Sharpen Up: October 1, 2021 | Sabres host Penguins tonight

Fans will have their first opportunity to see the 2021-22 Buffalo Sabres live and in person tonight. Buffalo opens up the home portion of its preseason schedule with a 7 p.m. faceoff against the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Tickets are on sale now. If you're in the Buffalo broadcast market and can't make it to the game, we'll be streaming it live on Sabres.com.
Buffalo's preseason record evened to 1-1-0 after a 6-2 road loss to the Detroit Red Wings last night. Rasmus Asplund and Arttu Ruotsalainen scored for Buffalo while Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen made 26 saves over three periods. We have the full recap for you.
Here's what you need to know.

A quick look back at last night

The Sabres are using the early portion of the preseason to work players back into game situations, both mentally and physically. Eleven players who dressed in Tuesday's preseason opener were in the lineup, including Ruotsalainen, Dylan Cozens, Will Butcher and JJ Peterka.
"You're just trying to work yourself into game shape," Asplund, who made his preseason debut, said. "The timing and everything like that is just a little bit off here in the beginning of the season. You're just trying to find your timing. I think all of us got better towards the end there."
Luukkonen was sharp early for Buffalo, stopping all 18 shots he saw in the first period, including this buzzer-beating save to end the opening period:

Luukkonen finished with 26 saves on 31 shots. Detroit scored three goals in 3:12 to open the second period to ultimately put them ahead, but Sabres head coach Don Granato liked not only the way Luukkonen played early, but the way he battled back after that tough stretch.
"He bought us time. He was sharp, exceptional and he fought all the way through the game, which is awesome," Granato said. "But I was impressed not only with his first period, but his battle level, his compete level, all the way through.
"After the first, we were able to look at a few things and give our guys a little different focus, which didn't necessarily help on the scoreboard, but there were things we were able to tweak a little bit. He helped us get through that period."

Read the full recap here.

What to watch for today

We'll have full coverage of today's morning skate for you here on Sabres.com and on our social media channels.
Before Thursday's game, Granato said they would like to dress any players who have yet to play in a preseason game for Friday. That could include Casey Mittelstadt, Jeff Skinner, Victor Olofsson, Kyle Okposo, Rasmus Dahlin, Henri Jokiharju, Colin Miller and Craig Anderson.
Granato is also keeping the door open for some players to play in a back-to-back scenario. That group could include a handful of players who are looking to further fine tune their skills heading into the season.
Pittsburgh's game roster features Kasperi Kapanen, Sam Poulin, Casey DeSmith, Taylor Fedun and Marcus Pettersson.
So stick with us for any lineup news and notes throughout the day.