Buffalo Sabres vs. San Jose Sharks: Game Preview
Date: 3/10/26
Time: 7:00 PM
Location: KeyBank Center, Buffalo, NY
Standings Snapshot:
- Buffalo Sabres: 39-19-6, 84 points, leading the Atlantic Division.
- San Jose Sharks: 30-25-6, 66 points, 5th in the Pacific Division.
Special Teams Performance:
- Buffalo Sabres: Power Play: 20.9% (15th in the league) Penalty Kill: 82.8% (5th)
- San Jose Sharks: Power Play: 19.8% (17th) Penalty Kill: 78.9% (15th)
Key Players to Watch:
- Buffalo Sabres: Tage Thompson: 34 goals, 36 assists in 64 games.
Thompson is on fire with a 47-point streak since December 9th and is currently riding an 11-game point streak.
- Rasmus Dahlin: A defensive powerhouse with 13 goals, 44 assists in 60 games.
- Alex Tuch: Approaching his 600th NHL game, Tuch has 27 goals, 29 assists in 63 games and is on a six-game point streak.
- San Jose Sharks: Macklin Celebrini: Leading the Sharks with 32 goals, 57 assists in 61 games. Will Smith: 19 goals, 25 assists in just 48 games. Tyler Toffoli: Consistent with 16 goals, 23 assists in 61 games.
Projected Starting Goalies:
- Buffalo: Alex Lyon (17-8-3, 2.84 GAA, .915 Save %)
- San Jose: Yaroslav Askarov (19-16-3, 3.52 GAA, .888 Save %)
Sabres Line Combinations:
- Forwards: Peyton Krebs - Tage Thompson - Alex Tuch Noah Ostlund - Josh Norris - Josh Doan Jason Zucker - Ryan McLeod - Jack Quinn Zach Benson - Sam Carrick - Beck Malenstyn
- Defense: Mattias Samuelsson - Rasmus Dahlin Bowen Byram - Owen Power Zach Metsa - Michael Kesselring
- Goaltenders: Alex Lyon Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen Colten Ellis
Injury Report:
- Justin Danforth (lower body)
- Jiri Kulich (blood clot, out for the season)
- Conor Timmins (broken leg)
- Jordan Greenway (undisclosed)
Game Notes:
The Sabres are on a hot streak, having earned points in 14 of their last 16 games (13-2-1), including seven consecutive wins. They’re on the verge of setting a franchise record with multiple eight-game winning streaks in a single season. Since December 9th, Buffalo leads the league in wins, regulation wins, and points.
Tage Thompson is a standout, leading the NHL in even-strength goals since December 9th. Alex Tuch and Noah Ostlund are also on impressive streaks, with Tuch looking to celebrate his 600th game with another strong performance.
Josh Doan is making waves with game-winning goals in his last two outings, and Bowen Byram recently hit a career milestone with his 100th assist.
The Sabres are firing on all cylinders and will look to continue their dominance against the Sharks tonight. Keep an eye on these key players as Buffalo aims to extend their winning streak and further solidify their position atop the Atlantic Division.