The set-up
The Sens (17-25-4) were beaten 5-2 by the St. Louis Blues Tuesday night are 4-5-1 over their last 10 games.
Buffalo (16-24-8) have won two straight after victories over Montreal and the New York Islanders. Over those two games, the Sabres have scored 11 goals.
Ottawa scored its first power play goal in February against the Blues to break an 0-for-14 slide to start the month. They'll be hoping to add to that tonight against a Buffalo penalty kill that since Jan. 6, is the second worst in the league at just 69.4 per cent. However, they've killed off all five penalties over their mini two-game winning streak.
Over their last 23 games, Buffalo has allowed fewer than 30 shots just twice, and unsurprisingly, sit second in the NHL in shots allowed per game at 34.8.
The Senators penalty kill allowed a goal on the man advantage Tuesday but own the third best penalty kill in the NHL since Jan. 2 at 86.7 per cent. The Sabres power play converts 20 per cent of the time.
Ottawa is 4-2-1 over its last seven road games and over that stretch, they have averaged 3.29 goals per game. Of Ottawa's 17 wins, 13 have come when they score first. They are 4-7-0 against the Atlantic Division this season.
Roster notes
The Senators will get Austin Watson back tonight after he served his two-game suspension. He will replace Clark Bishop in the lineup.
"He plays with structure, plays with emotion," Sens head coach D.J. Smith said. "Whether it's 10 minutes, 12 minutes or 15 minutes, it's north-south [and] physical. He knows his role and knows how to play in the NHL."
Ottawa are still without Thomas Chabot so the team's defence remains the same as Tuesday. No word on whether Anton Forsberg or Filip Gustavsson will start in goal tonight.
Previous history
Tonight is the 148th all-time meeting between Ottawa and Buffalo and that now makes Buffalo the Sens' second most played opponent in franchise history behind only Montreal (156 games).
The Senators are 66-56-15 with 10 ties previously. The two teams have met twice this year at Canadian Tire Centre, with each team collecting a victory. The Sabres won 3-2 Jan. 18 while Ottawa won 5-0 Jan. 25.
With his hat-trick on Jan. 25, Tyler Ennis' three goals paces the Sens against the Sabres this season while Josh Brown, Adam Gaudette and Tim Stützle, as well as the injured Drake Batherson, all have multiple points versus Buffalo.
Who to watch
Erik Brannstrom tallied two assists Tuesday against the Blues to mark his first multi-point game of the season and the second of his NHL career.
The Swedish d-man continues to anchor the Sens top power play unit with Chabot out injured. In 17 games this season, he has averaged 19:10 and has four assists.
Where to watch
Thursday's game can be seen live on TSN5 and RDS2 at 7 p.m. Fans can also tune into the radio call on TSN 1200 and Unique FM 94,5.
