There will be no changes to the lineup other than in goal, Granato said.
Find the full projected lineup below:
| April 3 vs. Florida |
| --- |
| | C | RW |
| 53 Jeff Skinner | 72 Tage Thompson | 89 Alex Tuch |
| 74 Rasmus Asplund | 37 Casey Mittelstadt | 71 Victor Olofsson |
| 19 Peyton Krebs | 24 Dylan Cozens | 29 Vinnie Hinostroza |
| 28 Zemgus Girgensons | 20 Cody Eakin | 21 Kyle Okposo |
| | | |
| LD | RD | G |
| 26 Rasmus Dahlin | 10 Henri Jokiharju | 41 Craig Anderson |
| 23 Mattias Samuelsson | 45 Casey Fitzgerald | 31 Dustin Tokarski |
| 78 Jacob Bryson | 13 Mark Pysyk | |
| | | |
The contest opens a stretch of six games in 10 days against four of the Eastern Conference's best teams.
The Sabres host the Hurricanes on Tuesday, then leave for a four-game road trip that includes stops in Carolina, Florida, Tampa, and Toronto.
Victor Olofsson enters the contest with five points (3+2) in his last three games, including the winning goal against the Predators on Friday. He and Tage Thompson lead the Sabres with eight goals each since March 1.
Granato said the Sabres need to be hyper-focused on their details against a Panthers team that leads the NHL in goals per game (4.10) and is a constant threat in transition.
"This team takes advantage of sloppy play as good as anybody," Granato said. "So even when you put a puck to the net, it's not good enough to put a puck to the net. That's a transition opportunity to them. … Good teams hold you more accountable for better detail, is the essence of it. This is one of them."
Florida erased a 6-2 deficit in the third period on its way to a 7-6 overtime victory in New Jersey on Saturday. Jonathan Huberdeau tallied a pair of assists, extending his NHL-leading total to 73.
"They don't need a lot to convert, so they're dangerous," Granato said. "Yesterday's game is evident. … There's not many teams that can just turn it up in the middle of the game and come back."
The game will mark Robert Hagg's first return to Buffalo since the Sabres acquired a sixth-round draft pick from Panthers in exchange for the defenseman last month. Hagg has one assist and is averaging 11:51 in six contests with the Panthers.
Spencer Knight will start in goal for Florida.
