Daryl Reaugh previews the game (6 p.m.on FSSW) with this video gift here. Enjoy.
Lindy Ruff and Jason Spezza talk at the morning skate here.
BUFFALO,N.Y. _ This is Lindy Ruff's third time back to Buffalo, and while it's not quite a routine trip back, it has lost a little of the passion of his first return.
"It won't be anything like going back the first time. That parade is over," Ruff said of returning to the place where he played 608 games and coached for 15 seasons. "It's nice. I've got a lot of good friends there. It was a great place to play, and it was a great place to coach. But it's nothing like going back the first time. Now, it's business."
Ruff even joked with the Buffalo media when they asked if he prepares himself differently for a game in the town where he still lives in the summer.
"I had to put the blade on the four-wheeler so my son can use it as a snowplow, I had to get some leaves out of the gardens around the house, but other than that I didn't change much."
Ruff is 1-1-0 in this building as the opposing coach, and said he still enjoys the interaction with friends.
"I love coming back and seeing the old faces and old friends," he said.
The Stars will have a good challenge in this game. Buffalo (8-8-1) is on a 5-1-1 run and is playing its best hockey in years. The Sabres are alternating goalies, and the Stars will get 22-year-old Linus Ullmark tonight. Ullmark is 4-2-0 with a 2.45 GAA and .924 save percentage. He has allowed four goals on 75 shots in recent wins over Florida and Vancouver.
The Sabres also will have defenseman Zach Bogosian in the game for the first time this season. He has been out since training camp with a lower body injury.
The Stars will see the return of winger Patrick Eaves to the lineup. Eaves hurt his knee in Game 3 of the season, and will jump in on a second line with Jason Spezza.
"I like Patrick's game," Ruff said. "He's a shooter, so he should fit well with Spezz, he plays a two-way game, he plays the game the right way. He knows where to be. We're going to use him a little bit on special teams, and he is champing at the bit to get back in there."
Ruff said he has been balancing the lines, so he thinks most of the forwards fit on most of the lines.
"We're trying to balance things out," he said. "The ice time is really balanced on lines two and three, and even sometimes four. So I have to question if you can label them as a two line or a three line. But I like Patty's game and I like what Sceviour has done with Hemsky and Fiddler, so I didn't want to tinker with that line."
Jyrki Jokipakka has missed the past two games with a lower body injury, but looks like he is back in. Jamie Oleksiak and Travis Moen look to be your scratches.
Here are the Stars' expected lines:
Jamie Benn-Tyler Seguin-Patrick Sharp
Mattias Janmark-Jason Spezza-Patrick Eaves
Colton Sceviour-Vernon Fiddler-Ales Hemsky
Antoine Roussel-Cody Eakin-Valeri Nichushkin
Alex Goligoski-John Klingberg
Johnny Oduya-Jason Demers
Jyrki Jokipakka-Jordie Benn
Antti Niemi
Niemi is 6-3-0 with a 2.80 GAA and .907 save percentage. He has played once in the past six games, losing to Toronto and allowing three goals on 30 shots.
Niemi said he will be prepared and doesn't believe that a goalie gets himself into a rhythm or out of a rhythm by playing or not playing.
"It's your job to be ready every day, no matter what," he said. "If you played last game or didn't play last game. If you played 20 in a row, it shouldn't matter. Each game is different and new and you have to be prepared."
The Sabres are expected to use this lineup:
Matt Moulson- Ryan O'Reilly - Brian Gionta
Johan Larsson - Jack Eichel - Tyler Ennis
Marcus Foligno - Tim Schaller - Sam Reinhart
Jamie McGinn - David Legwand - Nicolas Deslauriers
Josh Gorges - Rasmus Ristolainen
Here is Ruff on the red hot Sabres: "Buffalo has the best record in the Atlantic Division over the last ten games, and they've played some really good hockey. They've got some really good players up front. They've got the kid (Jack) Eichel, who I think is going to be a tremendous player. He's young, and he's playing at an elite level with elite players. There's good structure to their game. Right now, they are in every game and not giving up a lot."