The Buffalo Sabres are looking to continue the momentum of two shutout wins against the Edmonton Oilers and Vancouver Canucks before the All Star Break.
They will take on the New Jersey Devils tonight at home. On Thursday night, the Florida Panthers come to town, and then they end the week by facing the St. Louis Blues.
Buffalo needs to get off to a fast start in this game, and set the pace early. The Sabres need to win the special teams battle since they haven't exactly been the strongest team on the power play and penalty kill this season. Buffalo should try to force some turnovers to spend some time in the offensive zone, and get some shots on goal to test the goalie out early in the game. The Sabres will have to figure out a way to stop Taylor Hall, who leads the Devils in goals, assists and points since he will be returning to the lineup after missing a few games due to injury. Buffalo will want to use its speed to create in the offensive zone and draw some penalties.
The Devils should test out the goaltending early and often since a both teams are coming off of the All Star Break. New Jersey will want to establish the forecheck and cycle game to spend some time in the offensive zone. The Devils need to take advantage of a weak Sabres' penalty kill. New Jersey will want to try to get off to a fast start and get the first goal of the game if they want to try to get on a roll to acquired some points. The Devils need to make sure that they don't play down to their opponent, and stay focused.
On Thursday night, the Sabres take on a fellow Atlantic Division team in the Florida Panthers, who have been struggling lately. Buffalo needs to get pucks on net with traffic especially if the veteran goalies James Reimer and Roberto Luongo aren't back from their injuries. They'll want to test the young starting goalie. The Sabres should come out with more energy to get better starts to games since they've been outscored 44-22 in first periods of games. Buffalo needs to play with discipline since they don't have the best penalty kill. The Sabres want to be the better team while playing at even strength since the Panthers have struggled in this area. Bufffalo will want to stop the balanced attack of the Panthers especially Jonathan Huberdeau and Vincent Trocheck.
The Panthers will want to have the lead entering the third period since they are only 5-17-3 when trailing after two periods. Florida needs to get the power play going against a weak penalty kill since they have the talent on the power play to score some goals. The Panthers will need to get off to a better start and set the tone early in the game. Florida will need to take care of the puck because the Sabres have a few guys that can take advantage of turnovers like Jack Eichel and Evander Kane. The Panthers need to break out of a slump and this would be the perfect game to do so.
Buffalo ends the week with a visit from the St. Louis Blues, who have been playing better hockey as of late. The Sabres will need a good defensive game from top to bottom since the Blues have the fire power to score a ton of goals. Buffalo needs the goaltending to come up big in this game since the Blues will have their chances. The Sabres will need to play a good game at even strength. Buffalo will need to stop the balanced attack of the Blues, and to be aware of the Blues defense corps since they can rack up some points.
The Blues need to make sure that they have the lead entering the final period. St. Louis needs to make sure that they get the first goal of the game and keep attacking. The Blues need to make sure that they play a good game and don't lose focus to the Sabres, who are looking to play spoiler for teams in the playoff race. St. Louis will need to stop Jack Eichel and get plenty of shots on goal with traffic in front. The Blues will need to make sure that they are good at even strength since they don't have the best special teams numbers in the League.
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