The Buffalo Sabres look to carry their momentum from their Tuesday 4-3 win into Raleigh, NC when they face the Carolina Hurricanes at 7 p.m. in the RBC Center. Carolina has struggled all season and are currently at the bottom of the Eastern Conference Standings with a 13-21-7 record. It has been a combination of having trouble scoring and allowing the most goals in the league that have kept the Hurricanes in the basement. When you have to call on your goalie, Cam Ward, to score goals, you know things are bad on the offensive side.
The Sabres too have struggled to get points on the scoreboard this year with players like Drew Stafford and Derek Roy behind in their stats from previous seasons. After an excellent game against Edmonton though, coach Lindy Ruff is hoping that Stafford has finally got his touch back. With Buffalo currently 4 points out of the playoff picture, they need to win every "easy" game they can. Despite their record though, the Canes may not give the Sabres such an easy time.
The Hurricanes play better against the Northeast Division teams then any other in the NHL with a 6-3-3 record and have a talented set of forwards, including Eric Staal and Tuomo Rutu, leading their offense. Despite not ranking high in the special teams department, the Canes actually lead the league in shorthanded goals with 7. Considering the Sabres have a habit of giving up odd man rushes during the power play, Ryan Miller will have to be on his game even on the power play. Of course Carolina also averages the 3rd least penalty minutes per game so Buffalo's power play opportunities may not be man in this game. They have to make every chance count.
If the Sabres can continue to get some scoring out of their second tier players like Stafford, Roy and Nathan Gerbe, they will be able to lock in a win tonight. Of course that is depending on the goaltending to be solid which Ruff still doesn't seem to be pleased with. Miller's performance in his past few games have been a drastic improvement to the beginning of the season but may not be up to the play Sabres' fans are use to seeing. With some offense and smart defensive play though, Ryan may continue to get his confidence back in these next few games.
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