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Buffalo Sabres Weekly Three Stars: March 16

By Melissa Kania

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The past week for the Buffalo Sabres has been a relatively quiet one. The Sabres had a light schedule last week, with just two games on tap. First up was a bout with the Maple Leafs at the Air Canada Centre, where the Sabres fell in a shootout despite a trio of goals from Johan Larsson, Tyler Ennis and Matt Moulson. After that, the Sabres were off until Saturday, when the New York Rangers came to town.

The Sabres fell to one of the top teams in the league by a 2-0 deficit.

1. Anders Lindback

Anders Lindback continues to be one of the best performers for the Buffalo Sabres since joining his new team. He’s stepped up in the starting goaltending role and has been working hard night after night to keep the team in it.

This past week, Lindback played in both games, stopping 62 of 66 shots faced. (Note that the Leafs’ win came in a shootout, and one of the Rangers’ goals came in an empty net.)

He stopped 31 shots in Wednesday’s game against Toronto, including 16 saves recorded in the third period and five in the overtime period. Lindback also had 31 saves on Saturday against the Rangers, including 13 in the third period.

It seems likely that Lindback will play in AT LEAST two games this week, if not more. Head coach Ted Nolan may exercise the option of rotating between Lindback and Hackett, who could play at least once this week, but only time will tell for sure.

2. Mike Weber

In two games last week, Mike Weber had over 50 minutes of ice time and an overall zero plus/minus.

Weber’s week included seven hits in Wednesday’s game against the Toronto Maple Leafs and nine blocked shots in Saturday’s bout with the Rangers. He also recorded three shots on goal that night.

3. Matt Moulson

Matt Moulson was one of three players to record multiple points in the loss against the Leafs.

He had one goal and two assists and was an outstanding plus-three along with Johan Larsson and Tyler Ennis, who also each recorded a goal and two assists. That line did absolutely everything for the Sabres that night.

Moulson had a team-high five shots on goal, plus four attempts blocked and two missed shots. He also registered one takeawya and one blocked shot in 18:08 ice time. Moulson again had over 18 minutes of ice time Saturday as he recored two shots on goal. He also had one hit and one attempt blocked and won 27 percent of his faceoffs (4/15).

Unlike last week’s light schedule, this week is a hefty one for the Buffalo Sabres.

The team will kick things off Monday as they host the Washington Capitals, before traveling to Boston to face the Bruins on Tuesday in the second half of the back-to-back set. After a few days off, the Sabres then host the New Jersey Devils on Friday before visiting the Nashville Predators in what’s sure to be a tough test on Saturday.

Two sets of back-to-back games this week will put the Sabres to the test as they continue to edge closer to the end of the 2014-2015 NHL season.

Next: Sabres Charge Into Final Month

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