Detroit Red Wings vs. Buffalo Sabres: What streaming service is tonight's game on?
Detroit Red Wings (13-7-3) vs. Buffalo Sabres (10-13-2)
When: 7:30 p.m. Tuesday.
Where: KeyBank Center in Buffalo, New York.
TV: ESPN+, Hulu (online-only, no Bally Sports Detroit); subscribe here.
Radio: WXYT-FM (97.1; Red Wings radio affiliates).
Eyes on the ice: Here's how to watch the Red Wings this season without Bally Sports Detroit.
RAISING KANE: Patrick Kane's Detroit Red Wings debut? Tuesday 'ambitious,' target is Thursday
Game notes: While everything looks like it’s trending upward for the Detroit Red Wings — A contract for Patrick Kane! More goals for Alex DeBrincat! More Griddies for Jake Walman! — their rebuilding Atlantic Division counterparts across Lake Erie seem headed in the opposite direction.
It’s not just that the Sabres have lost three straight and haven’t even scored on the power play since Nov. 25 — they didn’t even HAVE a power play in Sunday’s loss to the Nashville Predators — but even the little things to root for aren’t quite there. Such as hulking forward Tage Thompson; last season’s 47-goal scorer (with four in four games vs. the Wings) is at six this season. Worse, he has been out since mid-November with a wrist injury. (When an NHL team tells you where the injury actually is, you know it’s bad.) Such as goalie-of-the-future Devon Levi; a college star who skipped the minors, Levi had a 3.73 goals-against average and .876 save percentage before getting loaned to the Sabres’ AHL affiliate in Rochester. (Though once there, he turned in a 40-save game, earning the right to don this fearsome trophy.) Such as defenseman Owen Power; the former Michigan star and No. 1 overall pick in 2021 had a plus-10 rating last season, when he finished third in the voting for top rookie — this year, he’s at minus-2. (Though that may be the product of the porous defense by his teammates, as fellow former-top-pick Rasmus Dahlin is at minus-7 and the Sabres are alloweing 3.4 goals a game, 22nd in the league.)
Nevertheless, the season continues, and there are some bright spots in Buffalo (even when the Bills aren’t playing): Rookie Zach Benson, the No. 13 overall pick this summer, made the team out of camp and has two goals and five assists in 15 games so far. 2020 second-rounder John-Jason Peterka (a countryman of Wings defenseman Moritz Seider) appears poised to set a career high in goals, as his 10 tallies are tied for the team lead. And, of course, the Sabres have some of the sweetest alternate sweaters in the league, their throwbacks to their red-and-black days (though they’ll be wearing the traditional blue and yellow vs. the Wings).
The Wings, meanwhile, appear to have fixed what ailed their offense, especially on the power play. After going 0-for 5 — games, not man advantages — in early and mid-November, Detroit has at least one power play goal in each of its past six games, with a 9-for-28 (32.1%) mark that echoes their 12-for-37 run in October that launched a 6-3-1 start to the season. Perhaps not coincidentally, the Wings are 5-1-0 in their past six. (Though games against non-contenders such as Minnesota, Chicago and Montreal probably played a part as well.) During that span, the Wings have gotten two power play goals apiece from J.T. Compher, David Perron and Moritz Seider; at even strength, it has been Robby Fabbri fueling the attack with five goals (including four at even strength) and two assists.
After tonight, the Wings return home for a game with perhaps a big more anticipation than you’d expect for a visit from the league-worst San Jose Sharks (6-17-2) — there’s a good chance Patrick Kane will make his long-awaited Wings debut at Little Caesars Arena. The Sabres, meanwhile, will also play Thursday, but against a slightly tougher foe: the Atlantic-leading Bruins in Boston. Time to stock up on the Dunkin’.
Live updates
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Contact Ryan Ford at rford@freepress.com. Follow him on X (which used to be Twitter, y’know?) @theford. Read more on the Detroit Red Wings and sign up for our Red Wings newsletter.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Red Wings game score vs. Buffalo Sabres: How to watch
