Montreal Canadiens and Buffalo Sabres square off in tough divisional matchup
Both the Buffalo Sabres and Montreal Canadiens will be looking to take a stranglehold on second place in the Northeast division with a win, as they go head to head at the HSBC Arena in Buffalo, New York
on Friday night.
Recent meetings
The Buffalo Sabres won four games out of six in last year's season series against the Canadiens. In the one game they played in the pre-season, the Sabres also won by a score of 5-3 back on 30 September.
But the Sabres have not won a game since their season opener against the Ottawa Senators, and have since lost three straight including a heartbreaking 1-0 overtime loss on Wednesday night to the New Jersey Devils.
The Montreal Canadiens are also coming off a loss in their most recent game when they fell 4-3 to the Tampa Bay Lightning in their home opener. Despite two losses in his three starts, Carey Price has begun
to answer his critics by being solid in net in all three games. Price was even voted by the fans as the game's second star by saving 44 shots against Tampa on Wednesday.
How they matchup
Buffalo have far and away the edge when it comes to goaltending. Ryan Miller is the reigning Vezina trophy winner and put in an amazing performance against New Jersey, keeping his team in the game while
they were outshot 15-1 in the first period.
Despite failing to get any points on Wednesday night, Derek Roy was impressive for Buffalo in his first three games collecting four goals, and five points, along the way.
After missing the season opener due to suspension, Mike Cammalleri has been a bright spot for the Canadiens offence, collecting points in back to back games.
Tomas Plekanec had a good game for the Canadiens on Wednesday and created numerous 2-on-1 opportunities including setting up Andrei Kostitsyn for the Canadiens third goal.
Despite being on the ice and wearing the "A" on his uniform for the pre-game ceremony, Canadiens defenceman Andrei Markov did not play and continues to be out with a knee injury which he sustained during
last season's play-offs.
What to expect
The winner of this matchup will entrench themselves, for the time being, in the number two spot in the Northeast Division behind the Toronto Maple Leafs who remain undefeated, so both teams will have the
motivation.
Buffalo will be looking to put an end to their three-game losing streak and have the benefit of home ice advantage as well. Still, the Canadiens looked sharp in coming from behind against the Penguins
to get a victory, and often looked like they could get the two points against a fired up Tampa Bay team. It suggests that the Canadiens may be a little better than their current record might indicate.
If the Canadiens defence can limit Buffalo's shots they should be able to muster enough to get past Miller as Montreal's big players, aside from captain Brian Gionta who has failed to get a goal in three
games thus far, appear to be gaining momentum.
Prediction:
Montreal will earn what will feel like an upset by winning 3-1.
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