GAME-DAY RESOURCES
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LAST GAME
Tuesday, November 7
Washington 1 at Buffalo 3
Goals: Kane (2), Pouliot
Goalie: Lehner (24 saves/25 shots)
PP: 0/4; PK: 1/1; Shots: Buffalo 32 – Washington 25
CURRENT INJURIES – (Man Games Lost: 76)
Player (injury, first game missed) – total games missed
Evan Rodrigues (hand, Oct. 5; injured reserve) – 15 games
Zach Bogosian (lower body, Oct.5; injured reserve) – 15 games
Jacob Josefson (lower body, Oct. 17; injured reserve) – 9 games
Josh Gorges (lower body, Oct. 20; injured reserve) – 8 games
Nathan Beaulieu (upper body, Oct. 21; injured reserve) – 7 games
Justin Bailey (lower body, Nov. 2; injured reserve) – 3 games
Rasmus Ristolainen (upper body, Nov. 4) – 2 games
TRANSACTIONS IN PAST 7 DAYS
11/7: Recalled D Zach Redmond from Rochester (AHL); Placed F Justin Bailey on IR
11/9: Assigned D Zach Redmond to Rochester (AHL)
11/10: Activated D Nathan Beaulieu from IR
UPCOMING GAMES
Saturday, Nov. 11: Buffalo at Montreal, 7 p.m.
Tuesday, Nov. 14: Buffalo at Pittsburgh, 7 p.m.
Friday, Nov. 17: Buffalo at Detroit, 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, Nov. 18: Carolina at Buffalo, 7 p.m.
Monday, Nov. 20: Columbus at Buffalo, 7 p.m.
TONIGHT’S GAME
PANTHERS at SABRES
- This is the first of four meetings between the Sabres and Panthers this season.
- Last meeting: Florida defeated Buffalo 3-0 in Florida on April 8
- Next meeting: Thursday, Feb. 1 in Buffalo
- The Sabres are 3-6-1 in their last 10 games vs. the Panthers; 3-6-1 at home.
- This is the 93rd game all-time between Buffalo and Florida; Buffalo has a 48-36-8 series record.
- The Sabres are 27-16-4 at home against the Panthers all-time.
THIS DAY IN SABRES HISTORY
- The Sabres are 13-3-2 all-time on November 10.
- November 10, 1976: Gerry Desjardins stops 38 shots in a 5-0 win vs. St. Louis, setting a then-franchise record for most saves in a shutout. The record would not be matched for more than 21 years, until Dominik Hasek tied it on Dec. 5, 1997 vs. Tampa Bay and then topped it with 42 saves two weeks later vs. Montreal on Dec. 19, 1997. Chad Johnson currently holds the record, with 44 on Dec. 17, 2015 vs. Anaheim.
- November 10, 1997: Jason Dawe records a natural hat trick in a 4-4 tie vs. Edmonton.
- November 10, 2010: Lindy Ruff coaches his 1,000th NHL game, becoming the 18th NHL head coach to reach that milestone.
THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW
- The Sabres are 2-0-1 against Atlantic division opponents so far this season.
- After winning both meetings at KeyBank Center last season, the Sabres have a chance to earn wins in three straight visits from the Panthers for the first time since Feb. 10, 2008 to March 25, 2009.
- The Panthers are one of five NHL teams (excluding the Sabres) that Jack Eichel has not yet recorded a goal against.
- Robin Lehner is 2-1-1 in five appearances at home this season with a .956 save percentage and a 1.37 goals-against average.
TAMING THE CATS
- Jason Pominville has totaled 38 points (15+23) in 38 career games against Florida, making them one of three NHL teams he’s recorded at least a point per game against in his career. Vegas (two points in one game) and Tampa Bay (39 points in 37 games) are the others.
- Pominville currently has points in three straight games against the Panthers, including two-point games in both meetings last season.
- Ryan O’Reilly has 15 points (6+9) in his last 14 games against the Panthers, including points in 11 of those contests and four two-point games.
- Sam Reinhart has eight points (5+3) in his last seven games against the Panthers.
- Nathan Beaulieu has four assists in his last four games against Florida.
- Taylor Fedun scored his first career goal against Florida in his only previous meeting with the team.
DIVISIONAL DOMINANCE
With seven divisional games remaining, the Sabres are 11-6-2 (.632) against the Atlantic Division in 2017, including a 6-1-2 (.778) record in home games. The overall record currently ranks as Buffalo’s 15th-best divisional record in a calendar year and the home record ranks ninth. Both records are the team’s best divisional marks since 2012.
BEN-WOW POULIOT
Benoit Pouliot enters tonight’s game with five goals in his last seven games.
- The Sabres are 4-0-0 when he scores and 5-0-0 when he records a point this season.
- Three of his five goals have been game-winning goals and three have been lasting-lead goals*.
- His three lasting-lead goals* tied him for third-most in the league entering play Thursday, trailing only Evgeni Malkin and Jaden Schwartz (four each). His three game-winning goals tied him for sixth.
*Lasting-Lead Goal: A goal scored during a tied game that gives the scorer’s team a lead that it never relinquishes.
QUICK START FOR KANE
Evander Kane enters tonight’s game with nine goals in his first 15 games played this season. With a goal tonight, Kane would be off to the quickest start to career, topping his mark of 10 goals in his first 22 games in 2011-12.
WHO’S HOT?
- Evander Kane (9+6) has 15 points in 15 games this season, including a point in both of the last two games.
- Ryan O’Reilly has 11 points (5+6) in his last 10 games.
- Benoit Pouliot has five goals and six points in his last seven games.
BACK-TO-BACK
Tonight’s game opens Buffalo’s fourth of 16 sets of back-to-back games this season, which continues tomorrow night at Montreal. The Sabres are 1-2-0 in the first game of back-to-back sets and 2-1-0 in the second game so far this season. Buffalo’s point breakdown in previous back-to-back sets is: four points (0), three points (0), two points (3), one point (0) and zero points (0).
SABRES AMONG LEAGUE-LEADERS (Sabres’ league rankings before 11/9 games)
- Eichel: 2 SHP (T-3rd)
- Kane: 3 SHG (1st), 3 SHP (T-1st), 73 S (2nd), 9 G (T-6th)
- O’Reilly: 223 FOW (1st), 371 FO (2nd), 60.1% FO% (4th)
- Pouliot: 3 GWG (T-6th)
- Ristolainen: 27:09 TOI/GP (1st)
BUF-FLA CONNECTIONS
Former Sabres:
- Jamie McGinn recorded 27 points (14+13) in 63 games for the Sabres during the 2015-16 season.
- Mark Pysyk was taken by the Sabres in the first round (23rd overall) of the 2010 NHL Draft. In 125 games over four seasons, Pysyk recorded 26 points (5+21).
Former Panthers:
- Seth Griffith recorded five assists in 21 games for Florida during the 2016-17 season.
Victor Antipin:
- Teammates with Evgenii Dadonov for Team Russia at the 2015 and 2016 World Championships.
Justin Bailey:
- Played with Jared McCann for the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds (OHL) during part of the 2014-15 season.
Nathan Beaulieu:
- Represented Canada alongside Mark Pysyk at the 2012 World Junior Championship.
Jack Eichel:
- Represented the United States alongside Ian McCoshen at the 2014 and 2015 World Junior Championships.
- Was named to Team North America for the 2016 World Cup of Hockey along with Aaron Ekblad and Vincent Trochek.
Taylor Fedun:
- Played with Michael Haley and Antti Niemi for the San Jose Sharks during the 2014-15 season.
- Teammates with Jared McCann and Radim Vrbata for part of the 2015-16 season with the Vancouver Canucks.
Zemgus Girgensons:
- Spent the 2011-12 season playing with Michael Matheson for the Dubuque Fighting Saints (USHL).
Chad Johnson:
- Johnson, and Radim Vrbata and Keith Yandle were teammates for the Phoenix Coyotes during the 2012-13 season.
Evander Kane:
- Represented Canada alongside James Reimer at the 2011 World Championship.
Jake McCabe:
- Represented the United States alongside Vincent Trochek at the 2013 World Junior Championship and the 2014 World Championship.
Matt Moulson:
- Teammates with Michael Haley for the New York Islanders from 2009-2012.
Kyle Okposo:
- Represented the United States alongside Keith Yandle at the 2010 World Championship.
- Teammates with Michael Haley for the New York Islanders from 2009-2012.
Ryan O’Reilly:
- He and Aaron Ekblad share a birth date. O’Reilly was born on Feb. 7, 1991, and Ekblad was born on Feb. 7, 1996. The two also played together for Team Canada at the 2015 World Championship.
- Teammates with Jamie McGinn for the Colorado Avalanche from 2011-2015.
- Played alongside Michael Matheson for Team Canada at the 2016 World Championship.
Sam Reinhart:
- Played alongside Michael Matheson for Team Canada at the 2016 World Championship.
Matt Tennyson:
- Played with Michael Haley and Antti Niemi for the San Jose Sharks from 2014-2016. James Reimer was also on the team for part of the 2015-16 campaign.
NHL Draft:
- Justin Falk (110th overall) was taken two picks before Colton Sceviour (112th overall) in the fourth round of the 2007 NHL Draft.
- Johan Larsson (56th overall by Minnesota), Alex Petrovic (36th overall) and Connor Brickley (50th overall) were all drafted in the second round of the 2010 NHL Draft.
- Nathan Beaulieu (17th overall) and Jonathan Huberdeau (3rd overall) were both taken in the first round of the 2011 NHL Draft. They were also teammates for the Saint John Sea Dogs (QMJHL) from 2009-2012 and for Team Canada at the 2012 World Junior Championship.
- The first round of the 2012 NHL Draft saw both Zemgus Girgensons (14th overall) and Mike Matheson (23rd overall) go off the board.
- Justin Bailey (52nd overall) and Ian McCoshen (31st overall) were both second-round picks in the 2013 NHL Draft.
- Sam Reinhart (2nd overall) and Aaron Ekblad (1st overall) were the top two picks in the 2014 NHL Draft. Jared McCann (24th overall) was also taken in the first round in 2014.
SABRES REAL-TIME STATS LEADERS
Hits: Ristolainen (38), Kane (31), Pouliot (28)
Blocked Shots: McCabe (25), Scandella (22), Ristolainen (15)
Shots: Kane (73), Eichel (46), O’Reilly (41)
SABRES’ RECORD IN 10 GAME SEGMENTS [W-L-OTL (PTS), GF/GA, PP, PK]
1-10: 3-5-2 (8), 26/36, 5/36, 29/35
11-20: 2-3-0 (4), 12/18, 1/16, 7/9
OVERTIME RESULTS (1-1; 109-112 all-time)
Oct. 17 at VGK: L, 5-4 (GWG-Perron)
Oct. 21 at BOS: W, 5-4 (GWG-O’Reilly)
SHOOTOUT RESULTS (0-1; 69-65 all-time)
Oct. 5 vs. MTL: L, 3-2 (GDG-Drouin)
MILESTONES APPROACHING (Player … Needs … Milestone)
Wins
Buffalo Sabres … 5 wins … 1,000 regular-season home wins
Games Played
Johan Larsson … 7 games … 200 career games played
Assists
Matt Moulson … 7 assists … 200 career assists
Rasmus Ristolainen … 10 assists … 100 career assists
Points
Sam Reinhart … 5 points … 100 career points
Marco Scandella … 8 points … 100 career points
RECENT MILESTONES
N/A
