Sabres at Red Wings
THE STORY: On paper, this story is a simple one – Buffalo can’t win on the road and Detroit can’t lose at home. The Sabres will look to snap a franchise-worst eight game road losing streak when they visit the Red Wings - winners of 14 straight home games - on Monday. To make matter worse for the Sabres, the Detroit contest is just their second on a seven-game road trip. Buffalo is quickly become a non-factor in the Eastern Conference playoff race. Detroit is currently third in the tightly contested Central Division, three points behind Chicago, a single point behind St. Louis, and three points up on Nashville. After playing Buffalo, the Red Wings hit the road for two games, where they sport an 11-13-0 record.
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, MSG-Buffalo, FS-Detroit
ABOUT THE RED WINGS (28-15-1): Detroit, 17-2-1 at home, is coming off a 3-2 overtime win at home over the Chicago Blackhawks. Todd Bertuzzi scored twice, including the OT winner, and Tomas Holmstrom scored his first goal in nine games for the Wings. Pavel Datsyuk collected two assists and Jimmy Howard made 25 saves for his NHL-leading 26th win. The Red Wings outshot the Hawks 43-27, including 21-4 in the first period.
ABOUT THE SABRES (19-20-5): Buffalo, 3-5-2 in its last 10 games, is coming off a 4-2 road loss to the New York Islanders. Patrick Kaleta and Derek Roy scored for the Sabres, while Jhonas Enroth made 36 saves, falling to 8-8-3 on the season. Trailing 3-2 late in the game, the Sabres had a chance to pull even with the Isles when Thomas Vanek was awarded a penalty shot with 1:24 remaining in the game. Vanek hit the goal post. The Sabres have won just twice in their last nine games and have not won back-to-back games since Nov. 11th.
OVERTIME:
1. With 14 straight home wins the Red Wings tied a franchise record that was set in 1965.
2. The Calgary Flames were the last team to beat the Red Wings at Joe Louis Arena. The Flames won 4-1 on Nov. 3rd.
3. Datsyuk has collected 14 assists and 18 points over the Wings' home win streak.