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

Owen Power skated with the Buffalo Sabres on Sunday morning wearing a regular, white practice jersey for the first time since appearing in a non-contact jersey during the team’s morning skates on Wednesday and Friday.

Power has missed the last six games with an upper-body injury he sustained during practice on Feb. 12, but has not been ruled out for Sunday’s game against the Carolina Hurricanes at KeyBank Center.

“Owen – he needs to be cleared, and we’ll find out right now. But he’s very, very close – if not tonight,” Sabres coach Don Granato said. “I wouldn’t rule him out yet, but we’ll see.”

Buffalo will look for its third win in a row against Carolina, following a two-game road trip that featured victories over Montreal and Columbus.

Pregame coverage on MSG/MSG+  begins at 5:30 p.m. with puck drop scheduled for 6. Radio coverage can be found on WGR 550.

Here are five things to know before the puck drops.

1. Lineup updates

Erik Johnson, who missed Friday's game in Columbus due to illness, will be back in the lineup against the Hurricanes. Granato said Johnson will enter in place of Kale Clague.

The Sabres’ forward lines are expected to remain the same as the win over Montreal on Wednesday and Columbus on Friday.

Here’s how they lined up:

53 Jeff Skinner – 72 Tage Thompson – 89 Alex Tuch

12 Jordan Greenway – 37 Casey Mittelstadt – 24 Dylan Cozens

9 Zach Benson – 19 Peyton Krebs – 77 JJ Peterka

50 Eric Robinson – 28 Zemgus Girgensons – 21 Kyle Okposo

2. Luuuukkk

Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen was the first goaltender off the ice and is expected to make his 31st start of the season after starting in 13 of Buffalo’s last 15 games.

Luukkonen has posted a 9-6-0 record dating back to Jan. 1, registering a .936 save percentage and a 1.75 goals-against average in that span. He ranks first in goals-against average and is tied for first in save percentage among all NHL goaltenders who have played in at least five games since Jan. 1.

His performance has helped Buffalo allow the fewest goals in the NHL in that span as the Sabres have allowed just 41 goals in 19 games, including 10 third-period goals since Jan. 1.

3. Choose Love Night

The Sabres will host Choose Love Night to celebrate Black History Month while honoring the Black community and local Black-owned businesses.

The night will put a spotlight on the artistry, entrepreneurship, and creativity within the Black community throughout Western New York.

Tickets are available here. 

For more information on the night, click here.

4. Dahlin's ice time

As Power has been out of the lineup, Rasmus Dahlin has picked up extra minutes for the Sabres, skating 29 or more minutes in each of Buffalo’s last five games.

Dahlin is the only Sabres skater to do so since the league began tracking time on ice in 1997-98, according to Sabres PR.

If he skates 29 or more minutes in tonight’s game, it will mark the longest streak by an NHL skater since Erik Karlsson did so in seven straight games from Feb. 25, 2016 to March 8, 2016.

5. Scouting the Hurricanes

The Hurricanes open a three-game road trip in Buffalo after losing 2-1 to the Dallas Stars at home on Saturday.

Sebastian Aho leads Carolina with 22 goals and 61 points in 54 games in the campaign. He is currently riding a three-game point streak, with a goal in each of his last three games and four points (3+1) in that span.

Spencer Martin is expected to get the start in goal after Pyotr Kochetkov played against Dallas in the first game of the back-to-back set.