Nashville, Tenn. (WGR 550) – Sabres head coach Don Granato said Saturday forward Zemgus Girgensons is back in Buffalo, but is feeling better, as he deals with a non-COVID-related illness.
With Girgensons not playing on Saturday in Nashville against the Predators, that will allow Rasmus Asplund to play, what was, his natural position of center. Granato isn’t worried about Asplund jumping back at center after some time away.
“'Aspy’s' played a bit of center, and five guys should be interchangeable," said Granato after the morning skate. "I think faceoffs would be the big thing.”
The Sabres were stoned by Winnipeg Jets goalie Connor Hellebuyck on Thursday night back in Buffalo.
The Predators will have Juuse Saros in goal on Saturday, who is 15-11-5 this season with a 2.65 goals-against average and a .922 save percentage. That puts the Sabres against two of the best goaltenders in the National Hockey League in back-to-back games.
“You just have to play, and play hard," Granato said of his team's situation. "I think there’s enough reason to feel good about your game, and these guys believe in their abilities. So as long as we have that, I’m confident that things will be positive for us. I don’t worry too much about it, because you’re in the NHL and everybody’s good, and you accept that.”
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen gets his seventh start in nine games for the Sabres on Saturday. He’s 9-4-1 this season with a 3.46 goals-against average and an .893 save percentage.
After sitting out two games, Jack Quinn and JJ Peterka will return to the lineup.
Despite scoring only five goals in three games, with Tage Thompson not getting any, the Sabres still lead the league in scoring.
Nashville is 27th in goal scoring, averaging 2.76 goals per-game. They’ll try to clog the neutral zone and slow you down all night.
Filip Forsberg leads Nashville in scoring with 18 goals and 20 assists for 38 points in 41 games.
Roman Josi is one of the elite defensemen in the NHL, but he’s 14 points behind Rasmus Dahlin, and has played two more games. Dahlin has nine points in his last five games.
After winning four-straight games, the Preds have lost to the Toronto Maple Leafs and Montreal Canadiens. That leaves them just barely ahead of Buffalo in 20th place with a points percentage of .537.
Join Brian Koziol and myself at 7 p.m. EST for pregame coverage on WGR when you’ll hear from Granato, Thompson and Quinn.
