Caps (12-8-1, 25 points) at Sabres (12-9-1, 25 points)
What – Game #22
Where – First Niagra Center
When – 7 p.m.
TV – CSN HD
Radio – WFED-1500 AM
Neither team at First Niagra Center will be in a particularly charitable frame of mind when the Sabres and Caps meet for the first time this season. Both played on Friday. And both left smarting – Buffalo after a 5-1 loss at Columbus, which has the NHL’s second-worst record, and Washington after a 6-3 defeat to the New York Rangers at Verizon Center. With a pair of home wins earlier in the week, this one will determine if the Caps are treading water or if they made progress this week after an 0-3 road trip.
“Lose a game [Friday]…we’re 2-1 on the week. But we’re going into a tough building [Saturday] and playing a real tough team,” Washington forward Troy Brouwer said. “We have to take what we can out of [the Rangers] game, learn from our mistakes, take the good things and go into [Buffalo] excited to play hockey.”
This isn’t exactly the normal Sabres, however. According to Mike Harrington of the Buffalo News, the gruesome injury list includes: Ryan Miller (concussion), Tyler Ennis (ankle), Tyler Myers (wrist), Cody McCormick (upper body), Brad Boyes (lower body), Mike Weber (upper body), Patrick Kaleta (lower body), Robin Regehr (upper body). And one more undisclosed forward who Harrington thinks could be Tomas Vanek – a noted Caps killer over the years – or Jason Pominville.
That’s their starting goalie, three of their top six defensemen and almost two full lines’ worth of forwards if either Vanek or Pominville is really out. Of course, I’m the same guy who said the Caps would roll the Maple Leafs last week because Toronto had seven starters out. Didn’t count on them blitzing Washington 7-1. You still have to play the game and maybe with so many recalls from AHL Rochester, the Sabres will – perversely – have a little more chemistry than if just three or four starters were out. Doesn’t hurt that backup goalie Jhonas Enroth has a .922 save percentage and a 2.40 goals-against average in 13 games. He’s been good in Miller’s absence. So no guarantees. But it would still behoove Washington to get out of town with two points.
According to the Post’s Katie Carrera, on scene in Buffalo, Mathieu Perreault is expected back in the lineup while forward Cody Eakin and defenseman John Erskine took the scratches’ skate. Perreault has been a healthy scratch in seven of the last 11 games. Erskine is still battling that sore left shoulder after falling on it in practice last Sunday. He didn’t sound all that optimistic on Thursday that a return was imminent. But it’s also not a long-term issue, apparently. Tomas Vokoun starts in goal for the Caps.
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