MAPLE LEAFS (41-22-7) at SABRES (22-35-12) 7 p.m. ET; MSG-B, TSN4, NHL.TV
McElhinney replaced Frederik Andersen, who left the game with an upper-body injury during the Maple Leafs 6-5 shootout win against the Dallas Stars on Wednesday. Goalie Garrett Sparks was recalled from the American Hockey League on an emergency basis Thursday and will back up McElhinney. The Maple Leafs are in third place in the Atlantic Division, seven points behind the Boston Bruins who have two games in hand. Forward Evan Rodrigues will return to the Sabres lineup after he missed the past five games with an upper-body injury. Robin Lehner will make his third straight start. The Sabres are 23 points behind the Columbus Blue Jackets for the second wild card into the Stanley Cup Playoffs from the Eastern Conference.
Players to watch
Maple Leafs forward Mitchell Marner has 21 points (nine goals, 12 assists) in the past 14 games and has a two-game goal streak. Sabres right wing Sam Reinhart has five points (three goals, two assists) in the past five games and 17 points (seven goals, 10 assists) the past 17 games.
They said it
"He's been pretty consistent; he's been outstanding for us all year. The games that he's started and the games he's had to come in, he's been great and I think that's a testament to his character and the type of pro that he is. The guys can always rely on him. We have a lot of confidence in the way that he's played so we feel comfortable with him." -- Maple Leafs defenseman Morgan Rielly on Curtis McElhinney "This League, the goalies are so good. We have to shoot pucks in from everywhere and sometimes you get a bounce and I think that's what happened last time and we want to play like that again. We want to get to the net and get bodies, get pucks to bodies. That's how you create some goals in this League." -- Sabres center Ryan O'Reilly
