Pittsburgh, Pa. (WGR Sports Radio 550) - The Buffalo Sabres are riding a four-game winning streak into Pittsburgh on Thursday, where they will face the Penguins, who have also been one of the hottest teams in the league.
Buffalo now sits in second place in the Atlantic Division with a points percentage of .639. The Tampa Bay Lightning are first in the division, and second in the Eastern Conference with a points percentage of .678.
If we're talking points, the Sabres are only two points back of Tampa Bay.
The Penguins have come out of the Olympic break without their injured captain Sidney Crosby. The Pens have gone 2-1-1 in their four games since the return, and are in second place in the Metropolitan Division with a points percentage of .625.
Overall, Pittsburgh is 9-2-2 in their last 13 games.
Sabres head coach Lindy Ruff credits the Penguins' special teams for why they're winning without their superstar. Pittsburgh has the third-best power play in the NHL at 26.1%, and are second in penalty killing at 84.6%.
Tage Thompson has 33 goals this season, which is seventh in the NHL.
It will be Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen's turn in goal for the Sabres on Thursday. He's 13-7-2 this season with a 2.62 goals-against average and a .908 save percentage.
Since Stuart Skinner arrived to Pittsburgh in a trade from the Edmonton Oilers, he's gone 8-5-2 with a 2.62 goals-against average and an .893 save percentage.
The Penguins are 16-6-1 in their last 23 games against Buffalo.
This season, they've already beaten the Sabres twice with a 4-2 win in Pittsburgh, and then a 5-2 win in Buffalo just before the break.
With Crosby out, their next leading scorer is Evgeni Malkin with 47 points in 45 games.
Join Mike Schopp for pregame coverage on WGR starting at 6 p.m. when you'll hear from Ruff, Bo Byram and Ryan McLeod.
Related
