Preview: Sabres vs Wild 11-13-2014
Well, if there was ever the perfect time to start a winning streak, tonight’s the night. The Sabres will bring their 3-12-2 record into the Xcel Energy Center against a Wild team that is desperate for a win and goal scoring.
Prior to the Devils game, one of my two predictions were correct. The Wild did not score 4 goals, however, Ryan Carter got his first goal of the year, which was shorthanded. Of the three goals scored in the last four games, two were shorthanded.
As Michael Russo, from the Star Tribune, reported earlier today, coach Mike Yeo has shaken up the lines like James Bond’s beverage, we’ll see if he stirs them later in the game. Here are the lineups:
Zucker – Koivu – Pominville
Niederreiter – Granlund – Coyle
Schroeder – Haula – Vanek
Carter – Brodziak – Fontaine
When I initially saw the lineups, I was surprised to see Mikael Granlund on the second line with Nino Niederreiter and Charlie Coyle, Granlund and Jason Pominville have been inseparable for quite some time. I think this line could work if Coyle andn Nino are able to get physical in front of the net and let Granlund create space by playing keep-away. We’ll see if Granlund decides to pull the trigger on some shots, I would like to see him shoot more. Even if the perfect shot isn’t there, at least let Coyle and Nino convert on some rebounds or deflections. I think this line will be flying all over the ice tonight, expect a lot of two-on-one and three-on-two breaks. The Gopher line will be interesting too as we will get to see Jordan Schroeder for the first time in a Wild sweater; Stu Bickell was also brought up, Stephane Veilleux and Jonathan Blum were sent back to Iowa. Read more on that here.
Russo also reported today that Jared Spurgeon was activated off injured reserve and will join Ryan Suter on the top defensive line. Here is what the defensive pairings will look like.
Suter – Spurgeon
Prosser – Folin
Ballard – Dumba
You may be thinking, where is Jonas Brodin and Marco Scandella? Reports are indicating that they may have come down with the mumps, read more here.
Like most, the defensive pairings make me nervous, I wouldn’t be surprised to see not only Suter, but also Spurgeon to surpass the 30-minute mark in tonight’s game. It’ll be beneficial for Mathew Dumba and Christian Folin to get paired up with a couple veterans in Nate Prosser and Keith Ballard, hopefully they will have solid outings and take care of the puck. Don’t be surprised if Suter get’s paired with Folin or Dumba at some point during the game as well. As I mentioned, he will be getting a lot of ice time tonight.
Because making bold predictions is fun and because one of them worked out last game, I am going to make a couple for tonight’s game as well. Let’s see how close or how far off I am!
1. Jason Zucker will get his 6th goal of the season. I really like how he’s played with Mikko Koivu, I think adding Pominville to the line will get Zucker open even more as the Sabres’ defense will be concentrated more on Koivu and Pominville, and rightfully so. Zucker’s speed will be a huge factor in tonight’s game.
2. Ryan Suter will get two points tonight. This one may not be a surprise when you consider how much ice time he will likely get. He is great at stretching the ice on breakout passes, and I think he will set up a break tonight that will result in a goal for the Wild. I also think he will get a power-play point tonight. Which brings me to number three.
3. The Wild will score a power-play goal tonight. We’ve been getting chances, the puck has to end up in the net at some point, right? Michael Russo reported changes to the power-play lineups earlier:
Zucker – Koivu – Pominville – Spurgeon – Suter
Vanek – Granlund – Niederreiter – Schroeder/Fontaine – Dumba
Historically, the Wild are 7-5-2 against the Buffalo Sabres and won both of their matchups last year giving up only one goal in each game.