Game #25
Caps (13-5-6, 32 points) vs. Buffalo Sabres (12-6-2, 26 points)
Caps look to shake off the 4-3 overtime loss to Ottawa on Monday – a game they led 3-1 entering the third period. It was part of a lost weekend that included a 2-1 shootout loss to Toronto and a 3-2 home defeat to Montreal. It won’t be easy. The Sabres had the best record in the Eastern Conference for a stretch earlier this season until a recent 0-2-1 skid.
“You look at the first two lines and they’re very skilled,” said Caps coach Bruce Boudreau. “So I think it’s going to be our toughest test this year. They’re a well-balanced, great club that’s had [three] days to recover off an 0-2-1 little stretch. They probably practiced hard. They got healthy. They’re feeling good about themselves. It’s their [player’s father’s trip] this week. We’re going to have to be at our best to keep up with them.”
That’s a bit of a Lou Holtz impersonation. Last I checked this team missed the playoffs last season. But point taken. The Sabres certainly look like a playoff team in 2009-10. And they have a huge weapon in goalie Ryan Miller – the favorite now to start for the United States at the Winter Olympic in Vancouver. Miller has a 1.97 goals-against average – the lowest in the NHL – and a .931 save percentage, which is good for second in the league.
“He’s talented. Goalies are a strange breed, but he’s big and he’s quick and he’s smart,” Boudreau said. “Those are three good things. And he probably has great anticipation. He’s just a great goalie. He’s in the top five of the league.”
The Caps will start rookie Semyon Varlamov in goal. He’s been pretty good himself over the last seven games. But the Caps want to limit Buffalo’s chances against him. The last two games they have allowed 77 shots combined. Varlamov has a 2.55 goals-against average and a .916 save percentage.
