After ending a 13-game winless streak, the Buffalo Sabres will look to begin winning again when they play the Chicago Blackhawks on Friday night.
Buffalo’s tough 0-10-3 stretch came to an end in a big way with a 7-1 victory over the New York Islanders on Monday. All the frustration the Sabres had built up over the past month seemed to be released during that game, giving the team a boost heading into the Christmas break.
“Great morale in the room right now heading into … a much-needed break for us,” forward Tage Thompson said. “Mentally, physically (we will) just now regroup … and reset for the second half of the season with a win under our belt and some good mojo.”
The 13-game losing streak had dropped the Sabres near the bottom of the league standings. With 28 points, they are just ahead of the Blackhawks, who have 26 points.
Chicago is on a two-game losing streak, including a 4-3 loss to the Minnesota Wild on Monday. The Blackhawks lost their lead in both the first and second periods and fell behind in the third due to another late breakdown.
The Blackhawks have been outscored 49-32 in third periods, and they are tied for the most goals allowed in third periods this season.
“I thought it was (a) little bit the same story,” Chicago interim coach Anders Sorensen said. “The biggest thing I think is when the game is on the line. … (We’ve) got to be willing to go and play offensively at the same time. I thought we got sat back a little bit too much there.”
While the Blackhawks have struggled in many areas, one strength is their ability to kill penalties. Chicago’s penalty kill percentage of 85.3 is the fourth-best in the NHL, and in their last 13 games, opponents are just 1-for-37 on power plays.
On the other hand, the Sabres have scored on just 14.7 percent of their power plays, which is the fourth-lowest in the league. However, the power-play unit has shown some improvement, going 1-for-3 in each of the Sabres’ last two games.
Thompson leads Buffalo with 26 points (17 goals, 9 assists). Forward JJ Peterka has seven points (2 goals, 5 assists) in a five-game points streak.
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen had a rough 0-7-2 record with an .864 save percentage in nine games before making 27 saves on 28 shots against the Islanders. He is expected to start again for Buffalo on Friday after his strong performance.
Chicago’s Petr Mrazek missed two weeks with a groin injury before returning to play against the Calgary Flames on Dec. 21. Arvid Soderblom started against the Wild on Monday as the team is easing Mrazek back into action, but Mrazek is more likely to start after the three-day Christmas break.
Connor Bedard leads the Blackhawks with 30 points (9 goals, 21 assists). After a slow start to his second NHL season, Bedard has been playing better, scoring four goals and seven assists in his last nine games.
Buffalo has a 6-0-1 record against Chicago since the start of the 2021-22 season. This seven-game points streak includes a 4-2 win in Chicago on Oct. 19 in the first meeting between the two teams this season.
