Calgary Flames vs Buffalo Sabres, 7:30 PM MT, Scotiabank Saddledome, Calgary AB TV: ESPN+, SN360, SN1 Radio: Sportsnet 960 Calgary Flames 30-13-4 (64) - Buffalo Sabres 23-17-6 (52) NHL Standings A well rested Flames team will take the ice on Wednesday night to battle the Buffalo Sabres from the Scotiabank Saddledome. Calgary last played on Sunday night and destroyed the Arizona Coyotes by the score of 7-1. The win was the Flames 5th straight, tying their season high for consecutive wins. The Flames, despite having two days off are still on top of the Western Conference, just one point ahead of the surging San Jose Sharks. Calgary can win their 6th straight tonight if they can take advantage of a reeling Buffalo Sabres team. Buffalo sits in 9th place in the East and their recent play has landed them in that spot. The Sabres have lost 9 of their last 12, including a 3 game skid that was extended due to a 7-2 loss to the Edmonton Oilers. Buffalo has been outscored 16-8 during those three games and have scored under three goals in seven of those nine losses. Buffalo has been strong at home, but their Achilles heel has been the road. Away from the KeyBank Center the Sabres are 9-11-3 and their five road trip isn’t going to do them any favours. They’ve already lost to Edmonton and after Calgary Buffalo has to travel to Vancouver, Columbus and Dallas. These two last met on October 30th with the Flames getting a 2-1 OTW in Buffalo. Calgary is 4-1-0 in their last five games at the Dome against Buffalo and the Flames 15-4-4 home record won’t make this any easier on the Sabres. Starting Goalies (E=Expected, C=Confirmed) Flames: Rittich (E)- 17-4-3, 2.45 GAA, .920 Save% Sabres: Hutton (E)- 14-14-3, 2.75 GAA, .912 Save% Team Leaders Flames: Goals- Gaudreau (27), Points- Gaudreau (69), PIM- Bennett (70), Save%- Rittich (.920) Sabres: Goals- Skinner (30), Points- Eichel (49), PIM- Bogosian (42), Save%- Ullmark (.918) What’s Happening With The Opposition? Buffalo Sabres Coverage: Die By The Blade It’s the low point of Housley’s tenure with the #Sabres. @kerratriv discusses the idea of looking for a new coach now or at the end of the season. https://t.co/qDayzT09KW — University of Boston at Sweden (@diebytheblade) January 15, 2019 Last Time Out Calgary Flames 7 - Arizona Coyotes 1 Buffalo Sabres 2 - Edmonton Oilers 7 Players To Watch Calgary Flames Matthew Tkachuk (F): 23G - 31A, 7 points in last 5 games Buffalo Sabres Rasmus Dahlin (D): 4G - 21A, 5 assists in last 5 games<doc-sep>Game 47 Buffalo Sabres (23-17-6) vs Calgary Flames (30-13-4) Puck Drop: 9:30 PM EST | Scotiabank Saddledome | Calgary, AB TV: MSG-B Radio: WGR 550 SB Nation Flames Blog: Matchsticks and Gasoline Know Your Opponent Calgary Flames Record: (30-13-4) | 64 PTS Last 10: 8-1-1 Division Ranking: 1st in Pacific Division Conference Ranking: 1st in Western Conference PP: 10th (21.7%) PK: 24th (78.1%) What to Watch 1. Red Hot This game is why the Oiler game on Monday getting away from the Sabres turned this trip into a potential disaster. The Flames are one of the hottest team in the league winning eight of their last 10. They also showcase one of the best lines in the game with Johnny Gaudreau, Sean Monahan, and Elias Lindholm. It’s going to be a tough night. 2. The Pilut is back After sitting against the Oilers on Monday, Lawrence Pilut will return to the lineup tonight. He’ll go in for Nathan Beaulieu and will be paired with Rasmus Ristolainen. 3. Ullmark in goal Carter Hutton has struggled (with bad luck) in his last few starts and didn’t get through his last start on Monday. The Sabres will turn to Linus Ullmark tonight to try to get back on track. Buffalo Sabres Forwards Jeff Skinner - Jack Eichel - Sam Reinhart Conor Sheary - Casey Mittelstadt - Tage Thompson Vladimir Sobotka - Evan Rodrigues - Jason Pominville Zemgus Girgensons - Johan Larsson - Kyle Okposo Defense Lawrence Pilut - Rasmus Ristolainen Rasmus Dahlin - Zach Bogosian Marco Scandella - Jake McCabe Starting Goaltender: Linus Ullmark Calgary Flames Forwards Johnny Gaudreau - Sean Monahan - Elias Lindholm Matthew Tkachuk - Mikael Backlund - Michael Frolik Sam Bennett - Mark Jankowski - Austin Czarnik Andrew Mangiapane - Derek Ryan - Garnet Hathaway Defense Mark Giordano - T.J. Brodie Noah Hanifin - Rasmus Andersson Oliver Kylington - Dalton Prout Starting Goaltender: David Rittich<doc-sep>CALGARY — Jack Eichel battled through some misfortune to score the overtime winner for the Buffalo Sabres in a 4-3 road win over the Calgary Flames on Wednesday. Seconds after putting a backhand off the post, Buffalo’s captain rifled a low shot past Dave Rittich on the Calgary goaltender’s glove side 70 seconds into OT. Eichel also rang the puck off the iron in the first minute of the game. He was all alone in front of Rittich with five minutes remaining in the first period, but his shot was over the net. "Obviously you put a lot of pressure on yourself," Eichel said. "When things aren’t going well, you want to be one of the guys who makes a difference. "I think that’s when you start gripping your stick and start thinking about it a little too much. Hopefully that goal can get me going again. It’s just what I needed." Jake McCabe, Evan Rodrigues and Rasmus Dahlin also scored for Buffalo (24-17-6), which halted a four-game losing skid. Buffalo goaltender Linus Ullmark earned the start and the win with 30 saves after relieving Carter Hutton in Monday’s 7-2 loss to the Edmonton Oilers. The Sabres scored three goals on a total of three shots in the third and overtime periods. "When we needed goals we found ways to get them," Eichel said. "I think as a group, we probably weren’t the most confident after losing 7-2 in Edmonton. "This is a game we should use moving forward as kind of a building block of what we can do every night to try and give ourselves the best chance to win." Johnny Gaudreau had a goal and an assist for Calgary (30-13-5), which snapped a five-game win streak. Matthew Tkachuk and Noah Hanifin also scored for Calgary with Elias Lindholm contributing a pair of assists. After winning four straight starts, Rittich had 19 saves in the loss. "I liked our game. We only gave up two shots in the third," Flames head coach Bill Peters said. "Special teams were good, two-for-three on the power play and three-for-three on the penalty kill. "I think we held onto the puck a little too much tonight and tried to force some plays where we had other options available and could have taken what was given. "We didn’t capitalize on the three-on-one in overtime and they came back the other way and ended it." The Flames took their point and continue to tussle with the San Jose Sharks for first in the Pacific Division. Hanifin’s wrist shot from the top of the face-off circle beat Ullmark stick-side at 11:34 of the third period to make it 3-3. The Sabres led for the first time in the game at 10:56 when McCabe beat Rittich with a low wrist shot. Tkachuk’s power-play goal at 6:49 gave Calgary a brief 2-1 lead before Dahlin drew Buffalo even at 7:34. Dahlin’s shot from the boards deflected off Calgary’s Michael Frolik and weaved between Rittich’s helmet and his glove into the net. Dahlin, the first overall pick in the 2018 draft, extended his point streak to five straight games with a goal and five assists in that span. Gaudreau dealt the puck cross-ice to Lindholm, who dished it to Tkachuk in the slot for a re-direct. Rodrigues pulled the visitors level at 9:45 of the second period. He corralled a stretch pass from Casey Mittelstadt and beat Rittich between the pads on a breakaway. With just half a second remaining in the opening period, Gaudreau spotted Calgary a 1-0 lead. While Buffalo’s Jason Pominville served a tripping penalty, a Lindholm slapshot from the boards rebounded to Gaudreau to score the power-play buzzer-beater. Notes: Gaudreau became the third-fastest player in Flames history to reach the 70-point mark in his 48th game of the season. Kent Nilsson (46 games, 1981) and Bob MacMillan (47, 1979) are the only others to reach that mark as quickly … Calgary defenceman Travis Hamonic (family illness) and forward James Neal (illness) were scratches Wednesday.<doc-sep>James Neal will be unavailable for the Calgary Flames when they take on the Buffalo Sabres Wednesday while he battles an illness. Additionally, defenceman Travis Hamonic will miss his second straight game while dealing with a personal matter. Neal has four goals and 10 points in 46 games this season, his first with the Flames. Hamonic has three goals and 12 points in 39 games. Austin Czarnik will take Neal’s place on the third line. Defenceman Dalton Prout will remain in the lineup in place of Hamonic.<doc-sep>
There might not be anyone hotter in the NHL right now than Johnny Gaudreau. The 25-year-old has put up points in each of his last eight games on the ice, accumulating 18 points in that stretch. It’s what the Flames and their fans have come to expect from Gaudreau, but that doesn’t’ make it any less impressive. The man tasked with carrying the Sabres’ offensive load, meanwhile, has gone cold recently. Jack Eichel hasn’t scored since he potted one against the St. Louis Blues on Dec. 27 and is on a five-game streak with no points at all. He missed a week and a half in there due to an upper-body injury, but Eichel needs to get going. The good news for the Sabres is that Eichel’s scored in each of his last three games against the Calgary crew. Article content FIVE STORYLINES FOR THE GAME ONE UP, ONE DOWN The Flames are setting the pace in the Pacific Division, while the Sabres are losing ground in the Atlantic. These two teams are going in opposite directions right now, with the Flames riding a five-game winning streak and the visitors from Buffalo dropping three in a row heading into Wednesday’s tilt at the Saddledome. The Sabres have allowed 16 goals while only scoring eight in that stretch, and put up a stinker on Monday night in Edmonton, losing 7-2. FIRST LOOK Wednesday marks the first chance for Calgary fans to get an up-close look at Sabres rookie defenceman Rasmus Dahlin. The No. 1-overall selection in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft, Dahlin has largely lived up to the hype in his first season in the league The Swede has four goals and 21 assists through 46 games, and if he keeps up that pace for the rest of the season would finish the season with 45 points, the second most ever recorded by an NHL defenceman before his 19th birthday – the only blueliner to record more by that age happens to be Dahlin’s coach, Phil Housley. LAST TIME OUT When these two teams met on Oct. 30, the Flames managed a little magic to take the two points. Down a goal with the clock winding down, Matthew Tkachuk went to the front of the net and deflected an Elias Lindholm shot into the back of the Buffalo net with 56 seconds left on the clock. In overtime, Gaudreau finished the job on a two-on-one to end October off on a winning note.