Carolina Hurricanes (50-19-9, first in the Metropolitan Division) vs. Buffalo Sabres (38-32-7, fifth in the Atlantic Division)
Buffalo, New York; Saturday, 12:30 p.m. EDT
BOTTOM LINE: The Buffalo Sabres host the Carolina Hurricanes after Dylan Cozens scored two goals in the Sabres' 7-6 shootout win against the Detroit Red Wings.
Buffalo has a 15-20-4 record in home games and a 38-32-7 record overall. The Sabres have scored 276 total goals (3.6 per game) to rank fifth in NHL play.
Carolina has a 50-19-9 record overall and a 23-9-6 record on the road. The Hurricanes are 21-4-6 in one-goal games.
The matchup Saturday is the third time these teams play this season. The Hurricanes won 5-3 in the previous meeting.
TOP PERFORMERS: Tage Thompson has 45 goals and 47 assists for the Sabres. Casey Mittelstadt has 11 assists over the past 10 games.
Sebastian Aho has 34 goals and 31 assists for the Hurricanes. Stefan Noesen has two goals and four assists over the past 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Sabres: 5-4-1, averaging 3.1 goals, 5.7 assists, 3.2 penalties and 7.8 penalty minutes while giving up 3.8 goals per game.
Hurricanes: 5-4-1, averaging 2.2 goals, 4.1 assists, 2.6 penalties and 5.2 penalty minutes while giving up 2.1 goals per game.
INJURIES: Sabres: Vinnie Hinostroza: day to day (personal reasons).
Hurricanes: Ondrej Kase: out (concussion), Jake Gardiner: out (hip/back), Max Pacioretty: out (achilles), Andrei Svechnikov: out for season (knee).
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
