After ending a 13-game winless drought, the Buffalo Sabres will look to start stringing some victories together when they host the Chicago Blackhawks on Friday night.
Buffalo’s nightmarish 0-10-3 streak was snapped in emphatic fashion in Monday’s 7-1 win over the New York Islanders. All of the Sabres’ frustration over the previous four weeks seemed to be channeled into Monday’s rout, sending the team into the Christmas break on a high note.
“Great morale in the room right now heading into … a much-needed break for us,” forward Tage Thompson said. “Mentally, physically (we will) just now regroup … and reset for the second half of the season with a win under our belt and some good mojo.”
The 13-game slide dropped the Sabres almost to the bottom of the league standings. With 28 points, they are ahead of only the 26-point Blackhawks in the overall NHL table.
Chicago is on a two-game losing streak, including a 4-3 setback to the Minnesota Wild on Monday. The Blackhawks gave up a lead in each of the first two periods, then fell behind in the third frame in another late breakdown.
The Blackhawks have been outscored 49-32 in third periods, and they share the NHL lead for most goals conceded in third periods this season.
“I thought it was (a) little bit the same story,” Chicago interim coach Anders Sorensen said. “The biggest thing I think is when the game is on the line. … (We’ve) got to be willing to go and play offensively at the same time. I thought we got sat back a little bit too much there.”
As much as the Blackhawks have struggled in most facets of the game, killing penalties is a clear strength. Chicago’s 85.3 penalty-kill percentage is the fourth-best in the NHL, and opponents are just 1-for-37 on power plays in the Blackhawks’ last 13 games.
By contrast, the Sabres have scored on just 14.7 percent of their power plays, the fourth-lowest clip in the league. The power-play unit has shown some signs of life, however, by going 1-for-3 in each of the Sabres’ last two games.
Thompson leads Buffalo with 26 points (17 goals, nine assists). Forward JJ Peterka has seven points (two goals, five assists) over a five-game points streak.
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen was 0-7-2 with an .864 save percentage in nine games before stopping 27 of 28 shots against New York. He probably will start again for Buffalo on Friday now that he seemingly has broken out of his slump.
Chicago’s Petr Mrazek missed two weeks with a groin injury before facing the Calgary Flames on Dec. 21. Arvid Soderblom started against the Wild on Monday because the team is easing Mrazek back into action, but Mrazek probably is the more likely candidate to start after the three-day Christmas break.
Connor Bedard leads the Blackhawks with 30 points (nine goals, 21 assists). After something of a slow start to his second NHL season, Bedard has started to heat up, tallying four goals and seven assists over his last nine games.
Buffalo is 6-0-1 against the Blackhawks since the start of the 2021-22 season. The seven-game points streak includes the Sabres’ 4-2 win in Chicago on Oct. 19 in the first meeting this season.
–Field Level Media
