Buffalo Sabres (38-37-5, sixth in the Atlantic Division) vs. Florida Panthers (50-24-6, second in the Atlantic Division)
Sunrise, Florida; Saturday, 5 p.m. EDT
BOTTOM LINE: The Florida Panthers will try to keep a three-game home win streak going when they take on the Buffalo Sabres.
Florida is 50-24-6 overall and 15-5-4 against the Atlantic Division. The Panthers are 19-6-1 when they commit fewer penalties than their opponent.
Buffalo is 38-37-5 overall and 10-12-2 against the Atlantic Division. The Sabres have gone 9-11-4 in games decided by one goal.
Saturday's game is the third time these teams square off this season. The Panthers won 3-2 in the last meeting.
TOP PERFORMERS: Matthew Tkachuk has 26 goals and 59 assists for the Panthers. Sam Reinhart has six goals and five assists over the past 10 games.
Alex Tuch has 22 goals and 37 assists for the Sabres. Tage Thompson has eight goals and six assists over the last 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Panthers: 5-4-1, averaging 3.2 goals, 5.7 assists, 6.2 penalties and 15.1 penalty minutes while giving up 2.3 goals per game.
Sabres: 5-5-0, averaging 3.1 goals, 5.1 assists, four penalties and 14 penalty minutes while giving up 3.1 goals per game.
INJURIES: Panthers: Aaron Ekblad: out (undisclosed), Carter Verhaeghe: out (undisclosed).
Sabres: Bowen Byram: day to day (personal), Mattias Samuelsson: out for season (upper body).
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
