Game 74 Hub: Buffalo Sabres @ Ottawa Senators

Just nine games to go—Ottawa Senators fans are excited for...the next part of the season, but it's too early to fully say they've made it. The Senators playoff odds sit at more than 99%, but they still need to get a few more wins to seal the deal. Tonight's matchup isn't a big one in terms of needing their opponent to lose, but it is important so that they don't embarrassingly go 0-4 against the lowly Buffalo Sabres. Ottawa probably should have beaten them last week in a 3-2 loss, but overall, they haven't brought the right intensity against Buffalo this season.

Can they finally win and get one step closer to clinching a playoff spot? Time will tell. Here is how the Senators lined up this morning, with Brady Tkachuk being out, and Nick Jensen being a game-time decision:

And here are the Sabres lines:

Game Notes:

• Linus Ullmark will be in net again after having the night off on Sunday. He's coming off a solid start against Columbus, where he allowed two goals, and he's been consistently making big saves each game.
• Ottawa will face James Reimer again tonight. He has an .895 SV% in 18 games this season and they should fare better against him than they did last week.
• Ottawa heads into tonight seven points up on the New York Rangers (with a game in hand) and nine points up on the Columbus Blue Jackets (with one more game played). The Red Wings and Islanders are now both ten points back with nine games to play, so it's almost impossible for them to catch up.
• It's clear that Tkachuk will need as much rest as possible. I hope that the Senators win as many games as possible now so that they can scratch him before the playoffs, otherwise, he might be even more worn down in a few weeks.
• Jensen has obviously been banged up for a while too, and it's admirable that he's been able to play this many games while hurt.
• Angus Crookshank will get his second game of the season and 15th of his career tonight. He has just two goals and one assist in his career, and probably won't get much ice time on a line with Matthew Highmore and Adam Gaudette.
• Josh Norris will miss playing the Senators again as he's still out with an injury. It's too bad he can't get proper recognition in Ottawa for the first time since the trade.
• Not only have the Sabres won all three games against the Senators this season, but they've also won six of the last eight overall against them, dating back to April 2023.
• The out of town scoreboard tonight features the Canadiens hosting the Panthers, the Blue Jackets hosting the Predators, the Blues hosting the Red Wings, and the Islanders hosting the Lightning.

Stats