Sabres at Panthers
The Florida Panthers are wagering that the acquisition of Jaromir Jagr can help them overcome their scoring troubles. The future Hall-of-Famer is expected to be in the lineup as the Panthers attempt to snap their four-game winless streak (0-3-1) when they host the Buffalo Sabres on Saturday afternoon. The 43-year-old will be suiting up for his eighth NHL team when he takes the ice for Florida, which was blanked on the back end of a home-and-home sweep by Chicago on Thursday and has been held to fewer than two goals on six occasions over its last nine contests (2-5-2).
Despite their troubles, the Panthers reside just four points behind Boston for the second wild card in the Eastern Conference. Buffalo hardly has provided much of a challenge for Florida, which owns a 3-0-1 record with a pair of shutouts versus its Atlantic Division rival. Captain Brian Gionta has been productive in the series, notching a pair of assists against the Panthers, and scored a goal and set up two others in the Sabres' 6-3 triumph versus Vancouver on Thursday.
TV: 3 p.m. ET, MSG (Buffalo), FSN Florida
ABOUT THE SABRES (19-38-5): Leading scorer Tyler Ennis' availability versus the Panthers is in question after he sat out both Thursday's game against the Canucks and Friday's practice due to a lower-body injury. Defenseman Nikita Zadorov is expected to return to the lineup after serving as a healthy scratch for three games as a result of being late for a team meeting on Sunday. He is expected to be paired with Andrej Meszaros, while fellow blue-liner Mark Pysyk was assigned to Rochester of the American Hockey League on Friday.
ABOUT THE PANTHERS (26-22-13): Acquired for a second-round pick in the 2015 draft and a third-round selection in 2016, Jagr ranks sixth all-time in goals (716), seventh in assists (1,068) and fifth in points (1,784) - although he has been held off the scoresheet in a career-high eight straight games. "Hopefully, he can add some offense on the power play and 5-on-5. We just want to keep it going and stay in the fight here," Roberto Luongo said. The veteran goaltender hasn't needed much offensive support against the Sabres, going 3-0-0 with a 0.67 goals-against average in three meetings this season.
OVERTIME
1. Florida C Nick Bjugstad has recorded two goals and an assist in the season series but has been held without a point in his last five contests.
2. Buffalo is 1-for-16 on the power play in its last six games.
3. Panthers RW Brad Boyes has collected two goals and two assists versus his former team this season.