Return of the Captain

Strange as it sounds, to analyze tonight's matchup between Buffalo and Ottawa, the one factor that could work against the Sabres is that the game is at HSBC Arena. It's no secret that Buffalo has played better on the road than on home ice this year.

They will see if they can turn that around tonight, and having Craig Rivet back in the lineup will be a big boost for them.

It's funny to me how underrated Rivet is by many Sabres fans. Granted, there isn't a huge body of work of him in blue and gold to go by, but the fact remains that the Sabres are a better team with Rivet in the lineup. Statistics bear this out. On home ice, Buffalo is 7-3-1 with their captain, and 3-6-1 without him. Though his play hasn't been mistake free, he does add a grittiness, and of course leadership, that is lacking without him.

Coach Ruff, always one to welcome physicality to the lineup, says as much:

“I think you’ve seen what [Paul] Gaustad has done for our lineup. I think
Craig
on the backend gives us a little more stiffness, a little more dirt in
the
lineup,” Ruff said. “We’ve our captain back, we’ve got grit back.”

Teppo Numminen has been missing from practice with the flu, so Rivet may go in tonight without any other changes to the backend.

Tonight will be a good chance for the Sabres to reward their fans with a win at home, against a hated opponent.