NOTES
Vegas and Buffalo will close out their season series Thursday night. The Golden Knights are 1-0-0 against the Sabres this year with a 5-2 win on Feb. 1.
Thursday's game is the second of a five-game road trip for the Golden Knights that features stops in Philadelphia, Buffalo, Pittsburgh, Columbus, and Winnipeg. Vegas is 0-1-0 on the trip so far.
Jack Eichel will return to Buffalo for the first time since being traded from the Sabres to the Golden Knights on Nov. 4. Eichel was the captain of the Sabres for three seasons and spent six years with the organization after being drafted second overall in the 2015 NHL draft.
BROADCAST INFORMATION
TV: ESPN+
Radio: FOX Sports 98.9/1340
LAST TIME OUT
The Golden Knights fell in their first game of the road trip, 2-1, to the Philadelphia Flyers on Tuesday night at Wells Fargo Center. Evgenii Dadonov potted a power-play goal for Vegas, but it was the only marker for Vegas despite a 48-21 advantage in shots on goal.
OPPOSITION UPDATE
Buffalo sits in seventh place in the Atlantic Division heading into Thursday's game. With 44 points and an overall mark of 18-32-8. The Sabres are on a two-game losing streak and have lost eight of their last 10 games.
Tage Thompson's 42 points (23G, 19A) are the most on the team through 54 games. Jeff Skinner is tied with Thompson for the team lead in goals with 23 while Rasmus Dahlin's 29 assists are the most in Buffalo this year. Goalie Craig Anderson is on the verge of a milestone as he enters Thursday's contest with 299 NHL wins.
SEASON SERIES
Vegas earned a 5-2 win against the Sabres in their first meeting of the season on Feb. 1 at T-Mobile Arena. Four players had multi-point nights for the Golden Knights as Brett Howden (1G, 1A), Mark Stone (1G, 1A), Max Pacioretty (2A) and William Karlsson (2A) each chipped in a pair of points. Reilly Smith, Jonathan Marchessault and Keegan Kolesar also scored in the victory. Buffalo received goals from John Hayden and Alex Tuch.
VGK SCORING LEADERS
Jonathan Marchessault - 43 points (24G, 19A)
Chandler Stephenson - 42 points (14G, 28A)
Reilly Smith - 38 points (16G, 22A)
Shea Theodore - 36 points (8G, 28A)
Alex Pietrangelo - 30 points (7G, 23A)
Mark Stone - 28 points (8G, 20A)
Max Pacioretty - 28 points (15G, 13A)
Nicolas Roy - 25 points (10G, 15A)
PACIFIC DIVISION PICTURE
Calgary Flames - 34-15-7, 75 points
Los Angeles Kings - 32-19-7, 71 points
Vegas Golden Knights - 32-22-4, 68 points
Edmonton Oilers - 31-23-4, 66 points
Vancouver Canucks - 29-23-6, 64 points
Anaheim Ducks - 27-23-9, 63 points
San Jose Sharks - 24-25-7, 55 points
Seattle Kraken - 17-37-5, 39 points
A VEGAS VICTORY WOULD…
- Mark the 205th win in franchise history
- Give the Golden Knights a season sweep against the Sabres
KEYS TO THE GAME
The Return: All eyes will be on KeyBank Center for Eichel's return to Buffalo. Eichel loves big stages, but the Sabres know everything they need to about the star center's game.
Even Keel:After a tough loss to Philadelphia on Tuesday, the Golden Knights will want to gain some momentum in the right direction for the second of five games on the road trip.
