Buffalo Sabres vs Vegas Golden Knights Preview
The Golden Knights and Sabres are set to face off at 7:00 ET on ESPN+. The Sabres will host the game at KeyBank Center in Buffalo, NY.
The Golden Knights are the -1.5 goal favorites in this non-conference matchup against Sabres. The over/under for the game is set at 6 goals. Check out BetCoco for Buffalo Sabres – Vegas Golden Knights odds
Buffalo Sabres vs Vegas Golden Knights Head-to-Head and Key Stats
In the last three head-to-head matchups, the Sabres are averaging 4 goals per game, compared to the Golden Knights at 3. These figures have led to Buffalo posting a record of 2-1.
- When looking at their past ten road matchups, Vegas has an puck line record of 7-3 while averaging 3 per game. The team went 5-5 overall in these games.
- Across the Sabres last five home games, the team averaged 2 goals per game while allowing 2. Their record vs the puck line in these contests was 2-3, while going 2-3 straight-up.
- In their last three games as the betting underdog, the Sabres have a strong straight up record of 2-1. In addition, their puck line record was 3-0 in these scenarios.
- Going back to their last ten games as the favorite, the Golden Knights have a straight up record of 4-6. But, their mark vs the puck line was just 3-7.
Buffalo Sabres vs Vegas Golden Knights Prediction
On the season, Vegas is 5th in the Western Conference with 73 points. Their overall record is 33-20-7, and they have gone 21-13 against other Western Conference opponents. In their division, the Golden Knights are 2nd with an 11-7 record.
When playing on the road this season, Vegas has gone 14-11-5, and they have been favored in 36 of their 60 games. In games where they have been favored, the Golden Knights have gone 20-12-4.
For their offensive performance, the Golden Knights come in averaging 3.2 goals per game this season, which is 14th in the NHL. In the category of shots on goal per game, they are 15th in the league. This season, the Golden Knights are 15-13 when getting more shots on goal than their opponents. And in games with fewer shots on goal, they have a 17-7 record.
Goalie Logan Thompson gets the start and has made 31 starts this season. His record at this point is 17-11, and his save percentage is 0.776%.
At home this season, the Sabres have gone 13-16-1 and have been the underdog in 37 of their 60 games. Overall, Buffalo is 28-28-4 and sits in 13th place in the Eastern Conference.
Over their last ten games, the Sabres have gone 6-4, and they have won four of their last five games. In their last three games, Buffalo has gone 2-1.
The Sabres come into the game scoring an average of 2.9 goals per game, putting them 22nd in the NHL. Regarding shots targeted at the goal per game, they are 11th in the league. In terms of the Sabres’ offense during power plays, they are 27th in power play goals and 20th in shorthanded goals.
Heading into this matchup vs. Vegas, goalie Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen has started 33 games in this season. His current record is 18-15, and his save percentage stands at 0.785%.
Despite being 1.5 goal underdogs, we predict the Sabres to come out on top with a final score of 4-3.
Buffalo Sabres vs Vegas Golden Knights Betting Tips
- We like the Sabres on the moneyline (-101)
- The Sabres are also our pick on the spread at +1.5
- Our NHL model projects 7 goals, and we suggest taking the under
Buffalo Sabres Injury Report
- Erik Johnson – Illness – Questionable
- Victor Olofsson – Illness – Questionable
- Mattias Samuelsson – Upper Body – Out
- Jack Quinn – Lower Body – Out
Vegas Golden Knights Injury Report
- Jack Eichel – Knee – Out
- William Carrier – Upper Body – Out
- Ben Hutton – Upper Body – Questionable
- Robin Lehner – Hip – Out
- Mark Stone – Upper Body – Out
- Brett Howden – Upper Body – Out
- Pavel Dorofeyev – Upper Body – Out
