Preview: Blues vs. Sabres

BLUES VS. SABRES

TEAM SNAPSHOTS

BLUES David Perron, Tyler Bozak and Oskar Sundqvist scored for the Blues and Jake Allen did the rest with a stellar 28-save performance - especially under heavy pressure in the second period - as the Blues handed Calgary a 3-1 defeat at the Scotiabank Saddledome in their last game on Saturday afternoon.
The win capped off a 2-1-0 road trip for the Blues to Western Canada.
St. Louis now has collected points in six of the last nine games (5-3-1).
"It's a great feeling for us, especially with how the year has gone," Allen said after Saturday's game. "To be able to get two of three on this road trip, with three or four days off … if we would've lost this one, it would've been a tougher break thinking about that loss the whole time. It was a good way to finish."
The Blues had four full days off for the holiday break.

SABRES The Buffalo Sabres finished dead-last in the 2017-18 season, but it's certainly been a different story in 2018-19.
Through 37 games this season, the Sabres have a 21-11-5 record, good for third in the Atlantic Division. Only the Tampa Bay Lightning and Toronto Maple Leafs rank ahead of the Sabres in the Atlantic.
Jack Eichel is leading his club with 48 points this season (14 goals, 34 assists) - a full 10 points ahead of the next closest, Jeff Skinner, who was acquired in August in a trade with the Carolina Hurricanes.
The Sabres also have 20 points (four goals, 16 assists) from the top overall pick in the 2017 NHL draft, Rasmus Dahlin.
The Sabres also have three former Blues currently on the roster - Carter Hutton joined the Sabres as a free agent and is 13-10-2 with a 2.58 goals-against average and a .917 save-percentage this season. Vladimir Sobotka, who went to Buffalo in the deal that brought Ryan O'Reilly to St. Louis, has three goals and two assists in 34 games this season. Tage Thompson, who also was acquired by Buffalo in the O'Reilly deal, has four goals and three assists in 30 games.
HEAD-TO-HEAD Thursday's game marks the first of two matchups between the Blues and Sabres this season. The second game happens March 17 in Buffalo.
The Blues won both games against the Sabres last season. In fact, in their last 12 meetings with Buffalo, the Blues are 11-1-0.
The Blues have won six straight games against the Sabres at Enterprise Center.
The Sabres were 4-2-1 in their last seven games before the holiday break.

BLUE NOTES

O'Reilly spent the last three seasons with the Sabres, posting 176 goals (65 goals, 111 assists) in 224 games… In two seasons with the Blues, Hutton was 30-15-5 with a 2.23 goals-against average and a .923 save-percentage… Allen is 5-1-0 with a 1.47 goals-against average, a .943 save-percentage and one shutout in six career starts against the Sabres… Thursday's game begins a five-game homestand for the Blues. Seven of the Blues' next eight games will be played at home.