GAME-DAY RESOURCES
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LAST GAME
Saturday, October 17
Buffalo 1 at Tampa Bay 2
Goals: Reinhart
Goalie: Johnson (20 saves/22 shots)
PP: 0/3; PK: 3/4; Shots: Buffalo 32 – Tampa Bay 22
CURRENT INJURIES – (Man Games Lost: 26)
Player (injury, first game missed) – total games missed
Zach Bogosian (lower body, Oct. 8; injured reserve) – 5 games
Cody McCormick (blood clot, Oct. 8; injured reserve) – 5 games
Bobby Sanguinetti (lower body, Oct. 8; injured reserve) – 5 games
Robin Lehner (high ankle sprain, Oct. 10) – 4 games
TRANSACTIONS IN PAST 7 DAYS
N/A
UPCOMING GAMES
Friday, Oct. 23: Montreal at Buffalo, 7 p.m.
Saturday, Oct. 24: New Jersey at Buffalo, 7 p.m.
Tuesday, Oct. 27: Buffalo at Philadelphia, 7 p.m.
Thursday, Oct. 29: Buffalo at Pittsburgh, 7 p.m.
Friday, Oct. 30: Philadelphia at Buffalo, 7 p.m.
TONIGHT’S GAME
MAPLE LEAFS at SABRES
- This is the first of four meetings between the Sabres and Maple Leafs this season.
- Last meeting: Buffalo defeated Toronto, 4-3, in Buffalo on April 1
- Next meeting: Monday, March 7 in Toronto
- The Sabres are 5-2-3 in their last 10 games vs. the Maple Leafs; 8-1-1 at home
- This is the 198th game all-time between Buffalo and Toronto; Buffalo has a 108-63-26 series record.
- The Sabres are 66-25-8 at home against the Maple Leafs all-time.
THIS DAY IN SABRES HISTORY
- The Sabres are 8-2-4 all-time on October 21.
- October 21, 1988: Sabres acquire Larry Playfair from Los Angeles in exchange for Bob Logan and a ninth-round draft choice in 1989 (Jim Giacin).
- October 21, 1989: Rob Ray scores a goal on his first NHL shot and adds an assist in a 4-2 win at Pittsburgh.
THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW
- Jake McCabe (16:26) and Sam Reinhart (15:43) each set career-highs in ice time on Saturday at TBL.
- Matt Moulson has recorded 18 points (11+7) in his last 13 games against the Maple Leafs. This includes at least a point in each of his last three games against Toronto (3+4). In 24 career games against Toronto, Moulson has 24 points (16+8).
- Tyler Ennis has 17 points (8+9) in his last 16 games against the Maple Leafs, including seven points (2+5) in his last five games.
- Johan Larsson has four points (1+3) in two career games against Toronto.
- Brian Gionta leads all Sabres with 30 points (17+13) in 47 career games against Toronto.
- Seven of the last 14 games between these teams have gone to overtime.
- Entering Tuesday night’s games, Rasmus Ristolainen ranked 11th in the NHL with an average time on ice of 24:38 per game.
IT’S BEEN AWHILE
- 994 days have passed since Toronto’s last win in Buffalo (4-3 OT, Jan. 29, 2013). Only nine players from that game remain on their respective rosters today: Ennis, Foligno, Weber/Bozak, Kadri, Komarov, Phaneuf, Reimer, van Riemsdyk
- Cody Franson tallied two points (1+1) and a plus-3 rating for Toronto in the game.
- The record for most days between Maple Leafs wins in Buffalo since Toronto joined the Eastern Conference in 1998-99 is 1,366 days (Feb. 17, 1999 and Nov. 15, 2002). The Sabres would need to sweep their home matchups with Toronto in 2015-16 to have a chance at topping that mark.
HOME SWEET HOME
- The home team has won 19 of the last 21 games between the Sabres and the Maple Leafs, including each of the last 11.
- The Sabres are 15-1-1 in their last 17 home games against the Maple Leafs, including wins in their last five.
- The Maple Leafs haven’t won at First Niagara Center since Jan. 29, 2013. Their last regulation win in Buffalo was a 2-1 win on Feb. 16, 2011.
- Toronto hasn’t won consecutive games in Buffalo since March 21 and Dec. 12, 2008.
DRAWING ATTENTION
Entering Tuesday night’s action, Ryan O’Reilly was tied for ninth in the league with 111 faceoffs taken, accounting for 36.6% of Buffalo’s total faceoffs. O’Reilly’s faceoff percentage (56.8%) ranked him 18th in the league among players with at least 50 faceoffs taken before Tuesday’s games.
GETTING OUT OF TROUBLE
Entering play Tuesday, 31 NHL players with at least five even-strength defensive zone starts had a 5-on-5 offensive zone start percentage of less than 40 percent and a corsi for percentage of greater than 50 percent. Three of those players are Sabres forwards. Jamie McGinn is one of only two NHL players (Ryan Garbutt) through Monday’s games with at least five defensive zone starts to log a positive CF% despite a ZSO% of less than 25 percent.
|
Players with Offensive Zone Start Percentage under 40% |
|||||
| Rank* | Player | Team | GP | CF% | ZSO% |
| 1 | Patrice Bergeron | BOS | 5 | 60.18% | 39.53% |
| 2 | Jaromir Jagr | FLA | 5 | 59.43% | 34.62% |
| 3 | Beau Bennett | PIT | 3 | 58.57% | 38.46% |
| 4 | Johan Larsson | BUF | 4 | 56.92% | 36.67% |
| 5 | Brock Nelson | NYI | 5 | 56.57% | 37.93% |
| 6 | Jamie McGinn | BUF | 5 | 56.25% | 21.74% |
| … | |||||
| 26 | Sam Reinhart | BUF | 5 | 51.47% | 34.62% |
*CF% ranking among players with at least five total DZ starts and fewer than 40 percent of their even-strength OZ/DZ faceoffs in the offensive zone as of Oct. 20. (Stats courtesy of war-on-ice.com)
A NEW LOOK
- Nine players made their Sabres regular-season debuts in the season-opener on Oct. 8 vs. OTT: Carlo Colaiacovo, Jack Eichel, Cody Franson, Chad Johnson, Evander Kane, David Legwand, Robin Lehner, Jamie McGinn and Ryan O’Reilly
- According to the Elias Sports Bureau, this was the most debuts the Sabres have ever had in a season-opener and the most since seven players did so in 1986-87 (Christian Ruuttu, Clark Gillies, Jim Korn, Ken Priestlay, Scott Arniel, Shawn Anderson and Wilf Paiement).
- Only 10 of the 20 Sabres players who dressed for the first game of the 2014-15 season appeared on the team’s 2015-16 opening day roster. Only five players on this year’s opening day roster suited up for the team in the season-opener two years ago: Tyler Ennis, Zemgus Girgensons, Mark Pysyk, Rasmus Ristolainen, Mike Weber
ARE YOU EXPERIENCED?
Entering the season, the 23 players on the Sabres’ opening day roster had combined to play 6,520 NHL games, 662 more than last year’s opening-day roster had between them. The average Sabres skater entering the 2015-16 season had played 28 more NHL games than his counterpart from last season and 60 more games than his 2013-14 counterpart.
2015-16 ROSTER NOTES
Of the 22 players on Buffalo’s opening night roster:
- Nine were originally drafted by the Sabres — six were first-round Buffalo selections (Ennis, 2008; Pysyk, 2010; Girgensons, 2012; Ristolainen, 2013; Reinhart, 2014; Eichel, 2015), two were second-round picks (Weber, 2006; McCabe, 2012) and one was a fourth-round pick (Foligno, 2009)
- Eight were acquired in trades: Deslauriers, Johnson, Kane, Larsson, Legwand, Lehner, McGinn, O’Reilly
- Five were signed as free agents: Colaiacovo, Donovan, Franson, Gionta, Moulson
- 12 played in Buffalo at some point last season
- Eight are new to the Sabres this season: Colaiacovo, Donovan, Eichel, Franson, Legwand, Lehner, McGinn, O’Reilly
- Two are opening the season on an NHL roster for the first time in their careers: Eichel, McCabe
BUF-TOR CONNECTIONS
Former Sabres:
- Brad Boyes skated as a member of the Sabres from 2010-2012. During his two seasons in Buffalo, Boyes played in 86 games, recording 37 points (13+24).
Former Maple Leafs:
- Cody Franson played for the Maple Leafs from 2011-2015. He posted 115 points (20+95) in 236 games for Toronto and led the team in scoring amongst defensemen during the 2012-13, 2013-14 and 2014-15 seasons.
- Toronto drafted Carlo Colaiacovo in the first round (17th overall) of the 2001 NHL Draft. He went on to play 111 games for the Maple Leafs, totaling 33 points (12+21).
Carlo Colaiacovo:
- Colaiacovo, Frank Corrado, Peter Holland and Daniel Winnik were all born in Toronto, Ontario.
- Played with Brad Boyes for the St. Louis Blues from 2008-2011. They were also teammates for the Erie Otters (OHL) from 1999-2002.
- Teammates with Roman Polak for the St. Louis Blues from 2008-2012 and again during the 2013-14 season.
- Played with Jonathan Bernier, Dion Phaneuf and James Reimer for Team Canada at the 2011 World Championship.
Jack Eichel:
- Played with Mark Arcobello and Jake Gardiner at the 2015 World Championship for the United States.
Tyler Ennis:
- Ennis and Dion Phaneuf were both born in Edmonton, Alberta.
- He and Nazem Kadri share the same birthday. Ennis was born on Oct. 6, 1989, while Kadri was born on the same day in 1990.
Marcus Foligno:
- Played with Frank Corrado for the Sudbury Wolves (OHL) from 2009-2011.
Cody Franson:
- Played with Nick Spaling for the Nashville Predators from 2009-2011.
Josh Gorges:
- Played with Dion Phaneuf for Team Canada at the 2004 World Junior Championship.
Chad Johnson:
- Played with Michael Grabner for the New York Islanders during the 2014-15 season.
- Teammates with Pierre-Alexandre Parenteau for the New York Rangers during the 2010 season.
David Legwand:
- Played with Nick Spaling for the Nashville Predators from 2009-2013.
Jake McCabe:
- Played with Jake Gardiner at the 2014 World Championship for the United States.
Jamie McGinn:
- Represented Team Canada alongside Shawn Matthias and Jonathan Bernier at the 2006 World U18 Championship.
- He and Daniel Winnik were involved in the same trade on Feb. 27, 2012. McGinn was traded to Colorado along with two prospects, and Winnik was sent to San Jose along with T.J. Galiardi.
Matt Moulson:
- Played with Jonathan Bernier for the Los Angeles Kings and Manchester Monarchs (AHL) for two seasons (2007-2009).
- Played with Michael Grabner for the New York Islanders from 2010-2013. Brad Boyes was also on the team during the 2012-13 season, and Pierre-Alexandre Parenteau was on the team from 2010-2012.
Ryan O’Reilly:
- Represented Team Canada alongside Peter Holland at the 2009 World U18 Championship.
- Teammates with Daniel Winnik for the Colorado Avalanche from 2010-2012.
NHL Entry Draft:
- Jamie McGinn (36th overall by San Jose), Shawn Matthias (47th overall by Detroit) and Mike Weber (57th overall by Buffalo) were all selected in the second round of the 2006 NHL Draft.
- Zach Bogosian (3rd overall), Tyler Ennis (26th overall) and Jake Gardiner (17th overall) were all chosen in the first round of the 2008 NHL Draft.
- Evander Kane, Nazem Kadri and Peter Holland were all taken in the first round of the 2009 NHL Draft. Kane was taken fourth overall by Atlanta, Kadri went seventh overall to Toronto and Holland was selected 15th overall by Anaheim.
- Zemgus Girgensons (14th overall) and Morgan Rielly (5th overall) were both selected in the first round of the 2012 NHL Draft.
SABRES REAL-TIME STATS LEADERS
Hits: Kane (14), Deslauriers (11), Foligno/Girgensons (9)
Blocked Shots: Gorges/Ristolainen (7), Pysyk (6), Weber (4)
Shots: Ennis (22), Ristolainen (16), Kane/O’Reilly (15)
SABRES’ RECORD IN 10 GAME SEGMENTS [W-L-OTL (PTS), GF/GA, PP, PK] 1-10: 1-4-0 (2), 9/14, 5/21, 10/15
OVERTIME RESULTS (0-0; 98-101 all-time)
N/A
SHOOTOUT RESULTS (0-0; 65-51 all-time)
N/A
MILESTONES APPROACHING (Player … Needs … Milestone)
Games Played
Marcus Foligno … 3 games … 200 career games played
Goals
Ryan O’Reilly … 9 goals … 100 career goals
Assists
Zach Bogosian … 6 assists … 100 career assists
Josh Gorges … 9 assists … 100 career assists
RECENT MILESTONES
Jake McCabe … 1st NHL goal … Oct. 15 at FLA
