"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times..."
Tonight's game between the Boston Bruins and Buffalo Sabres will showcase two teams seemingly going in opposite directions. The Bruins are currently riding a 10 game points streak (9-0-1) and have not suffered a regulation loss in the month of November. The Sabres meanwhile have lost 10 of their last 13 contests, including their last five. The Sabres started the year 6-0-1 and looked primed to be a contender in the competitive Northeast Division.
Just who are these Sabres you speak of?
You should probably know by now. The Bruins have only played them 4 times in 5 weeks.
Buffalo Sabres 9-8-3; 21 pts (3rd in Northeast, 9th in East)
Leading Goal Scorer
Thomas Vanek 15 Goals (15-4-19)
Goaltending
Ryan Miller 16 GP 8-5-2; 2.57 GAA .909 Sv% 2 SO
Patrick Lalime 6 GP 1-3-1; 3.31 GAA .879 Sv%
Guys Who Like to Drop the Gloves
Andrew Peters: 7 Fighting Majors
Peter Kaleta: 2 Fighting Majors
Adam Mair, Craig Rivet, & Mike Weber: 1 Fighting Major
In 3 games between Boston and Buffalo this season, there has not been a single fight.
'08-'09 Season Series
Bruins Record vs. Buffalo: 2-0-1
10/21 @ BUF 3-2 SO L
11/8 vs. BUF 3-1 W
11/19 vs. BUF 7-4 W
Injury Report
Boston
Marco Sturm: Questionable (Upper Body Injury)
Andrew Ference: Out (Broken Tibia)
Buffalo
Tim Connolly: Out (Bruised Chest)
Ales Kotalik: Out (Hamstring)
Things to Look for Tonight
- Tim Thomas will get the start in goal for the B's.
- I'm expecting this to be a better game than the 7-4 slopfest last week.
- The Sabres own the 6th best penalty kill in the league (84.7%)
- The Sabres are ranked #29 in the league in the face off circle (46.5%)
- Last week, the Sabres called up RW Mark Mancari from the Portland Pirates. Mancari is skating on the third line and scored a goal against the Islanders on Saturday night.
- The Bruins have been a resilient team this year. They are 4-0-2 when they give up the first goal.
Today's Obligatory Embarrassing YouTube Fan Video