Game Preview | 5 things to know ahead of Sabres vs. Blue Jackets

Don Granato spent part of his Tuesday morning watching clips of Riley Stillman, the defenseman whom the Sabres acquired Monday night in a trade with the Vancouver Canucks
He saw a player who he believes fits the Sabres' mold - still young at 24 years old with a potential and willingness for growth.
"When I watch him, I see that he wants to play more aggressive," Granato said.
Stillman will not join the Sabres until Wednesday at the earliest and thus will not be in the lineup when they host the Columbus Blue Jackets tonight at KeyBank Center. The Sabres will be also without Rasmus Dahlin, who remains day to day, for the second straight game.
The game can be streamed exclusively on ESPN+ and Hulu beginning at 7:30 p.m. Dan Dunleavy and Rob Ray will have the radio call on WGR 550.
Here are five things to know.

1. Granato on Stillman
The Sabres added to their defense depth with the acquisition of Stillman, a left shot with a tendency for physical, aggressive play. Stillman had five assists in 32 games this season with Vancouver.
Including Stillman and Dahlin (who is considered day to day), the Sabres will have eight defensemen on the NHL roster. They will only need to manage their roster numbers until the 3 p.m. trade deadline on Friday, after which teams are no longer subject to the 23-man limit.
"We can add a player now with rosters increasing that gives us something to add a little more grit," Granato said. "Somebody that has some experience, still has an appetite for more as a young guy."

Granato described Stillman similarly to how he described previous Sabres who have experienced growth in recent seasons. Stillman has jumped from Florida to Chicago to Vancouver already in his young career, providing a base of experience but forcing a need to adapt with each new environment.
Granato cautioned that there may be another transition period here in Buffalo - although Stillman played a similar system in Florida - but said the priority will be to focus on growth.
"When I look at him, I see opportunity there," Granato said. "That's intriguing for me because I think there's more within him that he can get to in a short time."
### 2. Tonight's lineup
Craig Anderson is expected to start in goal. He is coming off a 49-save victory in Florida on Friday.
Below is the full projected lineup:
| February 28 vs. Columbus | | --- | | LW | C | RW | | 53 Jeff Skinner | 72 Tage Thompson | 22 Jack Quinn | | 37 Casey Mittelstadt | 24 Dylan Cozens | 29 Vinnie Hinostroza | | 77 JJ Peterka | 19 Peyton Krebs | 71 Victor Olofsson | | 28 Zemgus Girgensons | 17 Tyson Jost | 21 Kyle Okposo | | | | | | LD | RD | G | | 25 Owen Power | 10 Henri Jokiharju | 41 Craig Anderson | | 23 Mattias Samuelsson | 46 Ilya Lyubushkin | | | 38 Kale Clague | 78 Jacob Bryson | | | | | |
UPDATE (5 p.m.) -Goaltender Michael Houser, whom the Sabres signed to an NHL contract and put on waivers yesterday, has cleared waivers and has been assigned to the Rochester Americans.
### 3. The Wild Card race
The Sabres enter tonight one point behind Pittsburgh for the second Wild Card spot with one game in hand. They have five games in hand on the New York Islanders, who sit three points ahead in the first Wild Card spot.
Here is the full Wild Card picture:
| Team | GP | Points | P% | Reg. W | ROW | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | WC1 - New York Islanders | 63 | 69 | .548 | 27 | 31 | | WC2 - Pittsburgh Penguins | 59 | 67 | .568 | 23 | 28 | | Buffalo Sabres | 58 | 66 | .569 | 23 | 30 | | Detroit Red Wings | 59 | 64 | .542 | 22 | 26 | | Florida Panthers | 61 | 64 | .525 | 25 | 27 | | Washington Capitals | 62 | 64 | .516 | 23 | 28 |
Other games of interest tonight include Detroit at Ottawa (7 p.m.), Florida at Tampa Bay (7 p.m.), Islanders at Minnesota (8 p.m.), and Pittsburgh at Nashville (8 p.m.).
### 4. Streaking!
Jeff Skinner and Tage Thompson enter tonight riding six-game point streaks. Thompson has five goals and five assists in that span; Skinner has five goals and four assists.
### 5. Scouting the Blue Jackets
You might remember the previous meeting between the Sabres and Blue Jackets. Thompson scored five goals and added an assist to lead the Sabres to a 9-4 victory in Columbus on December 7.
The Blue Jackets' struggles have continued - they rank last in the Eastern Conference with 44 points - but they have gone 4-3-2 in February with wins over Toronto, Dallas, Winnipeg, and Edmonton. Boone Jenner leads the team with eight points (4+4) in that span.
Elvis Merzlikins (6-15-2, .875 save percentage) is expected to start in goal.