The one-game hiatus from Jack Quinn in the lineup didn’t turn out well for the Buffalo Sabres, so he’ll return to his usual role Saturday night versus the Chicago Blackhawks. Quinn was a healthy scratch in Columbus on the second game of a back-to-back, as head coach Lindy Ruff didn’t like what he saw from the Sabres forward the night prior.
Jiri Kulich took full advantage of the opportunity in his spot, netting his first goal of his brief NHL career. The rookie is likely to remain in the lineup in Chicago, looking to build upon his strong performance.
The Chicago Blackhawks, led by young star Connor Bedard, have a .500 record to start the season, going 2-2-1. A flurry of new NHL veterans were acquired during the offseason, hoping to support Bedard and the organization’s rising young talent.
Where to Watch
Gametime: 8:00 p.m. ET
Location: United Center (Chicago, IL)
TV: MSG; Chicago Sports Network
Stream: MSG+; ESPN+ (Out of market)
Radio: WGR550
Sabres Gameday
After a suspect performance by Devon Levi in net on Thursday in Pittsburgh, it’s no surprise that the Sabres are turning back to Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen as their starting goalie versus the Blackhawks. Buffalo’s untimely defensive lapses have been one of the mitigating factors to the team’s poor start, so a big game from Luukkonen could help steer the team in the right direction.
With Quinn returning against the Blackhawks, Zach Benson could be the casualty from the Sabres lineup. Benson has been nursing a lingering lower-body injury and the rest could aid his recovery process. Interestingly, according to Lance Lysowski of The Buffalo News, Benson did work with the Sabres second powerplay unit during morning skate, so it’s possible someone else, such as Sam Lafferty, comes out of Buffalo’s lineup versus the Blackhawks.
That would reunite Quinn, Kulich, and Dylan Cozens on Buffalo’s second line. The trio was strong in the Sabres’ only victory over the Florida Panthers last week before being split up.
Chicago Blackhawks
The Blackhawks added familiar faces to their roster last season, Buffalo-born Nick Foligno and former Sabres winger Taylor Hall, to support their rookie talent. This offseason, Teuvo Teravainen, Tyler Bertuzzi, TJ Brodie, Craig Smith, and Ilya Mikheyev joined the fold and Chicago has seen instant improvement.
They’ll roll with backup goaltender Arvid Soderblom in net, giving incumbent starter Petr Mrazek a rest. Soderblom won his only start of the season to date, stopping 33 of 35 shots in a victory over the Winnipeg Jets.
He’ll be put to the test, as the Blackhawks are giving up the sixth-most shot attempts per game in the league while the Sabres have the 5th-most shot attempts per game.
Injury Report
Buffalo Sabres
- Nicolas Aube-Kubel (Lower Body) 3-6 weeks [IR]
More Injuries: Key Injuries to Three Players Make Sabres Start Even Worse
Chicago Blackhawks
- Joey Anderson (Illness) Out
- Pat Maroon (Undisclosed) Out
- Alec Martinez (Groin) Out [IR]
- Laurent Brossoit (Knee) Out [IR]
- Artyom Levshunov (Foot) Out [IR]
Projected Lineups
Buffalo Sabres
Forwards (Projected)
JJ Peterka – Tage Thompson – Alex Tuch
Jiri Kulich – Dylan Cozens – Jack Quinn
Jason Zucker – Ryan McLeod – Jordan Greenway
Beck Malenstyn – Peyton Krebs – Zach Benson
Defense (Projected)
Rasmus Dahlin – Henri Jokiharju
Owen Power – Bowen Byram
Mattias Samuelsson – Connor Clifton
Goalies (Confirmed)
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen
Source: Lance Lysowski, The Buffalo News
Chicago Blackhawks
Forwards (Confirmed)
Nick Foligno – Connor Bedard – Teuvo Teravainen
Taylor Hall – Philipp Kurashev – Tyler Bertuzzi
Ilya Mikheyev – Jason Dickinson – Ryan Donato
Lukas Reichel – Andreas Athanasiou – Craig Smith
Defense (Confirmed)
Alex Vlasic – Seth Jones
Wyatt Kaiser – TJ Brodie
Nolan Allan – Connor Murphy
Goalies (Confirmed)
Arvid Soderblom
Source: Ben Pope, Chicago Sun-Times
Betting Breakdown
The Sabres and Blackhawks face off with the sportsbooks leaning into Buffalo as the somewhat heavy favorites on the road. The PuckLuck win probability supports the Sabres as a favorite, but gives slightly more credit to the Blackhawks than the sportsbooks.
The consensus odds list Buffalo at about -150, implying about a 60% chance of winning. The PuckLuck model has Buffalo at 59%. On the flipside, Chicago is listed at -125, implying about a 44% chance of winning. PuckLuck lists the Blackhawks at 41%, meaning there is no edge on betting on either side as things currently stand.
The one interesting wager is on the over, set at 6.5 goals. PuckLuck projects 6.59 goals, and the Blackhawks are playing their backup goalie against the Sabres. Buffalo’s scoring has picked up over the last three games, averaging 4.67 goals per game. Chicago is about middle-of-the-pack in scoring so far this season with 2.6 goals per game.
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For more betting analysis across the NHL, head over to PuckLuck.com.
*PuckLuck.com provides data related to gambling and cannot guarantee the success of any suggested or related wagers. Please gamble responsibly.*
