Less than 24 hours after dropping their first game of the season against the Leafs, the Canadiens are at it again this time heading out to Buffalo to face the Sabres.
The first of many back-to-back games this season due to the condensed schedule, the Canadiens must have instant amnesia after dropping their season opener to the Maple Leafs last night.
The Sabres open their season at home after an off-season filled with drama what with the Jack Eichel situation. Buffalo is in full rebuild and shouldn’t pose too much of a threat, but they’re still an NHL team and their young up and coming stars such as Rasmus Dahlin, Casey Mittelstadt, Dylan Cozens and Henri Jokiharju shouldn’t be taken lightly. Veterans Jeff Skinner, Kyle Okposo, and Victor Olofsson have a lot to redeem after a disastrous 2020-21 season which saw the Sabres miss the playoffs for the 10th consecutive season.
Only one change has been confirmed by head coach Dominique Ducharme as Samuel Montembault will get the nod and face off against veteran netminder Craig Anderson.
Here are some notables for both teams:
Buffalo Sabres
2020-2021 record:
Head Coach: Don Granato
Captain: None
Notable Injuries: Jack Eichel (neck – indefinite)
Projected Lineup:
Forwards
Jeff Skinner – Casey Mittelstadt – Vinnie Hinostroza
Rasmus Asplund – Tage Thompson – Victor Olofsson
Anders Bjork – Dylan Cozens – Drake Caggiula
Zemgus Girgensons – Cody Eakin – Kyle Okposo
Defence
Rasmus Dahlin – Henri Jokiharju
Jacob Bryson – Colin Miller
Robert Hagg – Mark Pysyk
Goalies
Craig Anderson
Dustin Tokarski
Montreal Canadiens
2021-2022 record: 0-1-0 (0 Points) 7th in Atlantic Division
Head Coach: Dominique Ducharme
Captain: Shea Weber
Notable Injuries: Shea Weber (undisclosed – indefinite), Carey Price (torn meniscus + Player Assistance Program – indefinite), Paul Byron (hip Surgery – 2-3 months), Joel Edmundson (undisclosed – week-to-week), Mike Hoffman (lower body injury – (week-to-week), Sami Niku (Concussion – Indefinite)
Projected Lineup:
Forwards
Tyler Toffoli – Nick Suzuki – Cole Caufield
Jonathan Drouin – Christian Dvorak – Josh Anderson
Joel Armia – Jake Evans – Brendan Gallagher
Artturi Lehkonen – Cedric Paquette – Matthieu Perreault
Defence
Brett Kulak – Jeff Petry
Ben Chiarot – David Savard
Alexander Romanov – Chris Wideman
Goalies
Jake Allen
Samuel Montembeault