You might not like the process, by which a team is rewarded by failing, but it is what it is and tonight's matchup between the Sabres and Senators will go a long way to determining who will finish dead last in the NHL and have the best odds at nabbing Swedish defenseman Rasmus Dahlin in the upcoming draft.
Speaking of Swedish defensemen, Ottawa will likely be without their best one as Erik Karlsson didn't take the team flight yesterday, although he could join the team today but that is not super likely. Karlsson surpassed the 60 point plateau on Monday and made the much publicized move of picking up the game puck in what may have been his final game as a Senator.
Also not making the trip is Mike Condon, who was injured in practice yesterday. Instead of calling up top prospect Filip Gustavsson to get a taste of the NHL environment, the Senators instead chose to call Danny Taylor from Belleville to back up Craig Anderson.
In the current turtle race, Buffalo holds a 3 point edge on the Senators, for the league's lowest point total, with both teams having 3 games remaining. Buffalo and Ottawa have met three times already this season, with each game being decided by 1 goal, and 2 of them requiring extra time. Ottawa has a 1-1-1 record while Buffalo is 2-0-1 in the head to head meetings.
Robin Lehner has been a thorn in the side of the Senators since he was dealt by Ottawa to Buffalo (6-0-3 record, 1.70 GAA and .947 SP), but he has missed the last 2 games with a lower body injury and may not be available tonight.
Jack Eichel leads the Sabres with 62 points despite playing just 64 games this season, and had a career best 5 assists last week in a 7-4 win over Nashville but the Sabres are coming off a 5-2 loss to the Maple Leafs. Buffalo can finish no better than 30th.
Ottawa fell short despite multiple comeback attempts after falling behind 3-0 early on against Winnipeg on Monday night and have lost 8 of their last 9, and are all but assured a bottom 2 finish now that the Coyotes have even opened up a 4 point cushion on them, and their remaining games after tonight are a back to back in Pittsburgh and Boston who are both 100 point teams that are jockeying for positions of their own in the standings. .