The Sabres sit in the middle of the Eastern Conference pack at 16-13-5, but they blanked the Caps 5-0 at home when the two teams met back on November 1. Thomas Vanek had a pair of goals in that win, while Derek Roy, Jason Pominville, and Daniel Paille also chipped in with markers. Ryan Miller made 29 saves for the shutout.

The Caps are hoping to clear out some of their infirmary soon, as key performers Mike Green (shoulder), Alexander Semin (back), Sergei Fedorov (ankle), and Tom Poti (groin) have all been missing time. Washington is also looking to get better results from goaltender Jose Theodore, who has a 3.32 goals-against average on the season.

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Buffalo hasn't scored more than four goals since November 1, and they’ve scored two or fewer in nine of their last 15 games, a 5-9-1 stretch. The Penguins have alternated wins and losses in their last nine games. Malkin has a four-game point streak against the Sabres, during which he's recorded three goals and six assists.

Ryan Miller is 1-3-0 with a 4.20 goals-against average in his last four games against Pittsburgh, and Dany Sabourin is expected to be in goal for the Penguins after rookie John Curry got the last start against Buffalo. Get your NHL betting in the Bodog Sportsbook.

The Sabres have a lot of things going for them tonight. Vanek has 28 points in 24 career games against Boston, and the Sabres are 14-0-2 against the Bruins when he has at least one point. Ryan Miller is 3-0-0 with a 1.30 goals-against average this season, including going 11-3-4 with a 2.50 GAA in his career versus the Bruins.

Manny Fernandez is expected to start tonight for the Bruins. Fernandez is 3-0-0 with a 2.00 GAA in his career against the Sabres, but he hasn't faced them since Dec. 13, 2003. Get all your hockey odds at Bodog.

The Sabres are also undefeated heading into tonight's game and are coming off a 7-1 destruction of the Islanders on Monday afternoon. Thomas Vanek had two goals in a four-goal second period for the Sabres, who jumped out to a 5-0 lead.

Vanek has five goals, including three on the power play, and four assists in 12 lifetime games against the Rangers. Buffalo will need his scoring if they hope to improve on a 1-4 record in the last five meetings at MSG.

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Patrick Kaleta scores on Cam Ward in Buffalo. (AP Images)

The Buffalo Sabres did their best impersonation of the Harlem Globetrotters on Friday night, scoring at will against Carolina.

On their first seven shots, the Sabres fired four goals past Hurricanes goalie Cam Ward en route to a 7-1 romp in Buffalo, N.Y. Derek Roy led the attack with two goals and an assist as the Sabres ended a four-game losing streak. They’re now just two points behind Philadelphia for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.

Adam Mair had a goal and two assists as the Sabres paid -130 on the puckline (meaning a winning hockey bet of $130 would net $100). The betting total went over 6.5 goals in a fight-filled contest that featured 20 penalties and 81 total penalty minutes.

The loss ended a five-game winning streak by Carolina.

In other NHL action on Friday:

Florida 3, New York Rangers 2: The underdog Panthers handed the visiting Rangers a costly loss thanks to a power-play goal by Olli Jokinen. The Panthers have won six straight while the Rangers’ points streak ended at 13 games. Florida paid +115.

Chicago 6, Columbus 3: Rookie sniper Patrick Kane netted the winning goal when he scored his 17th of the season at the 12-minute mark of the second period. The Blackhawks paid +110 for the road win.

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Alex Ovechkin (L) and Nick Backstrom (R) celebrate scoring against the Buffalo Sabres. (AP Images)

Is there any debate who the best player in the National Hockey league is right now?

If anybody says someone other than Alexander Ovechkin, they're dead wrong.

Ovechkin scored his 53rd and 54th goals of the year – making it six in his last three games – as the Washington Capitals scored a crucial 3-1 win over the Buffalo Sabres to keep their playoff hopes alive.

While he was kept in check for a good portion of the evening, Ovechkin simply buried Buffalo when opportunities were presented to him. A breakaway feed in the 1st period – on a nice feed from rookie Swedish linemate Nick Backstrom – was matched with a half-break in the third that Alexander the Great slammed past Ryan Miller. The Sabres were caught on an awful line change on the third goal, allowing AO to score the insurance marker while Buffalo was carrying the play.

Ales Kotalik scored his 20th goal of the season for the Sabres in a losing effort.

Washington came into this contest at -105 on the moneyline, while the Sabres were listed at -115.

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Buffalo's Thomas Vanek celebrates Steve Bernier's first goal during an 8-4 romp over Nashville. (AP Images)

When the Buffalo Sabres traded away two-time All Star defenseman Brian Campbell, fans bemoaned the loss of yet another star player.

They didn't realize the guy they got in return was pretty damn good, too.

Steve Bernier - who was acquired along with a future 1st round draft pick for Campbell – scored two goals and added an assist in his Buffalo debut as the Sabres throttled the Nashville Predators, 8-4.

The scoring outburst was especially sweet for Bernier. It made a great impression in front of his new teammates and also snapped a personal 12-game drought, the longest of his NHL career.

Ales Kotalik, Derek Roy, Daniel Paille, Jason Pominville, Tim Connolly and Andrew Peters all scored for Buffalo, who chased starting Predators netminder Chris Mason from the game. In fact, both teams used both goalies on the night – Sabres netminder Ryan Miller had to leave the game temporarily after taking a deflected puck off the mask.

Buffalo came into the contest at -110 in the Bodog Sportsbook, while the offensive explosion of 12 goals easily sailed over the posted total of 5.5.

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