Game #80 - vs Buffalo Sabres

Buffalo Sabres (50-21-7, 107 pts) at Pittsburgh Penguins (45-23-11, 101 pts)

Prior meetings:
Penguins 5, Sabres 4 (SO) on March 13th in Pittsburgh
Penguins 4, Sabres 2 on January 5th in Buffalo
Sabres 4, Penguins 2 on November 17th in Buffalo

Playoff position update:
The Pens can finish 2nd in the conference if:

1. The Pens win their remaining games.
2. The Devils lose tonight to the Senators in regulation.

The Pens can finish 4th in the conference if:

1. The Pens win their remaining games, beating Ottawa in regulation.

The Pens have a chance to finish 3-1 against the Sabres, which would be no small feat, considering how the Sabres have played this year. I think the Pens match up well against these guys, mainly because Buffalo likes to play an up-and-down game, which the Pens also love to do. One thing is certain - tonight will be an entertaining game.

We'll likely see Marc-Andre Fleury in net tonight for the Pens against Ryan Miller for the Sabres. Miller is looking to set the team record for wins. The Pens are 2-0 against Miller this year (Biron was in goal when the Sabres won early in the season).

Buffalo has a virtual lock on the #1 seed in the Eastern Conference. They have a 5 point lead on both Jersey and Ottawa with a game in hand. The Pens, as detailed above, are struggling for either the 2 or 4 seed. They can fall no lower than 5.

Sabres blog - BfloBlog
This is easily one of my favorite blogs to link to. There's always a game preview up (today is no exception), and it's always well written.

Tonight's game will be fun. That's all we know for sure. I'd love to say the Pens will be able to take this one, but I'm a little bit nervous about it. I'm hoping for two points so they can keep their chances of the 2nd or 4th spot alive.

Let's Go Pens!