Sabres at Flyers
The Buffalo Sabres and Philadelphia Flyers opened the season as two of the worst teams in the Eastern Conference. They're now headed in opposite directions as they meet for the first time this campaign Thursday night at Wells Fargo Center. Philadelphia improved to 4-0-1 in its last five games with a 5-2 victory over the Ottawa Senators on Tuesday night, while the Sabres dropped to 5-17-1 overall with a 4-1 loss to the St. Louis Blues.
Coach Craig Berube credits one major factor for the Flyers' stunning turnaround. "Confidence is a big thing," he told reporters following the victory over the Senators. "Our top players are producing, getting points and feeling good about themselves." The Sabres could use some of what the Flyers are having; after demoting four of their top prospects earlier in the day, they looked overwhelmed against St. Louis to fall to 1-2-0 under interim coach Ted Nolan.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, MSG (Buffalo), CSP (Philadelphia)
ABOUT THE SABRES (5-17-1): Making his return to Buffalo more than 15 years after winning the Jack Adams Award, Nolan didn't waste time labeling the 2013 edition of the Sabres as having too many young players on the roster. New team president Pat LaFontaine listened to his coach, sending Nikita Zadorov back to his junior team while reassigning Johan Larsson and Rasmus Ristolainen to Rochester of the American Hockey League. Mikhail Grigorenko's AHL conditioning assignment was rejected by the NHL, meaning he has to stay in Buffalo or be sent to his junior club.
ABOUT THE FLYERS (8-10-2): Philadelphia has looked like a veritable offensive juggernaut compared to how it opened the season, scoring 18 goals during its five-game point streak. Captain Claude Giroux - the player drawing the most heat for the slow start - scored his first two goals of the season over that stretch and credited some encouragement from a former teammate as a major help. "It wasn't going right, and I got a nice text from (Kings forward) Mike Richards," Giroux told NHL.com prior to the win over Ottawa. "I think he gave me a boost to relax and enjoy the game."
OVERTIME
1. The home team has won the last five head-to-head meetings, most recently Buffalo's 1-0 triumph April 13.
2. Giroux has four goals and 16 assists in 18 career games against the Sabres.
3. Grigorenko may be forced to remain in Buffalo. His junior club, the Quebec Remparts, already has the maximum two import players on its roster.