Sabres at Canadiens - Game 4 | How to watch, lineup notes, and storylines

MONTREAL – The Buffalo Sabres will look to even their second-round playoff series with the Montreal Canadiens when they play Game 4 at Bell Centre on Tuesday at 7 p.m.

Montreal leads the best-of-seven series 2-1.

It’s the first time the Sabres have trailed a series in these playoffs, but a season’s worth of overcoming adversity – including clawing their way out last place in the Eastern Conference in early December – has them confident in their ability to respond.

“You’ve got to reset,” coach Lindy Ruff said. “Playoffs is about the next game. It’s not about the past one. The only thing we can control now is Game 4.

“We’ve answered a lot of questions this year about tough situations and adversity early in the year. … I’m really confident in the group.”

The Sabres’ decision making with the puck has been a point of emphasis in their last two losses (and at points in their Game 1 win). Turnovers fueled the Canadiens’ rush offense, one of the most dangerous in the league. The challenge in Game 3 was compounded by five offensive-zone penalties, which led to two power-play goals for Montreal.

“I think we’ve just got to get back to our game,” Zach Benson said. “I don’t think we’ve played our best this series yet. We’ve just got to get back to our game: playing predictable, playing quick, and just compete all over the ice.”

How to watch

TV (national): ESPN

Radio: WGR 550 / Buffalo Sabres App (Dan Dunleavy and Rob Ray on the call)

Pregame and Postgame Shows featuring Brian Duff and Martin Biron will air on MSG and the Sabres App along with the team's X, Facebook and YouTube channels. The pregame show begins at 6:30 p.m.

Lineup notes (updated 6:40 p.m.)

As confirmed in pregame warmups, the Sabres are making some lineup changes:

• Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen starts in net for the first time since Game 2 versus Boston.
• Konsta Helenius makes his playoff debut, centering Jason Zucker and Jack Quinn. Helenius, who turned 20 on Monday, had four points (1+3) in a nine-game NHL debut this season.
• Ryan McLeod drops to the fourth line; Sam Carrick was available but won't play.
• Luke Schenn (58 career playoff games) replaces Logan Stanley on the third pair.

Morning media

Lindy Ruff on the mood around the team entering Game 4

“The mood is awesome. We’ve been challenged all year long. It’s another challenge. We know we haven’t played our best game. We know we need to play our best tonight.”

Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen on his emotions ahead of Game 4:

“I’m excited. This part of the year is all about winning, so just excited to go back (in) there and help the team win.”

Konsta Helenius on making his playoff debut:

“I’m just happy that I can play and show that I can help the team win – and play my own game.”

Luke Schenn on defending Montreal’s speed and skill:

“You’ve got to move your feet out there at all times. You’ve got to be quick with the puck, take care of the puck. Obviously, it’s a cliché, but the structures and the details, all that sort of stuff that everyone’s done for good spurts, just got to gain that traction again tonight.”

Jason Zucker on dealing with the Bell Centre crowd:

“Well, there’s always a certain effect on the game, right? But for us, it’s about trying to play our game and trying to focus on what you need to do as a group. Play your game shift in, shift out, and try to affect the game positively."

Series statistics

Numbers to know

• Josh Doan enters Tuesday on a four-game assist streak. The last Sabres player with assists in five straight playoff games was Tim Connolly in 2006.
• Despite giving up nine goals in the last two games, Alex Lyon still ranks fifth among playoff goaltenders with a .921 save percentage.
• Rasmus Dahlin has five points in his last five games, including a goal and an assist in Game 3.

Scouting the Habs

While Montreal’s star players all managed to make an impact in Game 3 – Cole Caufield and Juraj Slakovsky scored power-play goals while Lane Hutson had two assists – it’s been 25-year-old Alex Newhook who’s arguably made the biggest difference offensively.

Newhook, a 13-goal scorer during the regular season, has four goals in these last two Montreal wins. He’s done it in a variety of ways: a deflection to open the scoring in Game 2, a hustle goal on the rush, and a rebound goal to tie Game 3 early.

The Canadiens have out-chanced the Sabres 6-2 with the line of Newhook, Jake Evans and Ivan Demidov on the ice at 5-on-5, according to Stathletes – the best share of any of their four forward lines.