The Senators return home after a 2-2 road trip, to face one of the two teams below them in the standings.
Buffalo has been reeled in by Arizona, and the Sabres are the worst team in the league by percentage points, 3 points back of the Senators. They have actually been playing not brutal hockey over their last 14 games, going 7-6-1 after losing 4 straight out of the All-Star break.
Buffalo will play the second half of a back to back, after hosting Calgary Wednesday night and travelling to Ottawa for tonight's game. Both teams from that game will actually be in Ottawa, as the Flames provide the opponent for the Senators Friday night in an ambush situation. Calgary dropped the Sabres 5-1.
Ottawa has three sets of back to backs in the next 10 days, with two days off between each set.
Ottawa and Buffalo met in mid February, with Ottawa scoring late to tie it up and then winning in overtime on a goal from Mike Hoffman.
Robin Lehner played over half of Wednesday's game in relief of Chad Johnson, who allowed 4 goals on 22 shots. Lehner stopped 18 of 19 that he faced. Lehner has never lost in regulation to the team that drafted him, with a 5-0-4 record in 10 appearances.
Craig Anderson will start against his former understudy, coming off a 3-2 OT win in Dallas, and also was in goal for the Sens the last time they played the Sabres, which was also a 3-2 score in overtime.
Mark Stone will try to extend his point streak to double digits, with Erik Karlsson and Matt Duchene looking to build on two point games in Dallas.
Ottawa sits just 3 points out of the basement, and while getting the best odds at landing the #1 pick isn't the worst thing in the world, watching your team lose night after night and finishing dead last isn't what fans want to see, and both of these fan bases have are too close to that sun for their comfort.