Even without Stone and Eichel, Vegas presents a challenge for Buffalo

The Buffalo Sabres will be welcoming in the defending Stanley Cup champions Vegas Golden Knights tonight at 7pm. During this two week stretch of facing playoff-contending teams, the Sabres are 2-1-0. They will look to make it three wins as they will host a very tough opponent in Vegas.

As everyone is aware, the Golden Knights have former Sabres captain Jack Eichel. We all know about the trade and how much attention the game gets when Eichel returns to Buffalo. After Buffalo got the first win a couple of seasons ago, Eichel got his revenge as he scored a hat trick in a Golden Knights victory last year.

Buffalo beat the Golden Knights in Vegas back in December and will look to sweep the season series tonight. However, Vegas will be without two of their best players. Mark Stone will be out of the lineup as he was placed on long-term injured reserve, with him possibly being out for the rest of the regular season.

The Golden Knights will also be without Eichel. Jack suffered a lower-body injury back in January and hasn't played since. While he was practicing with the team on their road trip, Vegas head coach Bruce Cassidy confirmed that Jack will not be playing in tonight's game as they hope he'll be good to go Monday when they face the Columbus Blue Jackets.

Even though the Golden Knights will be without Eichel and Stone, Buffalo will still have a challenge on their hands. The defending champs are 33-20-7 with 73 points as they sit in second place in the Pacific Division. Players like Chandler Stephenson, William Karlsson, and Jonathan Marchessault are just a few of the players Buffalo will have to shut down.

Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen is expected to get the start for the Sabres as you can catch the game on ESPN+/Hulu.