Storylines
1. Depth support
The Sabres saw several players step up with Thompson out of the lineup in their win over the Blues on Thursday.
Ryan McLeod filled in for Thompson at center on a line with Alex Tuch and had a goal and an assist. Zach Benson logged his third-highest ice time of the season at 17:01 and also had a goal.
“It’s an opportunity for [players] to step up in the lineup and play more key minutes, and a lot of times those players take advantage,” Ruff said. “And I thought [Thursday], again, we got contributions from a lot of different players, and it was important in that game to help us win.”
2. The power play
The Sabres have scored at least one power-play goal in eight of the last nine games following Rasmus Dahlin’s 4-on-3 overtime winner on Thursday.
The power play is 9-for-30 (30 percent) in that span, which dates back to Oct. 26.
Their next test is a Flyers penalty kill that has been among the league’s best this season, currently ranked third at 87.9 percent. The Flyers went 4-for-6 on the kill in their most recent game, an overtime victory in Ottawa, but had not allowed a power-play goal in the previous seven games.
3. Scouting the Flyers
Philadelphia will also be without its starting goaltender in Samuel Ersson, who is out with a lower-body injury. Sean Couturier is also questionable with an injury.
The Flyers have won their last two games to improve to 7-8-2 on the season, one point behind the Sabres in the Atlantic Division standings. Forward Travis Konecny leads the team in goals (nine), assists (10), and points (19) and enters Saturday on a five-game point streak.
Forward Matvei Michkov, the seventh-overall pick in the 2023 NHL Draft, has burst onto the scene in his first North American season. The 19-year-old leads NHL rookies in goals (six) and ranks second in points (13).
