Game #37 Preview & Open Thread: Sabers vs. Blues

Afternoon affair at Buen

Buffalo Sabres (13-19-4) at St. Louis Blues (17-16-4)

Puck Drop: 3:00 PM EST | Enterprise Center | St. Louis, Mo

TV: MSG-B, ESPN+

Know your opponent

St. Louis Blues

Record: 17-16-4 | 38 PTS

Division Ranking: 6. in the central department

Last game: 7-4 win vs Nashville Predators

PP: 26th (15.7%) Sabers 29th (14.6%)

PK: 24th (75.8%) Sabers 23rd (77.2%)

What to see

Don’t forget Buffalo’s other sports teams

The redheaded stepchild Buffalo Sabers take on the St. Louis Blues today in an afternoon game starting at 3 p.m. In direct competition will be Western New York’s favorite son, the Buffalo Bills. That game should be well into the 3rd quarter at puck drop. Hopefully Josh Allen and company have the New York Jets down and out by then.

Meanwhile, the Sabers will be looking for their third straight win on the heels of the horrific losing streak. The competition hasn’t been great, but you have to win the games in front of you. Buffalo will need to do a lot of that in the coming months for any chance at the playoffs. (just play along) Good for them, the team is really on right now, playing pretty good D and scoring goals too. Rasmus Dahlin appears to be fully recovered from his back issues and has recorded 6 assists in his last 2 games. Alex Tuch is fresh off his hat trick against Chicago. Dylan Cozens has 6 points in his last 5 games. JJ Peterka has points in 6 games in a row. (2-6-8) And let’s not forget Jack Quinn, with 4 goals in his last 5 games and 6 points overall. His time in the press box seems to have served him well.

More Subpar Competition

The Blues just moved a game over .500 with a win over Nashville on Friday night. They are 6th in their division and are currently out of position for the postseason. Of course, the Sabers are still worse off than the St. Louis right now. But Buffalo should be happy with these last 3 games on the schedule. (Isles, Blackhawks, Blues) While no team should be taken lightly, today’s game offers another good chance for a much-needed win. After today, the Sabres’ next 4 contests are tough. They face Dallas, Colorado, Vegas and Washington. Fortunately, these games are all spread out, with rest time for the UPL in between. In fact, all games in the next 3 weeks are no back to backs at all. Reimer will probably still see a game or two in there if needed.

St Louis is led by Jordan Kyrou, who tops the team with 15 goals and 31 points. First-line center Robert Thomas, who has missed more than 10 games, is right behind him with 28 points. Also hot lately is forward Dylan Holloway, who has 3 goals and 5 points in his last 5 games. A surprise recent contributor is newly acquired Cam Fowler. After spending 14 seasons with the Ducks, the defenseman has 5 points in 7 games with the Blues. Much better scoring for him than his 4 points in 17 games for Anaheim earlier this season.

Learn these winning ways

The long season we always hear about is nearing the halfway point. The Sabers must continue to rack up as many wins as possible. The chances are bleak for the postseason, but the team must learn to win at a better rate. And get better after a loss even more. They need to establish a better focus and winning mindset in these final 45 games. Don’t be a pushover and don’t go quietly. Fight to the end in every game. And maybe, just maybe, the final stretch of the season could be a turning point for this franchise. The Buffalo breakthrough we’ve all been hoping for. Lord knows we’re coming. The rest of this season should be treated as a stepping stone to bigger and better things. Both for the core veterans and the young core players. Finish strong, add a few talented veterans over the summer, and come out guns blazing in the fall of 2025.

Now, if you’ve had enough hope and sunshine shoved up your butt, here’s today’s lineup.

Buffalo Sabres

Extenders

Jason Zucker – Tage Thompson – Alex Tuch
JJ Peterka – Dylan Cozens – Jack Quinn
Zach Benson – Jiri Kulich – Peyton Krebs
Beck Malenstyn – Ryan McLeod – Sam Lafferty

Defense

Rasmus Dahlin – Bowen Byram
Mattias Samuelsson – Owen Power
Jacob Bryson – Connor Clifton

Goalkeepers: Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, James Reimer

St. Louis Blues

Extenders

Jake Neighbors – Robert Thomas – Pavel Buchnevich

Dylan Holloway – Brayden Schenn – Jordan Kyrou

Brandon Saad – Oskar Sundqvist – Zack Bolduc

Alexey Toropchenko – Mattieu Joseph – Nathan Walker

Defense

Cam Fowler – Colton Parayko

Philip Broberg – Justin Faulk

Ryan Suter – Tyler Tucker

Goalkeepers: Jordan Binnington, Joel Hofer

* With an early start time today, lineups from yesterday are expected. Sabers head coach Lindy Ruff said Mattias Samuelsson had a maintenance day Saturday but is expected to play today.