Tag Archives: Winnipeg Jets

GAME-DAY RESOURCES

Game Notes

NHL Stats

Press Clips

LAST GAME
Saturday, February 22
Buffalo 5 at Pittsburgh 2
Goals: Eichel (2), Girgensons, Reinhart, Skinner
Goalie: Hutton (41 saves/43 shots)
PP: 2/3; PK: 2/2; Shots: Pittsburgh 43 – Buffalo 26

CURRENT INJURIES – (Man Games Lost: 298)
Player (injury, first game missed) – total games missed
Matt Hunwick (neck, Oct. 3; injured reserve) – 61 games
Vladimir Sobotka (knee, Nov. 9; injured reserve) – 45 games
Tage Thompson (shoulder, Nov. 19; injured reserve) – 41 games
Linus Ullmark (lower body, Jan. 30; injured reserve) – 11 games

TRANSACTIONS IN PAST 7 DAYS
2/17: Signed F Taylor Leier to a one-year, two-way contract worth $700,000; Placed Leier on waivers; Recalled F Scott Wilson from Rochester (AHL); Assigned G Andrew Hammond to Rochester (AHL)
2/18: Assigned F Taylor Leier to Rochester (AHL)
2/21: Placed D Zach Bogosian on unconditional waivers; Assigned F Scott Wilson to Rochester (AHL)

UPCOMING GAMES
Wednesday, Feb. 26: Buffalo at Colorado, 8 p.m.
Friday, Feb. 28: Buffalo at Vegas, 10 p.m.
Saturday, Feb. 29: Buffalo at Arizona, 8 p.m.
Tuesday, March 3: Buffalo at Winnipeg, 8 p.m.
Thursday, March 5: Pittsburgh at Buffalo, 7 p.m.

TODAY’S GAME
JETS at SABRES

• This is the first of two meetings between the Sabres and Jets this season.
• Last meeting: Winnipeg defeated Buffalo 3-1 in Buffalo on Feb. 10, 2019
• Next meeting: Tuesday, March 3 in Buffalo
• The Sabres are 5-5-0 in their last 10 games vs. the Jets; 4-5-1 at home.
• This is the 64th game all-time between Buffalo and Winnipeg; Buffalo has a 27-25-11 series record.
• The Sabres are 17-11-4 at home against the Jets all-time.

THIS DATE IN SABRES HISTORY

• The Sabres are 14-6-0 all-time on February 23.
• February 23, 2011: The Sabres defeat the Atlanta Thrashers 4-1 in the team’s first game under the ownership of the Pegulas, a day after Terry and Kim Pegula announced their purchase of the team. All three members of the French Connection surprise Terry on the ice in a pre-game ceremony.
• February 23, 2019: Sam Reinhart records his third career hat trick as the Sabres top the Washington Capitals by a score of 5-2.

THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW

• The Sabres are 6-2-2 in afternoon games this season, including a 5-2-0 record at home.
• Henri Jokiharju is expected to appear in his 100th NHL game today.
• Jack Eichel has recorded at least a point in each of Buffalo’s last seven games (4+7). It’s his third point streak of at least seven games this season.
• Rasmus Dahlin enters today’s game on a career-best six-game point streak (1+6). He has recorded at least a point in 14 of his last 17 games (2+14) dating back to Jan. 4.
• Rasmus Ristolainen has tallied at least one assist in each of Buffalo’s last four games, totaling six assists and a plus-7 rating in those contests.
• Kyle Okposo enters today’s game on a three-game point streak (2+1).

HOT AGAINST WINNIPEG

• Carter Hutton has a .973 save percentage in his last five appearances against Winnipeg.
• Marcus Johansson has recorded 19 points (3+16) in 19 games against the Jets since they moved to Winnipeg in 2011-12, including seven multi-point outings.
• Jack Eichel has totaled seven points (4+3) in seven career games against the Jets.
• Jeff Skinner has recorded six points (3+3) in six games against Winnipeg since the beginning of the 2016-17 season.
• Colin Miller has totaled three points (1+2) in his last two meetings with the Jets.
• Rasmus Dahlin recorded an assist in both of Buffalo’s games against the Jets as a rookie last season.

BACK-TO-BACK
Today’s game wraps up Buffalo’s 11th of 14 sets of back-to-back games this season, which began with a 5-2 win at Pittsburgh yesterday afternoon. The Sabres are 4-5-2 in the first game of back-to-back sets and 5-4-1 in the second game so far this season. Buffalo’s point breakdown in previous back-to-back sets is: four points (0), three points (3), two points (5), one point (0) and zero points (2).

RETURN OF THE ROOKIE

• Victor Olofsson, who missed 15 games with a lower body injury from Jan. 4 to Feb. 11, has recorded five points (3+2) in four games since returning from injury.
• After yesterday’s game, Olofsson ranked second among all NHL rookies with 19 goals this season. His .87 points per game led all rookies with more than one game played.
• Olofsson’s 40 points in 46 games so far this season (.870 points per game) this season ranks as the fourth-best scoring rate all-time among Sabres rookies with at least 15 games played:
  • Rick Martin (1971-72): 1.014 PTS/GP
  • Gilbert Perreault (1970-71): .923 PTS/GP
  • Ray Sheppard (1987-88): .878 PTS/GP
  • Victor Olofsson (2019-20): .870 PTS/GP
  • Dave Andreychuk (1982-83): .860 PTS/GP

TEEN TITAN

• Rasmus Dahlin has totaled 81 points (13+68) through his first 133 NHL games, including 37 points (4+33) in 51 games this season.
• With his assist on Feb. 18 at Ottawa, Dahlin passed Ray Bourque (79) for the second-most points recorded by an NHL defenseman before his 20th birthday. He now trails only Phil Housley (132) for the most points ever recorded by a teenage defenseman.
• After yesterday’s game, Dahlin’s .61 points per game in his career ranked as the 12th-highest rate among active NHL defensemen with at least 10 career games played. His .73 points per game so far this season represent the best single-season scoring rate by a Sabres defenseman with more than one game played since Phil Housley (1.01) in 1989-90.

SETTING THE PACE

• With his 29th goal in his 49th game of the season on Jan. 28 vs. Ottawa, Jack Eichel topped his previous best total set in the 2018-19 season (77 GP). He now has 35 goals in 60 games played this season.
• Eichel’s output through 61 team games currently has him on pace to finish the season with 47 goals and 104 points, which would be the highest goal and point totals by a Sabre since Pat LaFontaine (53+95) and Alexander Mogilny (76+51) in 1992-93.
• LaFontaine (83 in 1992-93), Mogilny (78 in 1992-93) and Gilbert Perreault (70 in 1975-76) are the only Sabres ever to have recorded more even-strength points in a season than the 68 Eichel is currently on pace for.
• Eichel needs three points to become just the ninth player in franchise history to record 80 points in back-to-back seasons at least once. He would join Danny Gare, Dale Hawerchuk, Pat LaFontaine, Rick Martin, Alexander Mogilny, Gilbert Perreault, Rene Robert and Pierre Turgeon.
• Sam Reinhart scored his 20th goal of the season in his 55th game on Feb. 7 at NY Rangers, surpassing the 2015-16 season as his previous quickest season to 20 goals (69 games). Reinhart is currently on pace to set career-high totals in both goals (30) and points (67).
• Despite missing 10 games due to injury, Rasmus Dahlin is currently on pace to record 52 points this season, which would make him the Sabres’ first 50-point defenseman since Garry Galley (54) in 1995-96.
• Victor Olofsson, who has missed 15 games due to injury this season, is on pace for 58 points. If he maintains that pace, his output will supplant Eichel and Derek Plante as the seventh-most prolific rookie season in Sabres history. It would be the best since Ray Sheppard’s 65 points in 1987-88. He is on pace for 28 goals, which would rank him sixth among all rookies in franchise history.

JACK ATTACK

• Jack Eichel has been held without a point in just four of his last 42 games played. During that stretch, which began with a four-goal performance vs. Ottawa on Nov. 16, Buffalo’s captain has totaled 58 points (27+31) in 42 appearances, also missing one game due to injury. Only Artemi Panarin (60) had more points during that stretch at the conclusion of yesterday’s game.
  • Following yesterday’s game, only three NHL players had recorded at least a point in more games this season than Eichel’s 46: Leon Draisaitl (50), Nathan MacKinnon (48) and Patrick Kane (48).
• With an assist on Feb. 11 vs. Detroit, Eichel became the 14th player ever to record 70 points in consecutive seasons at least once as a member of the Sabres. The last player to do so was Derek Roy in 2007-08 (81) and 2008-09 (70).
• With his 40th assist on Feb. 13 vs. Columbus, Eichel became the first Sabres player to record 30 goals and 40 assists in a season since Jason Pominville (30+43) in 2011-12. He became the 16th different player in franchise history to accomplish this feat at least once.

POINTS IN BUNCHES

• Jack Eichel has recorded 20 multi-point games this season, ranking as the 11th-most in the NHL at the conclusion of yesterday’s game. The Sabres are 15-3-2 (.800) in those games.
• After yesterday’s game, Eichel’s seven multi-goal games tied for fourth-most in the league and his 11 multi-assist games tied for ninth-most.
• Sam Reinhart ranks second on the Sabres with 13 multi-point games this season. The team is 10-2-1 this season (.808) and 41-7-8 (.804) in his career when he records at least two points.

SABRES AMONG LEAGUE-LEADERS (Sabres’ league rankings after yesterday’s game)

• Eichel: 3 OTG (T-2nd), 9 GWG (T-2nd), 35 G (T-4th), 24 EVG (T-6th), 77 PTS (T-6th), 26 PPP (T-6th), 50 EVP (T-8th), 10 PPG (T-10th)
• Olofsson: 11 PPG (T-4th)

SABRES REAL-TIME STATS LEADERS
Hits: Ristolainen (179), Girgensons (95), McCabe (80)
Blocked Shots: McCabe (80), Ristolainen (69), Jokiharju (55)
Shots: Eichel (203), Skinner (154), Reinhart (126)

SABRES’ RECORD IN 10 GAME SEGMENTS [W-L-OTL (PTS), GF/GA, PP, PK] 1-10: 8-1-1 (17), 38/24, 12/39, 23/30
11-20: 2-6-2 (6), 21/35, 2/26, 21/29
21-30: 3-4-3 (8), 34/34, 4/33, 23/32
31-40: 4-5-1 (9), 24/32, 4/23, 23/30
41-50: 5-5-0 (10), 30/32, 7/29, 21/29
51-60: 5-4-1 (11), 28/33, 5/23, 13/17
61-70: 1-0-0 (2), 5/2, 2/3, 2/2

OVERTIME RESULTS (6-6; 126-134 all-time)
Oct. 7 at CBJ: L, 4-3 (Texier, 2:08)
Oct. 9 vs. MTL: W, 5-4 (Johansson, 1:30)
Oct. 22 vs. SJS: W, 4-3 (Eichel, 3:13)
Nov. 14 vs. CAR: L, 5-4 (Hamilton, 2:28)
Nov. 27 vs. CGY: L, 3-2 (Lindholm, 1:17)
Nov. 30 at TOR: L, 2-1 (Tavares, 1:45)
Dec. 7 at VAN: L, 6-5 (Miller, 3:21)
Dec. 8 at EDM: W, 3-2 (Miller, 1:13)
Dec. 14 at NYI: L, 3-2 (Beauvillier, 3:04)
Jan. 2 vs. EDM: W, 3-2 (Eichel, 1:09)
Feb. 1 vs. CBJ: W, 2-1 (Eichel, 0:36)
Feb. 13 vs. CBJ: W, 4-3 (Olofsson, 2:44)

SHOOTOUT RESULTS (1-2; 76-71 all-time)
Oct. 11 vs. FLA: W, 3-2 (GDG-Eichel)
Oct. 28 vs. ARI: L, 3-2 (GDG-Schmaltz)
Feb. 6 vs. DET: L, 4-3 (GDG-Larkin)

MILESTONES APPROACHING (Player … Needs … Milestone)
Games Played
Henri Jokiharju … 1 game … 100 career games played
Jimmy Vesey … 3 games … 300 career games played
Colin Miller … 5 games … 300 career games played
Kyle Okposo … 8 games … 800 career games played
Sam Reinhart … 8 games … 400 career games played
Evan Rodrigues … 8 games … 200 career games played
Goals
Kyle Okposo … 6 goals … 200 career goals
Points
Johan Larsson … 5 points … 100 career points
Wins
Carter Hutton … 7 wins … 100 career wins

RECENT MILESTONES
Jack Eichel … 200th NHL assist … Feb. 18 at OTT

 

GAME-DAY RESOURCES

Game Notes

NHL Stats

Press Clips

LAST GAME
Saturday, February 9
Detroit 1 at Buffalo 3
Goals: Sheary, Mittelstadt, Okposo
Goalie: Ullmark (28 saves/29 shots)
PP: 2/3; PK: 3/4; Shots: Detroit 29 – Buffalo 21

CURRENT INJURIES – (Man Games Lost: 181)
Player (injury, first game missed) – total games missed
Casey Nelson (upper body, Dec. 8; injured reserve) – 25 games

TRANSACTIONS IN PAST 7 DAYS
2/4: Recalled F C.J. Smith from Rochester (AHL)
2/8: Assigned Casey Nelson to Rochester (AHL) on a conditioning loan

UPCOMING GAMES
Tuesday, Feb. 12: NY Islanders at Buffalo, 7 p.m.
Friday, Feb. 15: NY Rangers at Buffalo, 7 p.m.
Sunday, Feb. 17: Buffalo at New Jersey, 6 p.m.
Tuesday, Feb. 19: Buffalo at Florida, 7 p.m.
Thursday, Feb. 21: Buffalo at Tampa Bay, 7:30 p.m.

TODAY’S GAME
JETS at SABRES

• This is the second of two meetings between the Sabres and Jets this season.
• Last meeting: Buffalo defeated Winnipeg 2-1 (SO) in Winnipeg on Nov. 16, 2018
• The Sabres are 5-5-0 in their last 10 games vs. the Jets; 5-4-1 at home.
• This is the 63rd game all-time between Buffalo and Winnipeg/Atlanta; Buffalo has a 27-24-11 series record.
• The Sabres are 17-10-4 at home against the Jets/Thrashers all-time.

THIS DATE IN SABRES HISTORY

• The Sabres are 12-9-2 all-time on February 10.
• February 10, 1980: George “Punch” Imlach, Roger Crozier and Frank Christie become the first three members of the Buffalo Sabres Hall of Fame.
• February 10, 1993: Pat LaFontaine posts the last six-point game by a Sabres player, tallying one goal and five assists in a 6-2 Sabres win at Winnipeg.
• February 10, 2008: Patrick Kaleta scores his first NHL goal in a 5-3 win at home against Florida.

THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW

• Today’s game is Buffalo’s seventh afternoon game of the season. The Sabres are 5-1-0 in the first six.
• Today’s matchup is the fifth game of a seven-game homestand that ties the stretch from Jan. 20 to Feb. 2, 1997 as the longest in franchise history.
• With a win today, the Sabres would sweep the season series against the Jets for the third time in four seasons. The teams have not split the series since the 2013-14 season.
• Evan Rodrigues has totaled eight points (6+2) in his last nine games.
• Rasmus Ristolainen has tallied nine assists in his last nine contests.
• Casey Mittelstadt enters today’s game on a career-best, four-game point streak and has seven points (2+5) in his last nine games.

HOT AGAINST WINNIPEG

• Carter Hutton has a 5-4-1 record and a .936 save percentage in 11 career appearances against Winnipeg.
• Linus Ullmark stopped 42 of 44 shots (.955) to earn the win in his only previous meeting with the Jets on Jan. 10, 2016.
• Jason Pominville has seven points (3+4) in his last four games against Winnipeg.
• Kyle Okposo has 15 points (5+10) in his last 15 games against the Jets. In 27 career games against Winnipeg/Atlanta, Okposo has posted nine multi-point outings, including four in his seven matchups with the Jets since the beginning of the 2015-16 season.
• Jack Eichel has totaled six points (3+3) in six career games against Winnipeg.
• Marco Scandella has five points (2+3) in his last six games against the Jets.
• Jeff Skinner has recorded five points (3+2) in five games against Winnipeg since the beginning of the 2016-17 season.
• Evan Rodrigues has recorded two assists in two career games against the Jets.

BACK-TO-BACK
Today’s game wraps up Buffalo’s 11th of 16 sets of back-to-back games this season, which began yesterday with a 3-1 win vs. Detroit. The Sabres are 6-4-1 in the first game of back-to-back sets and 5-3-2 in the second game so far this season. Buffalo’s point breakdown in their previous back-to-back sets is: four points (3), three points (1), two points (3), one point (2) and zero points (1).

HOME COOKING

• Buffalo enters today’s game with a 16-7-4 (.667) record at home. The team’s .667 points percentage at home tied for eighth in the NHL after yesterday’s game.
• Carter Hutton is 10-5-2 at home this season with a .922 save percentage and a 2.50 goals-against average.
• Jeff Skinner (17+11) and Sam Reinhart (7+21) tie to lead all Sabres with 28 points in 27 home games this season. Reinhart has yet to play two consecutive home games without recording a point in 2018-19.
• Jack Eichel is also playing above a point-per-game pace at KeyBank Center this season, totaling 26 points (10+16) in 25 home games.
• Conor Sheary has recorded a point in six of his last seven home games (1+5).

AT THE 50-GAME ULLMARK
After making 28 saves on 29 shots in Saturday’s win vs. Detroit, Linus Ullmark is 21-18-6 with a .914 save percentage through 50 career appearances. Ullmark’s .914 mark through 50 games is the best by any goaltender who played his first 50 games with the Sabres.

JACK ATTACK

• Jack Eichel recorded his 40th assist of the season on Thursday vs. Carolina, setting a new career high and becoming the first Sabres player to record 40 assists in a season since Jason Pominville tallied 43 in the 2011-12 season.
• After yesterday’s game, Eichel’s 41 assists tied for 13th-most in the league and his 29 even-strength assists tied for ninth.
• Eichel is currently on pace for 45 even-strength assists this season. Only five different players have recorded at least 45 even-strength assists since the 2005-06 season: Henrik Sedin (3x), Joe Thornton (3x), Connor McDavid (2x), Evgeni Malkin and Michael Nylander.

RISING IN THE RECORD BOOKS

• With his goal on Thursday vs. Carolina, Jason Pominville moved past Mike Foligno into eighth place in franchise history with 512 points (213+299) as a member of the Sabres. He now trails Don Luce by 14 points for seventh-most.
• Pominville is also just three goals from tying Luce for 10th-most goals in Sabres history, 11 assists behind Luce for seventh-most in franchise history and four games played from tying Alexei Zhitnik for eighth-most regular-season games played by a Sabre.

DAH-LEAN ON ME

• After yesterday’s game, Rasmus Dahlin led rookie defensemen and ranked second among all NHL rookies with 30 points this season. His 24 assists led all rookies.
• With 30 points (6+24) through 54 games, Dahlin is scoring at a higher rate than he did in the Swedish Hockey League last season, when he totaled 20 points (7+13) in 41 games for Frölunda.
• Dahlin’s current point total puts him on pace for 46 points this season. It would trail only Phil Housley (57 points in 1982-83) for the most ever recorded by a defenseman before his 19th birthday.
• With six multi-point games so far this season, Dahlin has recorded more multi-point games as an 18-year-old than all but two defensemen in NHL history: Phil Housley (13) and Bobby Orr (8).

SCORING WHEN IT COUNTS

• Jeff Skinner’s seven game-winning goals tied for second-most in the NHL this season after yesterday’s game. He is the first Sabres player with at least seven game-winners in a season since Derek Roy (9) in 2008-09 and is four shy of matching the single-season franchise record of 11 shared by Danny Gare (1979-80) and Alexander Mogilny (1992-93).
• Skinner was also tied for third in the league with three overtime goals this season. Skinner’s total matches the Sabres’ single-season record shared by Daniel Briere (2006-07) and Derek Roy (2009-10) and ties him for 10th-most career overtime goals in franchise history.

SAM I AM

• Sam Reinhart has been playing above a point-per-game pace since the beginning of November, having totaled 43 points (12+31) in 42 games during that span.
• Reinhart has already set career-high totals in assists (36) and multi-point games (15) this season. His 49 points leave him just one shy of his career high 50 from the 2017-18 season.
• The Sabres are 20-8-5 this season when Reinhart records at least one point and 29-4-7 (.813) in his career when he records at least two.

LEADING THE WAY

• All three of the Sabres’ top three scorers are currently on pace to shatter their personal bests in points on the strength of career-best production at even strength:

Player/Season	GP	G	A	PTS	ES G	ES A	ES P
Eichel Career High (2017-18)	67	25	39	64	22	20	42
Eichel 2018-19	51	17	41	58	13	29	42
Eichel 2018-19 (Pace)	79	26	64	90	20	45	65
Skinner Career High (2016-17)	79	37	26	63	30	18	48
Skinner 2018-19	54	33	16	49	26	12	38
Skinner 2018-19 (Pace)	82	50	24	74	39	18	58
Reinhart Career High (2017-18)	82	25	25	50	13	16	29
Reinhart 2018-19	54	13	36	49	12	26	38
Reinhart 2018-19 (Pace)	82	20	55	74	18	39	58

MAKING HISTORY

• At his current pace, Jack Eichel would finish the season with the fifth-most even-strength points ever recorded by a Sabre, trailing only Pat LaFontaine (83) and Alexander Mogilny (78) in 1992-93, and Gilbert Perreault in 1975-76 (70) and 1979-80 (68).
• Eichel is on pace to become the first Sabres player to record at least 90 points since Daniel Briere (95) in 2006-07 and would also trail only LaFontaine’s franchise-record 52 even-strength assists in 1992-93.
• Jeff Skinner is on pace to become the seventh 50-goal scorer in Sabres history and the first since 1992-93 (Mogilny and LaFontaine). His 39 even-strength goals would finish behind only Mogilny’s even-strength total from 1992-93 (49), Rick Martin’s 44 in 1973-74 and Danny Gare’s 41 in 1975-76 to tie for fourth-most in team history.

SABRES AMONG LEAGUE-LEADERS (Sabres’ league rankings after yesterday’s game)

• Buffalo Sabres: 82.0% PK% (9th)
• Eichel: 2 OTG (T-6th), 29 EVA (T-9th), 203 S (10th)
• Ristolainen: 25:11 TOI/GP (7th)
• Skinner: 33 G (2nd), 7 GWG (T-2nd), 26 EVG (T-2nd), 3 OTG (T-3rd)

BUF-WPG CONNECTIONS
Former Sabres:

• Jets goaltending coach Wade Flaherty was selected by the Sabres in the ninth round (181st overall) in the 1988 NHL Draft.
• Jets assistant coach Charlie Huddy spent parts of two seasons with the Sabres (1994-1996), playing in 84 games and recording 16 points (7+9).
• Jets D Dmitry Kulikov spent one season with the Sabres (2016-17), skating in 47 games and recording five points (2+3).
• Jets D Tyler Myers spent six seasons (2009-2015) with the Sabres after being selected by the team in the first round (12th overall) of the 2008 NHL Draft, recording 151 points (45+106) in 485 games played. He won the Calder Trophy as the league’s top rookie and earned All-Rookie Team honors at the conclusion of the 2009-10 season.
• Jets F Brendan Lemieux was selected by the Sabres in the second round (31st overall) in the 2014 NHL Draft.

Former Jets:

• Sabres D Zach Bogosian spent parts of seven seasons (2008-2015) with the Jets organization after being selected by the Thrashers in the first round (third overall) of the 2008 NHL Draft. He skated in 393 games and recorded 127 points (40+87), and currently ranks in the top five among franchise defensemen in goals (3rd), assists (5th), points (4th) and games played (3rd).
• Sabres General Manager Jason Botterill grew up in Winnipeg and spent part of one season with the Jets franchise when they were located in Atlanta. In 25 games with the Thrashers, Botterill scored one goal and had five assists.

Nathan Beaulieu:

• Won a bronze medal with Jets F Mark Scheifele while representing Canada at the 2012 IIHF World Junior Championship.

Jack Eichel:

• Played for Team USA with Jets F Andrew Copp at the 2014 IIHF World Junior Championship.
• Played for Team North America with Jets G Connor Hellebuyck, F Mark Scheifele and D Jacob Trouba at the 2016 World Cup of Hockey.

Phil Housley:

• Coached Jets D Jacob Trouba at the 2013 IIHF World Junior Championship. The duo won a gold medal together for the United States.

Matt Hunwick:

• Played with Jets F Blake Wheeler in Boston.

Jake McCabe:

• Won a gold medal with Jets D Jacob Trouba for the United States at the 2013 IIHF World Junior Championship. Both McCabe and Trouba were named to the tournament’s All-Star Team.
• Represented the United States with Jets F Blake Wheeler at the 2014 IIHF World Championship.
• Played for Team USA with Jets F Kyle Connor at the 2016 IIHF World Championship.

Davis Payne:

• Was an assistant coach in Los Angeles when Jets assistant coach Todd Woodcroft was a scout for the Kings.

Sam Reinhart:

• Played for Team Canada with Jets D Josh Morrissey at the IIHF World Junior Championships in 2014 and 2015. The duo won a gold medal together in 2015 and both were named to the tournament’s All-Star Team.
• Won a gold medal with Jets F Mark Scheifele while representing Canada at the 2016 IIHF World Championship.

Rasmus Ristolainen:

• Represented Finland with Jets F Patrik Laine at the 2016 World Cup of Hockey.

Jeff Skinner:

• Played for the Hurricanes when Jets Head Coach Paul Maurice held the same role in Carolina.
• Won a silver medal with Jets F Mark Scheifele for Team Canada at the 2017 IIHF World Championship.

Steve Smith:

• Was a scout for the Blackhawks when Jets General Manager Kevin Cheveldayoff was the assistant general manager in Chicago.
• Played with Jets assistant coach Charlie Huddy in Edmonton.

Vladimir Sobotka:

• Played with Jets F Blake Wheeler in Boston.

Tage Thompson:

• Won a gold medal with Jets F Jack Roslovic while representing the United States at the 2017 IIHF World Junior Championship.

SABRES REAL-TIME STATS LEADERS
Hits: Ristolainen (159), Girgensons (87), McCabe (72)
Blocked Shots: Bogosian (85), Ristolainen (84), McCabe (77)
Shots: Eichel (203), Skinner (179), Ristolainen (132)

SABRES’ RECORD IN 10 GAME SEGMENTS [W-L-OTL (PTS), GF/GA, PP, PK]
1-10: 6-4-0 (12), 26/28, 8/38, 22/30
11-20: 6-2-2 (14), 35/27, 4/28, 26/29
21-30: 5-3-2 (12), 31/32, 5/28, 23/29
31-40: 4-4-2 (10), 24/27, 7/31, 27/29
41-50: 4-6-0 (8), 30/34, 1/25, 14/20
51-60: 2-1-1 (5), 16/18, 5/10, 10/12

OVERTIME RESULTS (6-6; 119-127 all-time)
Oct. 27 at CBJ: L, 5-4 (GWG-Panarin, 0:31)
Oct. 30 vs. CGY: L, 2-1 (GWG-Gaudreau, 2:40)
Nov. 8 at MTL: W, 6-5 (GWG-Ristolainen, 1:38)
Nov. 19 at PIT: W, 5-4 (GWG-Eichel, 0:45)
Nov. 23 vs. MTL: W, 3-2 (GWG-Skinner, 3:06)
Nov. 27 vs. SJS: W, 3-2 (GWG-Skinner, 1:41)
Nov. 30 at FLA: L, 3-2 (GWG-Barkov, 2:26)
Dec. 4 vs. TOR: L, 4-3 (GWG-Matthews, 4:57)
Dec. 11 vs. LAK: W, 4-3 (GWG-Skinner, 1:49)
Dec. 29 vs. BOS: L, 3-2 (GWG-Kuraly, 3:44)
Jan. 16 at CGY: W, 4-3 (GWG-Eichel, 1:10)
Feb. 8 vs. CAR: L, 6-5 (GWG-Teravainen, 3:25)

SHOOTOUT RESULTS (4-1; 74-67 all-time)
Nov. 10 vs. VAN: W, 4-3 (GDG-Mittelstadt)
Nov. 16 at WPG: W, 2-1 (GDG-Sheary)
Nov. 24 at DET: W, 3-2 (GDG-Reinhart)
Dec. 15 at WSH: L, 4-3 (GDG-Ovechkin)
Feb. 5 vs. MIN: W, 5-4 (GDG-Reinhart)

MILESTONES APPROACHING (Player … Needs … Milestone)
Games Played
Jason Pominville … 4 games … 712 games with Sabres (T-8th in franchise history)
Zemgus Girgensons … 5 games … 400 career games played
Goals
Jason Pominville … 3 goals … 213 goals with Sabres (T-10th in franchise history)
Jack Eichel … 10 goals … 100 career goals
Assists
Kyle Okposo … 4 assists … 300 career assists
Matt Hunwick … 8 assists … 100 career assists
Jeff Skinner … 9 assists … 200 career assists

RECENT MILESTONES
Jason Pominville … 512 points with Sabres (8th in franchise history) … Feb. 7 vs. CAR
Zach Bogosian … 600th NHL game … Feb. 7 vs. CAR
Rasmus Ristolainen … 400th NHL game … Feb. 9 vs. DET
Marco Scandella … 500th NHL game … Feb. 9 vs. DET

GAME-DAY RESOURCES

Game Notes

NHL Stats

Press Clips

LAST GAME
Tuesday, November 13
Tampa Bay 1 at Buffalo 2
Goals: Skinner, Okposo
Goalie: Hutton (29 saves/30 shots)
PP: 0/1; PK: 1/1; Shots: Tampa Bay 30 – Buffalo 19

CURRENT INJURIES – (Man Games Lost: 65)
Player (injury, first game missed) – total games missed
Matt Hunwick (neck, Oct. 4; injured reserve) – 18 games
Scott Wilson (ankle, Oct. 4; injured reserve) – 18 games

TRANSACTIONS IN PAST 7 DAYS
11/10: Acquired a conditional seventh-round pick in the 2020 NHL Draft from Dallas in exchange for D Taylor Fedun

UPCOMING GAMES
Saturday, Nov. 17: Buffalo at Minnesota, 6 p.m.
Monday, Nov. 19: Buffalo at Pittsburgh, 7 p.m.
Wednesday, Nov. 21: Philadelphia at Buffalo, 7:30 p.m.
Friday, Nov. 23: Montreal at Buffalo, 4 p.m.
Saturday, Nov. 24: Buffalo at Detroit, 7 p.m.

TONIGHT’S GAME
SABRES at JETS

• This is the first of two meetings between the Sabres and Jets this season.
• Last meeting: Winnipeg defeated Buffalo 7-4 in Buffalo on Jan. 9
• Next meeting: Sunday, Feb. 10 in Buffalo
• The Sabres are 5-5-0 in their last 10 games vs. the Jets; 3-6-1 on the road
• This is the 62nd game all-time between Buffalo and Winnipeg/Atlanta; Buffalo has a 26-24-11 series record.
• The Sabres are 9-14-7 on the road against the Jets/Thrashers all-time.

THIS DAY IN SABRES HISTORY

• The Sabres are 8-9-1 all-time on November 16.
• November 16, 1974: Rick Martin scores the 1,000th goal in franchise history in a 7-5 loss at Boston.
• November 16, 1983: Phil Housley and Sean McKenna lead the way with a goal and two assists each as the Sabres rally back from a 3-0 deficit to beat the Jets 6-5 in overtime in Winnipeg.

THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW

• The Sabres enter tonight’s game on a three-game winning streak. A win today would give the team its first four-game winning streak since Dec. 9 to 15, 2014.
• Jack Eichel entered play Thursday tied for sixth in the league with seven multi-point games this season, 11 shy of his career-high 18 in a season. Jeff Skinner tied for 14th with six, 10 shy of his career-high 16.
• Jeff Skinner’s nine goals in nine road games this season tied for the league lead entering play Thursday.

HOT AGAINST WINNIPEG

• Carter Hutton made 48 saves to shut out the Jets in his only meeting with them last season. He has a 4-4-1 record and a .933 save percentage in 10 career appearances against Winnipeg. Linus Ullmark stopped 42 of 44 shots (.955) to earn the win in his only previous meeting with the Jets on Jan. 10, 2016.
• Jason Pominville has 17 points (5+12) in his last 17 games against Winnipeg, including seven points (3+4) in his last three.
• Kyle Okposo has 15 points (5+10) in his last 14 games against the Jets. In 26 career games against Winnipeg/Atlanta, Okposo has posted nine multi-point outings, including four in his six matchups with the Jets since the beginning of the 2015-16 season.
• Sam Reinhart has recorded six points (4+2) in six career games against the Jets, including his first career hat trick on Jan. 10 in Winnipeg.
• Jack Eichel has totaled five points (3+2) in five career games against Winnipeg.
• Marco Scandella has five points (2+3) in his last five games against the Jets.
• Jeff Skinner has recorded four points (2+2) in four games against Winnipeg since the beginning of the 2016-17 season.
• Conor Sheary has three points (1+2) in his last three games against the Jets.
• Evan Rodrigues and Rasmus Ristolainen each recorded two assists in two games against Winnipeg last season.

WHAT’S THE SKINNY?

• With 13 goals through Buffalo’s first 18 games, Jeff Skinner entered play Thursday trailing only David Pastrnak (17 goals) for most in the NHL this season.
• With his 10th goal in the team’s 16th game of the season on Thursday at Montreal, Skinner reached the 10-goal mark quicker than any Sabres player since Thomas Vanek (10 games) in 2012-13.
• Only three players in franchise history have scored more goals through 18 team games than Skinner’s current total: Dave Andreychuk (17 in 1992-93), Thomas Vanek (15 in 2008-09) and Rick Martin (14 in 1972-73 and 1973-74).

WINNING WAYS
Sam Reinhart has recorded seven points (1+6) in his last five games, including three two-point games during that stretch. The Sabres are 9-0-0 this season when Reinhart records at least one point and 24-2-3 (.879) in his career when he records at least two.

BACK-TO-BACK
Tonight’s game opens Buffalo’s third of 16 sets of back-to-back games this season, which continues tomorrow night at Minnesota. The Sabres are 2-0-0 in the first game of back-to-back sets and 1-1-0 in the second game so far this season. Buffalo’s point breakdown in their previous back-to-back sets is: four points (1), three points (0), two points (1), one point (0) and zero points (0).

SABRES AMONG LEAGUE-LEADERS (Sabres’ league rankings before 11/15 games)

• Eichel: 15 EVP (T-9th), 69 S (T-9th), 15 A (T-10th)
• Ristolainen: 1 OTG (T-5th), 57 hits (T-5th), 25:24 TOI/GP (7th)
• Skinner: 10 EVG (T-1st), 13 G (2nd), plus-12 (T-2nd), 15 EVP (T-9th)
• Ullmark: 1 SO (T-6th)

BUF-WPG CONNECTIONS
Former Sabres:

• Jets goaltending coach Wade Flaherty was selected by the Sabres in the ninth round (181st overall) of the 1988 NHL Draft.
• Jets assistant coach Charlie Huddy spent parts of two seasons with the Sabres (1994-1996), playing in 84 games and recording 16 points (7+9).
• Jets D Tyler Myers spent six seasons (2009-2015) with the Sabres after being selected by the team in the first round (12th overall) of the 2008 NHL Draft, recording 151 points (45+106) in 485 games played. He won the Calder Trophy as the league’s top rookie and earned All-Rookie Team honors at the conclusion of the 2009-10 season.
• Jets F Brendan Lemieux was selected by the Sabres in the second round (31st overall) of the 2014 NHL Draft.

Former Jets:

• Sabres D Zach Bogosian spent parts of seven seasons (2008-2015) with the Jets organization after being selected by the Thrashers in the first round (3rd overall) in the 2008 NHL Draft. He skated in 393 games and recorded 127 points (40+87), and currently ranks in the top five among franchise defenseman in goals (3rd), assists (5th), points (4th) and games played (3rd).
• Sabres General Manager Jason Botterill grew up in Winnipeg and spent part of one season with the Jets’ franchise when they were located in Atlanta. In 25 games with the Thrashers, Botterill scored one goal and had five assists.

Nathan Beaulieu:

• Won a bronze medal with Jets F Mark Scheifele while representing Canada at the 2012 IIHF World Junior Championship.

Jack Eichel:

• Played for Team USA with Jets F Andrew Copp at the 2014 IIHF World Junior Championship.
• Played for Team North America with Jets G Connor Hellebuyck, F Mark Scheifele and D Jacob Trouba at the 2016 World Cup of Hockey.

Phil Housley:

• Coached Jets D Jacob Trouba at the 2013 IIHF World Junior Championship. The duo won a gold medal together for the United States and Trouba was named to the tournament’s All-Star Team and earned Best Defenseman honors.

Jake McCabe:

• Won a gold medal with Jets D Jacob Trouba for the United States at the 2013 IIHF World Junior Championship. Both McCabe and Trouba were named to the tournament’s All-Star Team.
• Represented the United States with Jets F Blake Wheeler at the 2014 IIHF World Championship.
• Played for Team USA with Jets F Kyle Connor at the 2016 IIHF World Championship.

Davis Payne:

• Was an assistant coach in Los Angeles when Jets assistant coach Todd Woodcroft was a scout for the Kings.

Sam Reinhart:

• Played for Team Canada with Jets D Josh Morrissey at the IIHF World Junior Championships in 2014 and 2015. The duo won a gold medal together in 2015 and both were named to the tournament’s All-Star Team.
• Won a gold medal with Jets F Mark Scheifele while representing Canada at the 2016 IIHF World Championship.

Rasmus Ristolainen:

• Represented Finland with Jets F Patrik Laine at the 2016 World Cup of Hockey.

Jeff Skinner:

• Played for the Hurricanes when Jets Head Coach Paul Maurice held the same role in Carolina.
• Won a silver medal with Jets F Mark Scheifele for Team Canada at the 2017 IIHF World Championship.

Steve Smith:

• Was a scout for the Blackhawks when Jets General Manager Kevin Cheveldayoff was the assistant general manager in Chicago.
• Played with Jets assistant coach Charlie Huddy in Edmonton.

Vladimir Sobotka:

• Played with Jets F Blake Wheeler in Boston.

Tage Thompson:

• Won a gold medal with Jets F Jack Roslovic while representing the United States at the 2017 IIHF World Junior Championship.

SABRES REAL-TIME STATS LEADERS
Hits: Ristolainen (57), McCabe (27), Girgensons (26)
Blocked Shots: McCabe (31), Ristolainen (31), Bogosian (27)
Shots: Eichel (69), Skinner (60), Ristolainen (46)

SABRES’ RECORD IN 10 GAME SEGMENTS [W-L-OTL (PTS), GF/GA,
PP, PK]
1-10: 6-4-0 (12), 26/28, 8/38, 22/30
11-20: 4-2-2 (10), 30/24, 3/24, 23/25

OVERTIME RESULTS (1-2; 114-123 all-time)
Oct. 27 at CBJ: L, 5-4 (GWG-Panarin, 0:31)
Oct. 30 vs. CGY: L, 2-1 (GWG-Gaudreau, 2:40)
Nov. 8 at MTL: W, 6-5 (GWG-Ristolainen, 1:38)

SHOOTOUT RESULTS (1-0; 71-66 all-time)
Nov. 10 vs. VAN: W, 4-3 (GDG-Mittelstadt)

MILESTONES APPROACHING (Player … Needs … Milestone)
Games Played
Jeff Skinner … 3 games … 600 career games played
Nathan Beaulieu … 5 games … 300 career games played
Evan Rodrigues … 5 games … 100 career games played
Remi Elie … 6 games … 100 career games played
Goals
Jason Pominville … 2 goals … 211 goals with Sabres (T-11th in franchise history)
Assists
Kyle Okposo … 10 assists … 300 career assists
Points
Jeff Skinner … 1 point … 400 career points
Jack Eichel … 4 points … 200 career points

RECENT MILESTONES
N/A