GAME-DAY RESOURCES
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LAST GAME
Thursday, December 1
NY Rangers 3 at Buffalo 4
Goals: Eichel (2), Larsson, Gionta
Goalie: Nilsson (22 saves/25 shots)
PP: 1/2; PK: 0/2; Shots: Buffalo 34 – NY Rangers 25
CURRENT INJURIES – (Man Games Lost: 121)
Player (injury, first game missed) – total games missed
Cody McCormick (blood clots, Oct. 13; injured reserve) – 23 games
Nicolas Deslauriers (knee, Oct. 30; injured reserve) – 16 games
Zach Bogosian (MCL sprain, Nov. 3) – 14 games
Tyler Ennis (groin, Nov. 9; injured reserve) – 11 games
Dmitry Kulikov (lower back, Nov. 11) – 10 games
Robin Lehner (hip, Dec. 1) – 1 game
Josh Gorges (foot) – 0 games
TRANSACTIONS IN PAST 7 DAYS
11/27: Recalled F William Carrier from Rochester (AHL)
11/29: Activated F Jack Eichel from IR
12/1: Recalled G Linus Ullmark from Rochester (AHL)
12/2: Recalled D Brendan Guhle from Prince George (WHL) on an emergency basis; Assigned G Linus Ullmark to Rochester (AHL)
UPCOMING GAMES
Monday, Dec. 5: Buffalo at Washington, 7 p.m.
Tuesday, Dec. 6: Edmonton at Buffalo, 7 p.m.
Friday, Dec. 9: Washington at Buffalo, 7 p.m.
Tuesday, Dec. 13: Los Angeles at Buffalo, 7 p.m.
Friday, Dec. 16: NY Islanders at Buffalo, 7 p.m.
TODAY’S GAME
BRUINS at SABRES
- This is the second of four meetings between the Sabres and Bruins this season.
- Last meeting: Boston defeated Buffalo 4-0 in Boston on Nov. 7
- Next meeting: Thursday, Dec. 29 in Buffalo
- The Sabres are 2-4-4 in their last 10 games vs. the Bruins; 3-5-2 at home.
- This is the 283rd game all-time between Buffalo and Boston; Buffalo has a 121-117-44 series record.
- The Sabres are 73-46-23 at home against the Bruins all-time.
THIS DAY IN SABRES HISTORY
- The Sabres are 9-4-3 all-time on December 3.
- December 3, 1974: Rick Martin records his second of a franchise-record four four-goal games as the Sabres top the Washington Capitals 5-3.
- December 3, 1981: Mike Foligno makes his Sabres debut in a 6-3 loss at Boston.
- December 3, 1989: Mike Foligno plays in his 600th game as a Sabre in a 4-3 win vs. St. Louis.
THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW
- The Sabres enter today’s game with a 4-1-1 record in their last six games and a 3-0-1 record in their last four home games.
- Today’s game is the third of eight afternoon games (3 p.m. ET or earlier) for the Sabres this season. The team is 2-0-0 in the first two and was 6-3-2 in 11 afternoon games last season.
- Buffalo is ranked fourth in the NHL in power play percentage (23.4%) and fifth in team faceoff percentage (51.6%).
WHO’S HOT?
- Kyle Okposo and Sam Reinhart each have six points (2+4) in the team’s last five games. Both players enter today’s game on a three-game point streak.
- Jack Eichel has points in a career-best seven straight games played (4+6) and has 12 points (7+5) in his last 10 games played at KeyBank Center.
- Rasmus Ristolainen has three assists in his last two games.
SABRES AMONG LEAGUE LEADERS (Sabres’ league rankings before Dec. 2 games)
- Moulson: 6 PPG (T-3rd)
- Nilsson: .934 SV% (6th), .956 ES SV% (2nd)
- Okposo: 11 PPP (T-3rd)
- O’Reilly: 21:51 TOI (2nd, forwards), 57.5 FO% (8th)
- Ristolainen: 10 PPA (1st), 26:18 TOI (5th), 10 PPP (T-6th)
HOT AGAINST BOSTON
- Robin Lehner has faced Boston more times than any other NHL team. In 14 career games against the Bruins, he has logged a .923 save percentage and a 2.74 goals-against average.
- Kyle Okposo has totaled 22 points (4+18) in 24 career games against the Bruins.
- Ryan O’Reilly has six points (3+3) in his last six games against the Bruins.
RETURN OF THE JACK
- Jack Eichel returned to the Sabres‘ lineup on Tuesday at Ottawa after missing the team’s first 21 games with a high-ankle sprain. In his first two games of the season, Eichel has recorded four points (3+1).
- With wins on Tuesday and Thursday, the Sabres improved to 26-14-4 (.636) in Eichel’s career when he records a point and 10-3-1 (.750) when he has at least two.
LAST LINE OF DEFENSE
- Buffalo’s goaltenders had the fourth-best combined save percentage* (.925) in the league entering play Friday. They also had the fourth-best save percentage during 5-on-5 play (.935).
- The Sabres last finished a season with a combined save percentage* above .920 in the 2009-10 season (.924, Ryan Miller/Patrick Lalime/Jhonas Enroth) and have topped the team’s current mark only three times in franchise history: 1998-99 (.930, Dominik Hasek/Dwayne Roloson/Martin Biron), 1997-98 (.928, Hasek/Steve Shields), 1996-97 (.926, Hasek/Shields/Andrei Trefilov).
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Top Five NHL Goaltending Tandems by Save Percentage* |
||||
| Team | GA | SA | SV | SV% |
| Minnesota Wild | 45 | 684 | 639 | .934 |
| Montreal Canadiens | 49 | 731 | 682 | .933 |
| Columbus Blue Jackets | 46 | 646 | 600 | .929 |
| Buffalo Sabres | 55 | 737 | 682 | .925 |
| Nashville Predators | 51 | 671 | 620 | .924 |
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Top NHL Goaltending Tandems by 5-on-5 Save Percentage* |
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| Team | GA | SA | SV | SV% |
| Chicago Blackhawks | 32 | 637 | 605 | .950 |
| Montreal Canadiens | 33 | 598 | 565 | .945 |
| Minnesota Wild | 34 | 573 | 539 | .941 |
| Buffalo Sabres | 37 | 573 | 536 | .935 |
| Washington Capitals | 34 | 505 | 471 | .933 |
*Combined save percentage excludes empty net goals
BUF-BOS CONNECTIONS
Former Sabres:
- Tim Schaller spent two seasons with the Sabres, splitting his time between Buffalo and Rochester. He appeared in 35 games for the Sabres over his two seasons, logging five points (2+3).
- Dominic Moore appeared in 18 games for the Sabres in 2008-09, racking up four points (1+3).
Local Players:
- Jack Eichel was born in North Chelmsford, Massachusetts.
Jack Eichel:
- Represented the United States alongside Brandon Carlo at the 2015 World Junior Championship.
- Teammates with Torey Krug for the United States at the 2015 World Championship.
Cody Franson:
- Represented Canada with Brad Marchand at the 2007 World Junior Championship.
- Played with John-Michael Liles for the Toronto Maple Leafs from 2011-2014.
Brian Gionta:
- Teammates with Dominic Moore for the Montreal Canadiens during the 2009-10 season.
- Represented the United States at the 2005 World Championship and the 2006 Olympics with John-Michael Liles.
Josh Gorges:
- Skated alongside Dominic Moore for the Montreal Canadiens during the 2009-10 season.
Derek Grant:
- Played with Torey Krug for Michigan State University (NCAA) from 2009-2011.
Jake McCabe:
- Represented the United States with Jimmy Hayes at the 2014 World Championship.
Anders Nilsson:
- Teammates with David Backes on the St. Louis Blues during the 2015-16 season.
Ryan O’Reilly:
- Represented Canada alongside Brad Marchand at the 2016 World Championship.
- Teammates with John-Michael Liles for the Colorado Avalanche from 2009-2011.
Kyle Okposo:
- Skated alongside David Backes as members of the United States at the 2009 World Championship.
Sam Reinhart:
- Represented Canada alongside Brad Marchand at the 2016 World Championship.
NHL Draft:
- Johan Larsson (56th overall) and Ryan Spooner (45th overall) were both second-round selections in the 2010 NHL Draft.
- Sam Reinhart (2nd overall) and David Pastrnak (25th overall) were both first-round selections in the 2014 NHL Draft.
SABRES REAL-TIME STATS LEADERS
Hits: Foligno (75), Gorges (53), Ristolainen (52)
Blocked Shots: Gorges (43), Ristolainen (42), McCabe (29)
Shots: Okposo (65), O’Reilly (59), Reinhart (56)
SABRES’ RECORD IN 10 GAME SEGMENTS [W-L-OTL (PTS), GF/GA, PP, PK]
1-10: 4-4-2 (10), 23/24, 8/35, 26/31
11-20: 3-4-3 (9), 15/26, 6/31, 28/36
21-30: 2-1-0 (4), 10/10, 4/11, 5/10
OVERTIME RESULTS (0-2; 102-107 all-time)
Oct. 18 at EDM: L, 4-3 (GWG-Monahan)
Nov. 11 vs. NJD: L, 2-1 (GWG-Greene)
SHOOTOUT RESULTS (1-3; 68-61 all-time)
Oct. 25 at PHI: L, 4-3 (GDG-Giroux)
Nov. 9 vs. OTT: L, 2-1 (GDG-Ryan)
Nov. 19 vs. PIT: W, 2-1 (GDG-C. O’Reilly)
Nov. 23 vs. DET: L, 2-1 (GDG-Vanek)
MILESTONES APPROACHING (Player … Needs … Milestone)
Wins
Dan Bylsma … 4 wins … 300 NHL wins
Games Played
Marcus Foligno … 10 games … 300 NHL games
Points
Cody Franson … 7 points … 200 NHL points
RECENT MILESTONES
Marcus Foligno … 100th NHL point … Dec. 1 vs. NYR
