BUFFALO – Having clinched the Atlantic Division, the Sabres will rest several of their regulars for tonight’s regular-season finale against the Dallas Stars.
Based on the morning skate, captain Rasmus Dahlin, leading scorer Tage Thompson, defenseman Mattias Samuelsson and forwards Ryan McLeod and Jason Zucker could all be scratched.
Goalie Colten Ellis is expected to start and be backed up by Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen.
The Sabres could also recall some players.
The game, of course, has no impact on the standings for either team. The Sabres are locked into an opening-round series against the Boston Bruins in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. The Stars, meanwhile, are set to face the Minnesota Wild.
Sabres coach Lindy Ruff doesn’t want to subject some players to injury.
“The part about accidental injury is real,” he said this morning in KeyBank Center. “I mean, Dallas last year lost one of their top players (Jason Robertson) in the last game of the year.
“So there’s (an) example of why take a chance when you have nothing to gain, and how bad you could look if you put somebody in jeopardy that you didn’t need.”
While the Sabres have one game left, they’ve zeroed in on the Bruins.
“Really, our whole focus right now is just on Boston,” Ruff said. “I’m not doing a lot of work on Dallas, I’ll be honest with you, and nor should I.”
A schedule for the series, which will start this weekend in Buffalo, is expected to be announced later this week.
In other news, Ruff said forward Noah Ostlund, who has missed the last nine games with an upper-body injury, “is really close” However, he said the rookie’s “doubtful” for the start of the postseason.
Meanwhile, Ruff said goalie Alex Lyon, who has missed the last four games with a muscle strain, “feels a lot better.”