Sabres expecting key pair of reinforcements for clash with Predators

Although the Buffalo Sabres have played well without the services of Tage Thompson and Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, the two are expected to return to the lineup against the Nashville Predators on the road on Saturday night, head coach Lindy Ruff confirmed.

“As long as no ramifications from today, they should all be good to go,” Ruff told NHL.com’s Heather Engel on Friday.

Thompson was on the receiving end of a high hit from New Jersey Devils forward Stefan Noesen last Sunday; he hasn’t played since the 4-3 victory. The former first-round pick leads the Sabres with 26 goals and 48 points in 47 games in 2024-25.

“Good day on the ice,” Thompson said after practicing on Friday, per Engel. “Skated by myself the last two days and felt good there too so it’s nice to be back on the ice with the team, full practice, little bit of contract. … Felt good, no issues. … I feel ready.”

Thompson is expected to return to the first line alongside Jiri Kulich and JJ Peterka, as well as the top powerplay group. Luukkonen missed his scheduled start against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Tuesday night — a 3-2 victory — due to a lower-body injury sustained at the morning skate.

“He had a workout yesterday and another one today, so we’ll make that decision probably before we get on the plane,” Ruff said regarding whether Luukkonen will start on Saturday. The 25-year-old Finn will represent his country at the 4 Nations Face-Off, which kicks off in Montreal on Wednesday night.

Dylan Cozens is also a full go after missing practice on Wednesday due to “lower-body aggravation,” per Engel. The trade candidate has chipped in 10 goals and 26 points over 53 games in 2024-25.

It’ll be beneficial for the Sabres to get Thompson back up front and Luukkonen between the pipes, and they have a great opportunity to win five games in a row for the first time this season.

Sabres surging even without top players

The Buffalo Sabres celebrate a win over the Columbus Blue Jackets at KeyBank Center. Timothy T. Ludwig-Imagn Images

Buffalo probably couldn’t have asked for a better matchup on Saturday night, facing a lowly Predators team that has lost six in a row — including an abysmal 6-2 defeat at the hands of the Chicago Blackhawks on Friday.

And the Sabres have been surging as of late. After losing four of five between January 17-25, Ruff’s group has rebounded with back-to-back-to-back-to-back victories.

After convincingly beating the Boston Bruins 7-2 on January 28, the Sabres squeaked out a pair of 4-3 victories — over the Predators and Devils, respectively — before downing the Blue Jackets 3-2 to make it four straight.

Now 22-26-5 but still in the basement of the East, the Sabres remain 11 points back of the final wildcard berth in the conference. The 4 Nations Face-Off break didn’t come at an ideal time for this squad, which looks to be slowly building positive momentum game by game.

It’ll be interesting to see how Buffalo fares after the 13-day break. But first, they’ll look to get the pause started on the right foot when puck drops between the Sabres and Predators just past 8:00 p.m. ET from Bridgestone Arena.