STAFF REPORTS
GAME-DAY RESOURCES
LAST GAME
Sunday, October 21
Buffalo 4 at Anaheim 2
Goals: Okposo, Skinner, Ristolainen, Berglund
Goalie: Hutton (26 saves/28 shots)
PP: 2/4; PK: 2/2; Shots: Buffalo 45 – Anaheim 28
CURRENT INJURIES – (Man Games Lost: 40)
Player (injury, first game missed) – total games missed
Matt Hunwick (neck, Oct. 4; injured reserve) – 9 games
Sean Malone (knee, Oct. 4; injured reserve) – 9 games
Scott Wilson (ankle, Oct. 4; injured reserve) – 9 games
TRANSACTIONS IN PAST 7 DAYS
N/A
UPCOMING GAMES
Saturday, Oct. 27: Buffalo at Columbus, 7 p.m.
Tuesday, Oct. 30: Calgary at Buffalo, 7 p.m.
Thursday, Nov. 1: Buffalo at Ottawa, 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, Nov. 3: Ottawa at Buffalo, 2 p.m.
Sunday, Nov. 4: Buffalo at NY Rangers, 7 p.m.
TONIGHT’S GAME
CANADIENS at SABRES
- This is the first of four meetings between the Sabres and Canadiens this season.
- Last meeting: Montreal defeated Buffalo 3-0 in Buffalo on March 23
- Next meeting: Thursday, Nov. 8 in Montreal
- The Sabres are 2-5-3 in their last 10 games vs. the Canadiens; 3-4-3 at home
- This is the 280th game all-time between Buffalo and Montreal; Buffalo has a 126-112-41 series record.
- The Sabres are 72-40-27 at home against the Canadiens all-time.
THIS DAY IN SABRES HISTORY
- The Sabres are 8-11-3 all-time on October 25.
- October 25, 1991: The Sabres acquire Pat LaFontaine, Randy Wood and Randy Hillier from the Islanders in exchange for Pierre Turgeon, Uwe Krupp, Dave McLlwain and Benoit Hogue.
- October 25, 1991: The Sabres get 31 saves from Clint Malarchuk as they top the Sharks 3-1 in the first-ever game between the teams, earning the 800th win in franchise history.
- October 25, 2013: Rasmus Ristolainen scores a goal, recording his first NHL point in a 3-1 victory at Florida.
THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW
- A win or overtime loss tonight would give the Sabres their best start through 10 games since they began the 2011-12 season with a 6-4-0 record.
- Patrik Berglund has six points (4+2) in his last five games against the Canadiens.
- Zach Bogosian has recorded a point in each of his last two games (1+1) and is seeking his first three-game point streak since March 29 to April 2, 2016 (1+3).
- Carter Hutton has appeared in four games against Montreal, posting a 1-0-2 record with a .949 save percentage and a 1.37 goals-against average.
- Linus Ullmark stopped 21 of 22 shots (.954) in his only previous meeting with the Canadiens.
60 MINUTES
The Sabres are one of four teams that haven’t played an overtime game yet this season (Dallas, Nashville, New Jersey).
- Buffalo’s nine games are the longest the team has gone without an overtime game to start the season since 2011-12 (12 games).
- The Sabres have had each of their last 22 games settled in regulation, dating back to March 15 vs. Toronto. It’s the team’s longest stretch without an overtime game since Buffalo went 22 games without one from Dec. 31, 1989 to Feb. 18, 1990.
- If tonight’s game is decided in regulation, it will be the team’s longest stretch of games that were not tied after 60 minutes since they played 30 in a row from Nov. 10, 1979 to Jan. 16, 1980.
- The team’s record for consecutive games that were not tied after regulation is 33 games from Nov. 17, 1972 to Feb. 1, 1973.
A FRESH FACE
- On Oct. 4 vs. Boston, Rasmus Dahlin (18 years, 175 days) became the second-youngest player ever to appear in a game with the Sabres, behind only fellow No. 1 pick Pierre Turgeon (18 years, 41 days on Oct. 8, 1987 vs. Minnesota).
- Dahlin skated 22:37 in his debut, marking the highest ice time recorded by a Sabres player making his NHL debut and the 21st-highest ice time by any NHL player in his first game since the league began tracking ice time in the 1997-98 season.
- With his assist on Oct. 11 vs. Colorado, Dahlin became the second-youngest player (18 years, 175 days) in franchise history to record a point, behind only Turgeon (18 years, 44 days on Oct. 11, 1987 vs. Washington).
- Dahlin scored his first NHL goal on Oct. 13 at Arizona, becoming the second-youngest player (18 years, 183 days) in franchise history to score, behind only Turgeon (Oct. 21, 1987 vs. Hartford).
- He was the youngest defenseman in 23 years to score an NHL goal. His goal came exactly 34 years after Doug Bodger (18 years, 117 days) became the youngest defenseman in the expansion era (since 1967-68) to score his first NHL goal (Oct. 13, 1984).
- With the goal, he also became the third-youngest defenseman in NHL history to record a game-winner, trailing only Craig Wolanin of the New Jersey Devils (12/9/85 at Minnesota) and Red Garrett of the New York Rangers (12/25/42 at Detroit).
SABRES AMONG LEAGUE-LEADERS (Sabres’ league rankings before 10/24 games)
- Bogosian:3.8 BkS/GP (T-2nd)
- Eichel: 38 S (T-6th)
- Hutton: 209 SV (T-4th)
- Ristolainen: 27 hits (T-9th), 25:20 TOI/GP (10th)
- Sheary: 3 PPG (T-6th)
- Skinner: 5 ESG (T-8th), plus-8 (T-9th)
- Ullmark: .982 SV% (2nd), 0.50 GAA (2nd), 1 SO (T-2nd)
BUF-MTL CONNECTIONSFormer Sabres:
- Canadiens F Joel Armia was drafted by the Sabres in the first round (16th overall) of the 2011 NHL Draft and skated in one game for the team.
- Canadiens F Paul Byron spent one season (2010-11) with the Sabres after being drafted by Buffalo in the sixth round (179th overall) of the 2007 NHL Draft. He played in eight games and recorded two points (1+1).
- Canadiens F Nicolas Deslauriers spent four seasons with the Sabres organization (2013-14 to 2016-17), playing in 211 games and recording 30 points (12+18). He was the only player to skate in all 82 games during the 2014-15 season and led the team in hits in 2015-16.
Former Canadiens:
- Sabres D Nathan Beaulieu was selected by Montreal in the first round (17th overall) of the 2011 NHL Draft. He spent five seasons with the club (2012-13 to 2016-17), skating in 225 games and recording 60 points (7+53).
Sabres with Montreal connections:
- Sabres F Jason Pominville is a native of Repentigny, Quebec, and played junior hockey with the Shawinigan Cataractes (QMJHL).
- Sabres D Marco Scandella grew up in Montreal. He played three seasons of junior hockey playing for the Val-d’Or Foreurs (QMJHL).
Patrik Berglund:
- Played for the Blues when Canadiens associate coach Kirk Muller was an assistant coach in St. Louis.
Jason Botterill:
- Played with Canadiens associate coach Kirk Muller in Dallas.
Jack Eichel:
- Played for Team North America with Canadiens F Jonathan Drouin at the 2016 World Cup of Hockey.
Phil Housley:
- Was an assistant coach in Nashville when Canadiens D Shea Weber was playing for the Predators.
Carter Hutton:
- Played with Canadiens G Antti Niemi and F Andrew Shaw in Chicago. Canadiens goaltending coach Stephane Waite was also on the Blackhawks coaching staff during Hutton’s tenure with the team.
- Played with Canadiens D Shea Weber in Nashville.
Jake McCabe:
- Played for Team USA at the IIHF 2013 World Junior Championship with Canadiens D Mike Reilly. McCabe captained the team and the duo won a gold medal together.
- Represented the United States with Canadiens D Jeff Petry at the 2014 IIHF World Championship.
Kyle Okposo:
- Represented the United States with Canadiens D Jeff Petry at the 2012 IIHF World Championship.
Jason Pominville:
- Played with Canadiens D Mike Reilly in Minnesota.
Sam Reinhart:
- Played with Canadiens F Jonathan Drouin for Team Canada at the 2014 IIHF World Junior Championship.
- Won a gold medal with Canadiens F Max Domi for Team Canada at the 2015 IIHF World Junior Championship. Both Domi and Reinhart were named to the tournament’s All-Star Team. The duo also won a gold medal together while representing Canada at the 2016 IIHF World Championship.
Rasmus Ristolainen:
- Represented Finland with Canadiens F Artturi Lehkonen at both the 2013 and 2014 IIHF World Junior Championships, winning gold in 2014. Canadiens F Joel Armia was also on Finland’s 2013 roster.
Marco Scandella:
- Played with Canadiens D Mike Reilly in Minnesota.
Conor Sheary:
- Played with Canadiens G Antti Niemi in Pittsburgh.
Jeff Skinner:
- Played in Carolina when Canadiens associate coach Kirk Muller was the head coach of the Hurricanes.
Steve Smith:
- Was a scout for the Blackhawks when Canadiens General Manager Marc Bergevin was in the front office and goaltending coach Stephane Waite held the same role in Chicago. Canadiens G Antti Niemi also played for the Blackhawks during Smith’s time with the team.
- Was an assistant coach for the Oilers when Canadiens D Jeff Petry was playing in Edmonton.
Vladimir Sobotka:
- Played in Boston when Canadiens Head Coach Claude Julien was the head coach of the Bruins.
- Played for the Blues when Canadiens associate coach Kirk Muller was an assistant coach in St. Louis.
- Has played for the Czech national team with Canadiens F Tomas Plekanec on three separate occasions: at the 2014 and 2017 IIHF World Championships and at the 2016 World Cup of Hockey.
SABRES REAL-TIME STATS LEADERS
Hits: Ristolainen (27), Girgensons (16), McCabe (16)
Blocked Shots: Bogosian (15), McCabe (14), Ristolainen (14)
Shots: Eichel (38), Skinner (26), Okposo (21)
SABRES’ RECORD IN 10 GAME SEGMENTS [W-L-OTL (PTS), GF/GA, PP, PK]
1-10: 5-4-0 (10), 22/25, 6/34, 20/28
OVERTIME RESULTS (0-0; 113-121 all-time)
N/A
SHOOTOUT RESULTS (0-0; 70-66 all-time)
N/A
MILESTONES APPROACHING (Player … Needs … Milestone)
Games Played:
Jason Pominville … 4 games … 1,000 career games played
Conor Sheary … 7 games … 200 career games played
Remi Elie … 7 games … 100 career games played
Nathan Beaulieu … 9 games … 300 career games played
Goals:
Jason Pominville … 8 goals … 211 goals with Sabres (T-11th in franchise history)
Points:
Jason Pominville … 2 points … 497 points with Sabres (T-10th in franchise history)
Conor Sheary … 3 points … 100 career points
Jason Pominville … 5 points … 500 points with Sabres (T-9th in franchise history)
RECENT MILESTONES
Jason Pominville … 700th NHL point … Oct. 20 at LAK
from Sabres Digital Press Box via IFTTT
