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It’s a game whose appeal might be limited primarily to those who are monitoring draft lottery odds, except for one guy: Sidney Crosby. The captain for the Pittsburgh Penguins (29-33-11) is on the cusp of grabbing an impressive record as his team travels Thursday to play the Buffalo Sabres (29-35-6) at Keybank Center.
The pucks drops just after 7 p.m.
Crosby, 37, needs one point to ensure that he will average at least one point per game for the 20th season in a row, eclipsing the record of 19 he currently shares with Wayne Gretzky.
In a stunningly poor performance by the Penguins in Tuesday’s 6-1 loss against the Lightning at Tampa Bay, Crosby had an assist on the team’s only goal to put him on the verge of clinching the record. Needing one point in eight games seems pretty easily attainable for Crosby, who has an eight-game point streak (six goals, seven assists, 13 points).
For this game between bottom feeders in the Eastern Conference, defenseman Ryan Shea will return, but center Evgeni Malkin will not, according to coach Mike Sullivan. Malkin was a surprise scratch for the Tampa Bay game because of an upper-body injury. Shea has missed seven games because of an upper-body injury. He could replace Ryan Graves in the lineup.
Malkin has 12 points, including six goals, in 15 games since the 4 Nations Face-off break.
The Penguins had been on a 5-1-1 heater before they managed just 15 shots and nearly forgot how to play defense in the loss to the Lightning. They are 0-1-1 as they close a three-game road trip.
The Sabres are last in the East, five points behind the Penguins but with three games in hand. They have won two games in a row, impressively beating Ottawa and Winnipeg.
Rickard Rakell-Sidney Crosby-Bryan Rust
Danton Heinen-Kevin Hayes-Philip Tomasino
Connor Dewar-Blake Lizotte-Noel Acciari
Boko Imama-Joona Koppanen-Emil Bemstrom
Defense
Matt Grzelcyk-Kris Letang
Erik Karlsson-Conor Timmons
Ryan Shea-Vladislav Kolyachonok
Goalie: Tristan Jarry
Zach Benson-Jiri Kulich-Tage Thompson
JJ Peterka-Ryan McLeod-Jack Quinn
Isak Rosen-Peyton Krebs-Alex Tuch
Beck Malenstyn-Tyson Kozak-Sam Lafferty
Defense
Mattias Samuelsson-Rasmus Dahlin
Owen Power/Jacob Bernard-Docker
Bowen Byram-Connor Clifton
Goalie: James Reimer
Penguins power play: 24.4%, 10th
Penguins penalty kill: 77.2%, 18th
Sabres power play: 17.9%, 27th
Sabres penalty kill: 76.4%, 22nd
It’s the third and final meeting between the clubs.
In their past 20 games against Buffalo, the Penguins are 14-5-1.
Sidney Crosby is the Penguins’ all-time points leader vs. the Sabres with 85 points (29 goals, 56 assists) in 61 games. Evgeni Malkin is second with 73 points (22 goals, 51 assists) in 55 games.
Erik Karlsson (41 points) ranks first against Buffalo among active defensemen, and Kris Letang (33 points) ranks second.
Karlsson needs one goal to reach 200 for his career.
The Penguins’ power play has a 29.4% success rate over the past eight games, and the team is 5-2-1 in that span.
Bryan Rust is two goals shy of matching his career high of 28 in a season, and three points away from tying his career high of 58 in a season. He has four goals in the past three games.
Buffalo’s Alex Tuch has six points (two goals, four assists) in his past four games against the Penguins, including at least one point in each game in that span.
How to Watch
TV: SportsNet Pittsburgh
Radio: 105.9 FM The X
Dan’s Daily: Penguins Get Message; McDavid Money; Available Goalies
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