Sabres vs. Lightning | How to watch, lineup notes, and storylines

Zach Benson still can’t help but smile when recalling the events that took place inside KeyBank Center on a Sunday in March.

“The Tampa Game” has already etched its place in Buffalo lore, an 8-7 win that featured five fights, 102 penalty minutes and multi-goal comebacks by both teams.

The two Atlantic Division rivals meet again for the first time this season when the Lightning visit the Sabres at KeyBank Center on Wednesday.

“It’s a division game,” Benson said. “It’s a big two points. It’s a four-point game early, so it’s always gonna be heated. Those division (games) are always gonna be heated, tough, hard to play against. We’re ready for it, and we’re excited.”

• From last season: Sabres win 8-7 thriller over Lightning

Added coach Lindy Ruff: “We know that if we’re on top of our game, we can give them a hell of a game.”

The Sabres are still looking to find their game consistently coming off a 4-1 loss to Vegas in which they dominated early but lost momentum on a string of three unsuccessful power plays. The loss dropped the Sabres to 4-5-0 at KeyBank Center this season (and 1-2-0 on their current homestand).

Consistency will be key to keeping pace in the competitive Atlantic. Tampa Bay, with a 6-2-2 mark in its last 10 games, currently sits five points ahead of Buffalo in third place.

The game will be nationally televised on TNT, truTV and HBO Max beginning at 7 p.m.

It will be Military Appreciation Night at KeyBank Center – find more details on the events honoring our local armed forces members here.

How to watch

TV (national): TNT, truTV

Streaming (national): HBO Max

Radio: WGR 550 / Buffalo Sabres App

More ways to watch/listen to Sabres games

Lineup notes

Ryan McLeod will draw back into the lineup after sitting out the last two games as a healthy scratch. Jiri Kulich is expected to be scratched based on Tuesday’s practice.

Kulich, after missing most of last season due to a blood clot, has had a start-and-stop cadence to his season thus far. He missed a game in Toronto for precautionary testing – he’d left that morning skate not feeling well – and then an additional five games after taking a puck to the face in practice late last month.

“He’s had, really, three setbacks: a whole year, and then a couple more,” Ruff said. “I think he’s struggling to find his game. I believe he still has it, it just might take time.”

Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen had the starter’s net in practice, suggesting he’ll get the nod in goal. He has a .927 save percentage in his last two games.

Here’s how the group lined up in full on Tuesday:

Numbers to know

• The Sabres went 3-0-1 against the Lightning last season, including the aforementioned 8-7 thriller. Rasmus Dahlin led the series with eight points (2+6) and a plus-6 rating.
• Dahlin enters Wednesday with points in seven straight matchups against the Lightning. A point tonight would give him the longest streak against the Lightning in franchise history.
• Benson has 14 points (2+12) in his last 12 games dating back to Oct. 12. His five primary assists in that span are tied for third in the NHL.

Scouting the Lightning

The Lightning has a six-game point streak (4-0-2) snapped with a 4-3 loss in Winnipeg on Sunday. Forward Brayden Point left that game and has since been placed on injured reserve, meaning the Lightning will be without their top-line centerman.

Enter rookie Sam O’Reilly, who was recalled from AHL Syracuse and is expected to make his NHL debut in Point’s absence.

O’Reilly, a first-round pick in 2024, has four points (2+2) in 12 games with Syracuse and has been lauded for his two-way play. He finished a decorated junior career last season, winning OHL MVP and a second straight Memorial Cup (given to the champion of Canada’s three major junior leagues).