Main storyline: With eight games left in the 2014-15 season, the Buffalo Sabres (20-46-8) are on its final trip out west of the year. On Saturday, the Sabres are in Denver to play the Colorado Avalanche (34-28-12) who are fighting for one last push to make the playoffs.
Season series: Saturday’s matchup is the second and final meeting between the Sabres and Avalanche. The only other meeting this year came back on December 20 in Buffalo when Colorado walked out of the First Niagara Center with a 5-1 win. The Avalanche got two goals from Alex Tanguay, and 29 saves from Calvin Pickard help shut down the Sabres. Buffalo has lost the past eight meetings against Colorado, with its last win coming back on December 4, 2005 in a 6-4 win at the Pepsi Center.
Where they stand: The Sabres continue to occupy the 30th spot in the NHL standings, and lead the race for last place heading into the final weeks of the regular season. The Arizona Coyotes sit in 29th place with a six point lead on the Sabres with six games left in their season. They fell to the Pittsburgh Penguins Saturday afternoon 3-2, and will host the Sabres on Monday in Glendale. For Colorado, the team currently last in the Central Division, and 10 points out of the final wild card spot in the Western Conference with eight games left.
Recent performance: The Sabres and Coyotes did battle in a battle for the basement on Thursday night at the First Niagara Center, with Arizona coming away victorious. Sabres captain Brian Gionta tied the hockey game 3-3 with less than four minutes left in the third period, but in overtime Arizona’s Sam Gagner scored on the powerplay to get the win. Matt Hackett stopped 38 of 42 shots that came his way, but could not help support the team in the loss. The Avalanche got a 4-1 win on Thursday night over the Vancouver Canucks, which helps them continue to climb that standings. Colorado got two point nights from captain Gabriel Landeskog, Ryan O’Reilly, and Alex Tanguay, while Reto Berra made 33 saves to give the Avalanche two points.
Buffalo notes: The Sabres had a two game western road trip before coming home on Thursday night for its meeting with the Coyotes. Buffalo went 0-2 on the road trip, and looked to bounce back on home-ice. At least, it was home-ice to the players, but the fans were on the “tank wagon” on Thursday as they cheered on the Coyotes throughout the night to beat the Sabres. Now the Sabres head back out west for another two-game road trip that will feature Colorado Saturday and the Coyotes again on Monday. The Sabres are going to be without Tyler Ennis on Saturday night, and possibly Monday as well with an upper-body injury. With Ennis out, the Sabres were forced to call up Tim Schaller from the Rochester Americans on an emergency recall. Anders Lindback is expected to return to the lineup for the Sabres following getting a night off against the Coyotes on Thursday.
Colorado notes: The Avalanche may be fighting a little too late for a playoff spot with eight games remaining in the 2014-15 season. After winning the Central Division last season in head coach Patrick Roy’s rookie year behind the bench, the team has come down from the clouds and have crashed hard this season. Guys like Semyon Varlamov, Nathan MacKinnon, and company have had off years, and have had injuries come up at the worst of times. MacKinnon is done for the season following a broken foot suffered earlier this month. Erik Johnson is also out with a knee injury, as well as Jamie McGinn, and Daniel Briere. After getting a night of rest in Vancouver, Varlamov is expected to return to the net for the Avalanche.
Conclusion: Colorado needs to start stringing more wins to continue its late playoff push. Can the Sabres spoil the party and try to climb out of the basement? Opening face-off is scheduled for 9pm, and the game can be seen on MSG Network.