Game #27 Preview and Open Thread: Sabers vs. UHC

Game #27

Utah Hockey Club (10-11-4) vs. Buffalo saber (11-12-3)

Puck drop: 1:00 PM EST | KeyBank Center | Buffalo, NY

TV: MSG

Know your opponent

Utah Hockey Club

Record: 10-11-4 | 24 PTS

Last game: 1-2 loss to Dallas (December 2)

Division ranking: 6th in westerns

PP: 16.9% (Sabre: 15.4%)

PK: 76.6% (Sabre: 80.2%)

What you should see

1. History is being written

Saturday afternoon’s game is truly a historic game as it marks the first-ever meeting between the Buffalo Sabers and the Utah Hockey Club. Honestly, this might sound stupid, but it’s still cool if you think about it. The Sabers have been around since 1970, the NHL even longer, and yet there are still “firsts” to experience with new developments in the league.

2. The leaders

The Utah Hockey Club is led by captain Clayton Keller, who has 22 points (7-15) in 25 games this season. Dylan Guenther leads the team with 10 goals, while Nick Schmaltz contributed a team-high 17 assists.

Connor Ingram, Utah’s best goaltender, is suffering from an injury. Karel Vejmelka is 3-7-1 this season with a .917 save percentage and a 2.38 GAA. Jaxson Stauber recently made his debut and is 1-0 on the season after posting a 29-save shutout against Vegas last weekend.

The Sabers are led by Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, who has an 8-6-3 record, a .906 save percentage and a 2.70 GAA this season. Luukkonen has already broken the 1,000 minute mark this season.

3. Gone Streakin’…in a bad way

If you’re reading this, I probably don’t need to tell you that things have looked bleak for the Sabers in recent games. After a three-game winning streak, the team ended a five-game losing streak that (hopefully) ends this afternoon.

These losses:

• 0-1 loss to Minnesota Wild
• 4-3 overtime loss to the Vancouver Canucks
• 3-0 loss to the New York Islanders
• 5-4 loss to Colorado Avalanche
• 3-2 overtime loss to the Winnipeg Jets

On paper, four of those defeats were by just one goal. But on the other hand, there were two shutouts, plus the miserable Avs loss that resulted in the team blowing a 4-0 lead. Sabers GM Kevyn Adams spoke to the media on Friday, but it doesn’t seem to have appeased anyone.

A win or loss this afternoon will impact how fans continue to watch this team.

After Saturday’s game, the Sabers have two more at home: Monday against Detroit and Wednesday against the Rangers, who are now without a captain.

Buffalo saber

Forward

Jason Zucker – Tage Thompson – Alex Tuch
Zach Benson – Dylan Cozens – JJ Peterka
Jiri Kulich – Ryan McLeod – Peyton Krebs
Beck Malenstyn – Tyson Kozak – Nicolas Aube-Kubel

defense

Jacob Bryson – Bowen Byram
Owen Power – Henri Jokiharju
Dennis Gilbert – Connor Clifton

Goalkeeper: Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, James Reimer

Utah Hockey Club

Forward

Clayton Keller – Barrett Hayton – Nick Schmaltz
Jack McBain – Logan Cooley – Dylan Guenther
Matias Maccelli – Nick Bjugstad – Lawson Crouse
Alex Kerfoot – Kevin Stenlund – Michael Carcone

defense

Mikhail Sergachev – Olli Maatta
Ian Cole – Michael Kesselring
Juuso Valimaki – Robert Bortuzzo

Goalkeeper: Karel Vejmelka, Jaxson Stauber