Free Daily NCAA Lock Pick, Friday October 13th: Colorado vs Stanford 10:00pmET
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The Buffalo Sabres (0-1, 0-1 PL, 1-0 O/U) take on the New York Islanders (0-0. 0-0 PL, 0-0 O/U) in an early season Eastern Conference bout on Saturday night. The Sabres finished fifth in the division with 91 points last year. The Islanders were fourth in the Metro divison with 93 points. The Sabres won last year’s season series 2-1.
The Buffalo Sabres have bigger expectations this season. The squad improved as last season progressed and was within range of one of the last wildcard spots late in the season. Buffalo has a solid young core and they will be battling for one of the last playoff spots in a deep conference. The Sabres opened the season with an ugly 5-1 home loss against the Rangers on Thursday night.
The Sabres are expected another big season by Tage Thompson. The 25-year-old winger had a breakout 2022-2023 season, accumulating a remarkable 94 points. He has one point in three meetings against the Islanders. The Sabres management was busy this past week, signing the biggest pieces of their young core, Rasmus Dahlin and Owen Power to huge contracts. Power was the first overall pick a few years ago and posted 35 points and a plus-10 rating last year. Dahlin is one of the better D-men in the league, collecting 73 points last year, and averages nearly 25 minutes of ice per game. Dahlin struggled in the season opener, going -3.
?? JJ PETERKA ??#LetsGoBuffalo pic.twitter.com/Qap663XH3B
— Buffalo Sabres (@BuffaloSabres) October 13, 2023
The Sabres have one of the top goalie prospects in Devin Levi who many believe could be a star goalie once he develops. Levi posted a 2.94 GAA and a .907 save % with a 5-2 record last year. Levi was in the cage in Thursday’s loss, allowing four goals on 30 shots. Buffalo also has Eric Comrie and Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen as goalies.
Buffalo scored an average of 3.57 goals per game last year, good for third. They allowed an average of 3.6 goals per game, pegging them 26th in the NHL.
Free Daily NCAA Lock Pick, Friday October 13th: Colorado vs Stanford 10:00pmET CLICK TO SEE PICK NOW