New York Rangers at Buffalo Sabres

By Sam Batz

The Buffalo Sabres host the New York Rangers for their second meeting of the season on Friday, March 31st (7:00 PM EST, NHL NET). New York won the first game 2-1 in Buffalo after Artemi Panarin scored the game winning goal in overtime. The Rangers are ahead of the Sabres by 21 points in the Eastern standings, and while New York has already clinched their spot in the playoffs, Buffalo has not fared as well. The Sabres cling to a slim chance that they may see the playoffs, but a lot of pieces need to fall into place before that happens. Opening odds favor the Rangers at -145, and price the Buffalo Sabres at +125. 

New York Rangers Breakdown (-145)

The Rangers of New York clinched a spot in the playoffs on Monday after the Buffalo Sabres lost to the Montreal Canadiens and the Florida Panthers lost to the Ottawa Senators. New York needed both the Sabres and Panthers to lose in order to secure a playoff position, and on Monday, the Rangers got what they were looking for. New York is 44-20-10 with 98 points through 74 games, and are going to the playoffs for the second consecutive year. The Rangers must navigate their way through a tricky Eastern Conference, but according to FiveThirtyEight, they have a 14% chance to make the finals. New York is in but continues to jockey for position in the standings, and after going 8-1-1 in their last 10, the Rangers aren’t showing any signs of taking it easy before the playoffs. 

Buffalo Sabres Breakdown (+125)

The Sabres 35-31-7 with 77 points through 73 games. They are 5th in the Atlantic Division and 10th in the Eastern Conference. After going 3-4-3 (9 pts) in their last 10 games, the Sabres playoffs chances have dropped dramatically. Buffalo is projected to end the season with 86 points, and in their highly competitive division, that won’t be enough to qualify for the postseason. The Sabres are looking down the barrel of their 12th consecutive season without a playoff appearance and enter the offseason looking to make some big changes. 

Rangers vs. Sabres Odds

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Rangers vs. Sabres: Season Stats

Rangers vs. Sabres: Betting Trends

Rangers vs. Sabres: Game Changers

New York Rangers

• Artemi Panarin (Left Wing) leads the Rangers with 84 points (25 goals, 59 assists) and averaged 1.20 points per game in his last 10 (6 goals, 6 assists) with a +/- rating of +9
• Mika Zibanejad (Center) has the second-most points but leads the Rangers in goals. He averaged 1.40 points per game in his last 10 (6 goals, 8 assists) with a +/- rating of +7
• Igor Shesterkin (Goaltender) has the most games played between the sticks for New York. He is 34-12-7 (T-2nd), averages 2.54 GA/G (11th), and has a SV% of 91.4% (13th)
• The New York Rangers play the New Jersey Devils the day before and won’t get a day to rest before facing Buffalo

Buffalo Sabres

• Tage Thompson (Right Wing) leads the Sabres with 89 points (44 goals, 45 assists) and collected 0.6 points per game in his last 10 (2 goals, 4 assists) with a +/- rating of -4
• Thompson is listed as Day-to-Day with an upper body injury and is worth monitoring. He is currently a game-time decision for Friday’s matchup with New York
• Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen (Goaltender) is Buffalo’s best option between the sticks. He is 16-11-4 (T-28th), averages 3.63 GA/G (48th), and has a SV% of 89.0% (45th). But there are reports that Devon Levi will be making his NHL debut
• The Buffalo Sabres win just 36.8% of the time in their home arena, and win just 30.4% of the time as underdogs at home

Rangers vs. Sabres Prediction

Take New York to win. The Rangers are one of the hottest teams in the NHL right now and will want to carry that momentum into the playoffs. Buffalo can score goals, but keeping their opponents off the scoreboard has been a major issue for the Sabres. Buffalo has allowed 70 more goals against than the New York Rangers, and are now turning to a rookie Goaltender in a “nothing left to lose” type of move. The Rangers are an experienced team and will create plenty of chances to score against Buffalo’s second-rate defense and inexperienced Goaltender. 

Prediction: New York Rangers Moneyline (-145)

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