Carter Hart was happy to put Lake Tahoe behind and get back indoors.
Hart stopped 28 shots and Philadelphia shut out the Buffalo Sabres on consecutive days following a 3-0 win on Sunday.
Following Brian Elliot’s 23-save shutout in a 3-0 win Saturday, Hart earned his second career shutout and bounced back from being yanked after allowing six goals on 23 shots through two periods in a 7-3 loss to the Boston Bruins last weekend.
You can read Bill Hoppe s articles at his Buffalo Hockey Beat website and at BuffaloNews.com. Follow him on Twitter at @BillHoppeNHL.
Nick Lippa: The Sabres won a few games over the past week. What helped them get in the win column? Goaltending seemed to be a positive.
Bill Hoppe: Especially on Tuesday against New Jersey. I mean Linus Ullmark was terrific, maybe the best player on the ice. And it s a shame he didn t get the shutout. He lost it there with under a minute left. And we saw Ullmark start back to back games, which I can t remember him ever doing that. Starting two straight games, consecutive nights. And that s a sign I think the Sabres are gonna ride him here for the rest of the season as long as they can. But it s funny. A lot of things have changed over the past several days over the road trip. And there s so much doom and gloom that accompanies each Sabres loss. These days, it s really something that years ago, you would have never imagined that they lose
Lineup notes entering Thursday s game by Jourdon LaBarber @jourdonlabarber / Sabres.com
Coming off wins in two of their past three games, the Buffalo Sabres plan to maintain a similar lineup in their rematch with the New Jersey Devils at KeyBank Center on Thursday.
Jeff Skinner will remain a healthy scratch for the third straight game. Tobias Rieder took part in the morning skate but remains day-to-day with an upper-body injury and will not play.
The Sabres earned victories in New Jersey on Saturday and Tuesday, sandwiching a tight loss to the New York Islanders on Monday. We want to keep that momentum going tonight, coach Ralph Krueger said. The group feels confident today. They have a good air about them, a good energy and we believe there is still a lot of upside space for this group. We re leaning to