Buffalo Sabres (27-28-4, sixth in the Atlantic Division) vs. Tampa Bay Lightning (32-24-5, fifth in the Atlantic Division)
Tampa, Florida; Thursday, 7 p.m. EST
BOTTOM LINE: The Tampa Bay Lightning look to stop their three-game home slide with a win over the Buffalo Sabres.
Tampa Bay is 32-24-5 overall and 6-7-3 against the Atlantic Division. The Lightning have scored 206 total goals (3.4 per game) to rank sixth in the league.
Buffalo has an 8-8-1 record in Atlantic Division play and a 27-28-4 record overall. The Sabres have conceded 177 goals while scoring 170 for a -7 scoring differential.
Thursday's game is the third time these teams square off this season. The Lightning won the previous matchup 3-1.
TOP PERFORMERS: Brayden Point has 30 goals and 33 assists for the Lightning. Nikita Kucherov has six goals and 11 assists over the past 10 games.
Casey Mittelstadt has 13 goals and 32 assists for the Sabres. Jordan Greenway has three goals and three assists over the past 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Lightning: 5-5-0, averaging 3.1 goals, 4.9 assists, 5.2 penalties and 17.2 penalty minutes while giving up 3.7 goals per game.
Sabres: 5-5-0, averaging 2.4 goals, 3.8 assists, 3.6 penalties and 7.4 penalty minutes while giving up 2.2 goals per game.
INJURIES: Lightning: Tanner Jeannot: out (lower body), Haydn Fleury: day to day (upper body), Mikhail Sergachev: out (lower body).
Sabres: Mattias Samuelsson: out for season (upper body), Victor Olofsson: day to day (illness), Jack Quinn: out (lower body).
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
