BUFFALO, NEW YORK - OCTOBER 12: Connor Clifton #75, Peyton Krebs #19 and Erik Johnson #6 (L-R) of the Buffalo Sabres talk before a face-off against the New York Rangers during an NHL game on October 12, 2023 at KeyBank Center in Buffalo, New York. (Photo by Bill Wippert/NHLI via Getty Images)
After going 1-1-1 last week, the Sabres have an even busier week with four more games upcoming. It’ll be a challenge as three of those games are on the road. However, it doesn’t seemed to matter where they play as they are 5-5-0 at home compared to 4-5-2 on the road. We saw some young prospects make their debut last week, including a first goal from their 2023 first-round pick. Let’s take a look at what we could see this week.
Season Point Leaders Update – 21 Games
- Jeff Skinner – 17 points (10 goals, 7 assists)
- Rasmus Dahlin – 17 points (4 goals, 13 assists)
- Casey Middelstadt – 17 points (3 goals, 14 assists)
Injury Updates
- Mattias Samuelsson – Upper body, no IR (day-to-day)
- Zemgus Girgensons – Lower body, IR (week-to-week)
- Jordan Greenway – Personal, IR-NR (expected return – November 30, 2023)
- Tage Thompson – Upper body, IR (out indefinitely)
- Jack Quinn – Achilles, IR-NR (out indefinitely)
Sabres at Rangers (11/27)
Goaltenders: Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen (confirmed) vs Igor Shesterkin (expected)
Buffalo starts the week heading to New York to face the #1 team in the NHL. The Rangers currently sit at 15-3-1 and are 6-1-0 at home with a +21 point differential. They are a talented team all the way through. They’re led by center Mika Zibanejad and goaltender Igor Shesterkin. Luckily for the Sabres, the Rangers will be without their top defenseman Adam Fox.
The starting goaltenders Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen and Igor Shesterkin have had great starts to their seasons so far. Shesterkin has been a star for the Rangers so his .916 save percentage and 2.45 goals against average was expected. Luukkonen’s great start is a bit surprising for Sabres fans, as he has a .914 save percentage and a 2.71 goals against average.
Sabres at Blues (11/30)
Goaltenders: Devon Levi (expected) vs Jordan Binnington (expected)
The second game of the week is in St. Louis to take on the Blues. The Blues are 11-8-1 on the year and the seventh seed in the Western Conference with a 6-3-1 home record and a -1 goal differential. Robert Thomas leads the way for the Blues, averaging over a point per game with 22 points in 20 games. The Sabres will need to slow him down to force the Blues to have their depth step up.
We don’t know who will start yet, but they have two goaltenders with similar statistical starts to their seasons. Jordan Binnington is the main starter with a 6-5-1 with a .909 save percentage and 2.89 goals against average. Their second goalie is Joel Hofer, who is 5-3-0 with a .905 save percentage and a 3.03 goals against average. It’s likely that the Sabres will continue to switch goaltenders each game and start Devon Levi. Levi has a .876 save percentage and 3.73 goals against average for a 3-4-1 record.
Sabres at Hurricanes (12/2)
Goaltenders: Devon Levi (expected) vs Antti Raanta (expected)
The final away game this week is against the Carolina Hurricanes. They are 12-8-0 on the season with a 7-2 home record and no goal differential. They are sixth in the Eastern Conference and four points in front of the Sabres. Their leader is Sebastian Aho, who has 17 points in 17 games. They’re without their starting goaltender Frederik Anderson due to injury. Anderson was off to a 4-1-0 start with a .894 save percentage and 2.87 goals against average.
Their expected starting goaltender is Antti Raanta. Raanta has a 6-3-0 record with a .854 save percentage and 3.47 goals against average. Although Raanta is expected, they could go with Pyotr Kochetkov, who has a 2-4 record with a .881 save percentage and 2.91 goals against average. Regardless of who they start, they should have some confidence that they’ll be able to score.
Predators vs Sabres (12/3)
Goaltenders: Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen (expected) vs Kevin Lankinen (expected)
The Sabres end their weekly schedule by hosting the Nashville Predators. The Preds are 10-10-0 on the year with a +3 point differential. They struggle on the road, as they are 3-6-0 compared to 7-4-0 at home. This bodes well for the Sabres as they’ll try to shut down forward Filip Forsberg, who has 25 points in 20 games. Former Sabre Ryan O’Reilly will also be returning to Buffalo as he tries to show Sabres fans what they’re missing.
While Luukkonen is expected in net for the Sabres, they could go with their third goaltender Eric Comrie. Comrie has a 1-3 record with a .877 save percentage and a 3.45 goals against average. Nashville’s primary goaltender, Juuse Saros, could get the night off. He has a .898 save percentage and a 3.05 goals against average for a 7-9-0 record. The likely goaltender is Kevin Lankinen, who has a 3-1-0 record and a .913 save percentage for 2.79 goals against average.
Conclusion
As November ends, the Sabres need to start pulling off some wins. It’s not an easy start as they face some hot teams on the road to start. They’ve faced many challenges this year already, and their young talent has yet to step up in a significant way. We’ll see if they can make an impact this week.
