A pair of squads at opposite ends of their conference’s standings, the Toronto Maple Leafs (fourth in the Eastern Conference at 16-7-6) and the Buffalo Sabres (14th in the Eastern Conference at 13-17-3), square off on Thursday, December 21 at 7:00 PM ET on MSG-B and ESPN+.
Maple Leafs vs. Sabres Game Info
- Game Day: Thursday, December 21, 2023
- Game Time: 7:00 PM ET
- TV: MSG (Regional restrictions may apply)
FREE NHL LIVE STREAM: Watch Maple Leafs vs. Sabres for free with a trial to Fubo!
Maple Leafs and Sabres Stats, Key Players, and Injuries
Maple Leafs Insights
- The Maple Leafs’ 104 total goals (3.6 per game) make them the ninth-best scoring team in the league.
- Defensively, the Maple Leafs are conceding 94 total goals (3.2 per game) to rank 13th in NHL play.
- They have the league’s 11th-ranked goal differential at +10.
- The 22 power-play goals the Maple Leafs have scored this season (to rank 14th in the NHL) have come on 85 power-play chances.
- The Maple Leafs have the league’s sixth-best power-play conversion rate (25.88%).
- The two shorthanded goals the Maple Leafs have scored this season rank 17th among NHL teams.
- The Maple Leafs’ 78.16% penalty-kill success rate ranks 22nd in the league.
- The Maple Leafs have the sixth-best faceoff win rate in the NHL, at 52.9%.
- The Maple Leafs shoot 10.9% as a team (seventh in the league).
- The Maple Leafs have shut out opponents twice this season. They average 21.0 hits and 17.2 blocked shots per game.
Maple Leafs Key Players
- A productive offensive player this season for Toronto, William Nylander has recorded 41 points.
- Having scored 25 goals and adding 12 assists, Auston Matthews is an important piece of the offense for Toronto through 28 games.
- Mitchell Marner has contributed 33 points for Toronto in 29 games this season, netting a goal on 20.3% of his shots and recording 13 goals and 20 assists.
- Across 13 games played, Ilya Samsonov has a goaltending record of 5-1-5. During those games, he’s allowed 41 goals while recording 296 saves.
Maple Leafs Injuries
Matt Murray: Hip (Out),
Joseph Woll: Ankle (Out),
Mark Giordano: Finger (Out),
John Klingberg: Hip (Out For Season),
Jake Muzzin: Back (Out For Season)
Sabres Insights
- With 94 goals (2.8 per game), the Sabres have the NHL’s 20th-ranked offense.
- The Sabres’ total of 113 goals conceded (3.4 per game) is 29th in the league.
- Their -19 goal differential is 28th in the league.
- The Sabres have 13 power-play goals (26th in NHL) on 93 chances.
- The Sabres’ power-play percentage (13.98) ranks them 27th in the league.
- This season, the Sabres have two shorthanded goals (17th in league).
- At 80.58, the Sabres have the 14th-ranked penalty-kill percentage in the league.
- The Sabres win 46% of faceoffs, 30th-ranked in the NHL.
- The 9.4% shooting percentage of the Sabres is 22nd in the league.
- This season, the Sabres have shut out their opponents once.
Sabres Key Players
- Casey Mittelstadt has totaled 28 points (0.8 per game) for Buffalo, with eight goals and 20 assists in 33 games (playing 19:00 per game).
- Rasmus Dahlin has helped lead the offense for Buffalo this season with eight goals and 19 assists.
- Buffalo’s Jeff Skinner is among the leading scorers on the team with 22 total points (12 goals and 10 assists).
- Eric Comrie has an .862 save percentage (67th in the league), with 144 total saves, conceding 23 goals (4.0 goals against average). He has put up a 1-5-0 record this season.
Sabres Injuries
Jordan Greenway: Upper Body (Out),
Jeff Skinner: Upper Body (Questionable),
Zemgus Girgensons: Lower Body (Out)
 and the Buffalo Sabres (14th in the Eastern Conference at 13-17-3), square off on Thursday, December 21 at 7:00 PM ET on MSG-B and ESPN+.Maple Leafs vs. Sabres...){kind=link}