The Buffalo Sabres head to the Verizon Center tonight to face off against the Capitals in another critical Eastern Conference matchup.
Coming off a disappointing loss to the Ottawa Senators by squandering a two goal lead and losing in overtime 4-3, the Sabres will try to put that game behind them and focus on the struggling Capitals.
Just before the halfway point of the season it looked as though the Capitals were beginning to turn their season around for first year coach Adam Oates, when they went through a stretch of five victories in six games, but this past week the teams’ troubles remerged with four losses in their last five games.
It doesn’t appear to get any easier for Washington any time soon. After tonight’s contest the Capitals will play seven out of their next eight games on the road, where they have only won four times this season.
While the Sabres are coming off another difficult loss, there were a number of bright spots in the game. Drew Stafford had by far his best outing of the season, picking up his third and fourth goals of the year, while Ville Leino in his first game of the year, looked like he didn’t miss a beat. Defenseman Mike Weber also had an all around solid game picking up his first goal in his last 51 games.
With the Sabres picking up one point against the Senators they are now eight points out of a playoff spot. In order for Buffalo to keep climbing the ladder in the Eastern Conference and pick up two points against Washington, they must keep the Caps top three offensive threats in check.
Not only are Alex Ovechkin and Nicklas Backstrom the main attractions with their combined 13 goals and 44 points, but center Mike Ribeiro is having a solid season with 10 goals and 29 points of his own.
Tonight’s meeting between the two clubs is the second of three this year with the Capitals winning the first one 3-2 early in the season.
The puck drops at 7:05 p.m. tonight and can be seen on NBCSN.