The Buffalo Sabres will play Game 3 of their second-round playoff series against the Montreal Canadiens at Bell Centre on May 10. The game is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m.
The matchup comes after the Sabres lost Game 2 by a score of 5-1, a result that players and coaches described as uncharacteristic due to costly puck decisions while trying to recover from an early two-goal deficit. In response, the team held a full practice on Saturday to regroup and refocus ahead of Sunday’s contest.
Alex Tuch said, “We got skating out there, I think everyone loosened up a little bit. Getting back into playing hockey, some good laughs and just trying to stay loose. Trying to build up each other’s confidence and get back to how we know we can play.”
Sam Carrick will make his playoff debut for the Sabres in this game, joining the fourth line in place of Tyson Kozak. Carrick had been sidelined since March 31 with an arm injury but contributed five goals and won over half his faceoffs during his time with Buffalo after being acquired at the trade deadline. The rest of the lineup remains unchanged from previous games, though adjustments were made during practice to power-play units following an unsuccessful performance in Game 2.
Lindy Ruff commented on handling the atmosphere at Bell Centre: “I’d love to shut down the crowd by putting one in the back of the net right away.” Beck Malenstyn spoke about Buffalo’s road success so far this postseason: “I think we have a confidence in our group that we can play on the road. Obviously, that’s a tough thing to do at times, but it’s a huge thing for us to able to lean on, knowing that were able to play our game in a hostile environment (in Boston). And it’s something we’ll lean on moving forward here.”
The Sabres are undefeated on the road during these playoffs with three wins and have outscored opponents significantly away from home ice.
