Sharpen Up: October 30, 2016

The Sabres are set to play in their first back-to-back of the year and we're also hitting the conclusion of our first One Buffalo Weekend of the season.
The Sabres defeated the Florida Panthers 3-0 on home ice yesterday to get back in the win column. At 1 p.m. today, the Bills host the Patriots as they continue their playoff push. Then at 3 p.m., the Sabres are in action again - this time in Winnipeg to face the Jets. Join us for the TOPS Gamenight pregame show starting at 2:30 p.m. on MSG.
Here's what you need to know.

From Saturday...

Yesterday went pretty well for the Sabres. Anders Nilsson made 33 saves to earn the shutout and Buffalo received goals from Johan Larsson, Kyle Okposo and Sam Reinhart, who led the team with two points. Here's the game recap from

.
Look at these beauts.

Nilsson had to face a penalty shot to preserve his shutout. Look at him cut off this angle.

Okposo and Reinhart each tallied on the power play. The man advantage went 2-for-4 on the night. At a 25.8-percent efficiency, the Sabres have the seventh-best power play in the NHL right now.

Injury news

The Sabres will likely be without Nicolas Deslauriers as he took a hit into the boards with just over a minute to play. Coach Dan Bylsma didn't seem too optimistic about Deslauriers' chances of making the road trip - the Sabres play this afternoon and then head to Minnesota for a game against the Wild on Tuesday.

Expect news on a call-up from Rochester sometime today. The Amerks wrapped up a back-to-back set with St. John's in Newfoundland this weekend. On Friday, Evan Rodrigues scored twice in a loss, while in yesterday's win, William Carrier and Nick Baptiste each picked up a pair of goals.
We'll see have to wait to see what Bylsma will do with his goaltenders today. Robin Lehner served as the backup last night as he's been recovering from an illness that caused him to miss two games. He could be ready to start today, but we'll know for sure when Bylsma addresses the media later.

Scouting the Jets

Winnipeg last played on Friday, a 1-0 win over Colorado. Rookie Patrick Laine, whom you saw get selected second overall at this year's draft in Buffalo, is tied for the team lead with 8 points. He has six goals and two assists while Mark Scheifle has four goals and four assists.
They're 4-4-0 on the season and currently tied with Colorado the second Wild Card spot in the Western Conference, although the Avalanche hold the tie-breaker.

BOOM!

If you missed Dmitry Kulikov's big hit yesterday, check it out again and again:

Party all the time

Until the end of the Sabres game today, (716) Food and Sport (located, of course, at HarborCenter) will be serving up double orders of wings for the price of a single order and $2 off draft beers. There will be a Bills jersey giveaway on Sunday during the football game.
Shop.OneBuffalo.com will also be giving an overall discount of 20% off all orders plus a free One Buffalo hockey puck with every purchase over $50. Look for the discount code on the Shop.OneBuffalo website.

On tap today

What else? We'll have recall news if that's necessary and we'll post Bylsma's media scrum once it happens.
After the game, check back with us for highlights, locker room interviews and a game recap. Then join us again Monday when the Sabres are scheduled to hit the ice for practice in Minnesota.
Good times.