Let's Go Blues

TEAM SNAPSHOTS
BLUES The St. Louis Blues return to Enterprise Center on Friday for a single home game sandwiched between a pair of four-game road trips. On Tuesday, they earned a 4-1 win in Philadelphia, capping off a nearly-perfect trip.

The only hiccup came in Montreal, in which a goal from Canadiens young star Cole Caufield tied the game with 10 seconds left in regulation. The 21-year-old forward followed it up with the OT winner two minutes into the extra period.

Saturday's 6-3 win in Toronto was the highlight, a crucial win on the road against one of the NHL's top teams to bounce back from the disappointing loss.

"We were disappointed with that effort in Montreal," said Blues captain Ryan O'Reilly. "It wasn't a complete game, and I thought we were more engaged tonight. We were more physical at times, we had good numbers, it was just a more complete game. We stayed resilient... It was a good response."

Regardless of how they got there, taking home seven of a possible eight road points at this stage of the season is a good sign. The Blues will look to add even more road wins after Friday's game, facing the Blackhawks in Chicago before heading East again to take on the Rangers, Islanders and Devils.

In a Central Division that remains as tight as any in the League, the Blues sit in second place as of Thursday afternoon with 66 points and a record of 30-14-6.

SABRES The Buffalo Sabres, two games into a five-game road trip, will make their next stop in St. Louis before finishing the trip in Dallas and Toronto. They will be hungry for a win after losing four straight games entering Friday's contest.

On Wednesday, the Sabres fell 4-0 to the Canadiens, as Montreal goaltender Sam Montembeault earned his first career shutout.

While they eventually lost the game, the Sabres' matchup with Colorado last Saturday saw the first career hat trick from forward Tage Thompson.

Drafted by the Blues and playing his rookie season in St. Louis, Thompson was traded to Buffalo in 2018 when the Blues acquired O'Reilly. The 24-year-old forward currently leads the Sabres with a career-best 38 points.

The Sabres made another big trade this season, sending 25-year-old star Jack Eichel to Vegas in November for forwards Peyton Krebs and Alex Tuch as well as draft compensation. Eichel, drafted No. 2 overall behind Connor McDavid in the 2015 draft, recorded 355 points in 375 games as a Sabre.

The adjustment inherently associated with dealing away a player of Eichel's caliber has been difficult for Buffalo this season. The Sabres currently sit seventh place in the Atlantic Division, with 40 points and a record of 16-28-8 entering Friday's game.

HEAD-TO-HEAD The Blues came away with a win the last time they faced the Sabres, a 5-1 finish on Jan. 9, 2020 led by three points each from Tyler Bozak, Robert Thomas and Alexander Steen. In their last 10 matchups, the Blues are 7-2-1.

PLAYERS TO WATCH
BLUES Ryan O'Reilly, who will face his former team for the fifth time since being traded to St. Louis. Including his years in Colorado, O'Reilly has 11 points against the Sabres in 11 total games.

SABRES Rasmus Dahlin, the 21-year-old All-Star defenseman. Dahlin was the second-youngest player in the All-Star Game, leading the Sabres with 25 assists on the season.

BLUE NOTES
The Blues have won eight straight home games against the Sabres, outscoring them 30-11 in that stretch. The Blues are 4-1-1 in their last six meetings with Buffalo overall... Justin Faulk has a plus-33 rating this season. Since joining the Blues in 2019-20, he is a plus-41 overall... The Blues are 18-6-2 at Enterprise Center this season. The 38 points collected at home are the third most in the NHL.

The St. Louis Blues will try to build on their recent success when they host the Buffalo Sabres on Friday.

The Blues went 3-0-1 on a road swing before returning home to face the Sabres at Enterprise Center, where they are 18-6-2. After hosting the Sabres, the Blues head out for another four-game road trip.

"We played some real good hockey on this trip," Blues coach Craig Berube said. "We let that one slip away in Montreal for sure, winning 2-1 with eight seconds to go. ... But overall very good hockey and coming away with seven out of eight points, that's a good trip."

The Blues lost 3-2 in overtime to the Canadiens on the trip, but earned victories at Ottawa, Toronto and Philadelphia.

"I think Toronto was a good showing for us and our checking," Blues defenseman Robert Bortuzzo said of his team's 6-3 win on Saturday. "You can't just not check against the Toronto Maple Leafs because they're a high-octane offense. We have to check consistently against every team in this league, no matter who you're playing. I think we've been coming to that realization."

The Blues have leaned heavily on goaltender Ville Husso since mid-January, giving him nine starts in a span of 11 games.

But Jordan Binnington made 25 saves in St. Louis' 4-1 win over Philadelphia on Tuesday. He may face the Sabres, who have lost four straight games and seven of their last nine.

"Both great goalies, and I think as long as we keep winning that's what our main focus is," Binnington said. "And obviously just taking care of yourself and pushing each other. You can't predict the future."

Buffalo will look for a much better start in this game. The Sabres struggled out of the gate Wednesday and lost 4-0 in Montreal.

"We helped them," Sabres coach Don Granato said. "We were sloppy early. ... We gave them four chances early before we got our first chance and they had a goal. And it was all our forwards not supporting our (defense) quick enough or giving them an outlet of support.

"We changed our effort, changed our focus, but it was obviously too late. Couldn't turn it. We would've needed a break on some of the chances we had, we hit a couple goal posts. But the fact is the fact. We allowed too much, too easy, too early. Period. We couldn't overcome that."

Sabres defenseman Henri Jokiharju left the Montreal game with a lower-body injury. Forwards Kyle Okposo and Victor Olofsson missed the game with non-COVID illnesses.

Forward Brandon Biro made his NHL debut for the Sabres at Montreal. He had 36 points (nine goals, 27 assists) in 39 games this season with Rochester of the American Hockey League.

"Biro was good," Granato said. "Real good for a first game. He looked confident and definitely early he showed some real nice skill."

Blues forward Brandon Saad missed practice Thursday due to illness.