The Chicago Blackhawks and the Buffalo Sabres meet in NHL action from the Keybank Center on Thursday night. Who comes out on top in this battle of the cellar dwellers? Let’s dive in and find out with our Blackhawks vs. Sabres Prediction.
Chicago Blackhawks Team Preview
The Chicago Blackhawks come into this one off of a 2-1 shootout win over San Jose last time out. Connor Bedard leads the Blackhawks with 33 points including a team-high 15 goals along with a team-high 18 assists while Philipp Kurashev has 23 points with 8 goals and 15 assists. Jason Dickinson has 21 points with 14 goals and 7 assists and Nick Foligno also has 17 points with 8 goals and 9 assists. Petr Mrazek has gone 11-16-1 with a 3.04 GAA and an .907 save percentage in goal for the Blackhawks while Arvid Soderblom is 2-13-1 with a 4.01 GAA and an .875 save percentage this season.
Chicago Blackhawks Team Facts
- The Blackhawks have lost 14 of their last 15 games following a win.
- The underdogs have covered the puck line in each of the Blackhawks’ last four games at KeyBank Center.
- The Blackhawks have lost the third period in each of their last seven night games against Atlantic Division opponents.
- The ‘Over 1.5 Goals Period 1′ market has hit in each of the Blackhawks’ last six games following an overtime win.
Buffalo Sabres Team Preview
The Buffalo Sabres come into this one looking to build on a 3-0 win over San Jose themselves last time out. Casey Mittelstadt leads the Sabres in scoring with 38 points including a team-high 26 assists while Rasmus Dahlin has 35 points with 12 goals and 23 assists. Jeff Skinner has 33 points with a team-high 17 goals while JJ Peterka has 27 points with 13 goals and 14 assists. Alex Tuch also has 30 points with 12 goals and 18 assists this season. Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen has a 10-9-2 record with a 2.77 GAA and a .906 save percentage while Devon Levi is 8-7-2 with a 3.32 GAA and an .889 save percentage and Eric Comrie is 1-5 with a 4.01 GAA and an .863 save percentage this season in goal for the Sabres.
Buffalo Sabres Team Facts
- The Sabres have lost each of their last 11 night games at KeyBank Center following a win.
- The Sabres have failed to cover the puck line in each of their last six games as home favorites following a win.
- The Sabres have lost the first period in each of their last five night games following a home win.
- The ‘Over 1.5 Goals Period 1′ market has hit in each of the Sabres’ last nine Wednesday games.
Blackhawks vs. Sabres Prediction
I’m backing the under here. It cashed with ease on Tuesday with Chicago and I think this is going to be more of the same. Buffalo just shut out an offensively inept Sharks team and let’s face it, the Blackhawks aren’t a whole lot better as they only scored 1 goal in open play in the win on Tuesday. I think this is another first to 3 wins kind of game. Give me the under here.