Carolina Hurricanes vs. Buffalo Sabres Pick & Prediction APRIL 8th 2025
Preview and Prediction
While a more notable and oversized marksman has been breaking records and garnering a lot of attention recently, Tage Thompson is quietly on an impressive streak himself.
The Buffalo Sabres' 6-foot-6, 220-pound pivot had seven tallies in his previous four contests leading up to Tuesday night's matchup against the visiting Carolina Hurricanes.
Thompson recorded a hat trick in Sunday's 6-3 victory over the Boston Bruins at home, bringing his season total to 43 goals and 27 assists for a total of 70 points in 70 games.
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Teammate Alex Tuch praised Thompson, saying, "I think first and foremost, he's the ultimate competitor. He wants to win out there, he wants to score goals, he wants to make a difference every night, and it's evident. It's really easy to follow when you're playing with a player like that. He gives you a lot of energy. Honestly, he's becoming a superstar and it's fantastic to see."
This is the second time in his eight-year career that Thompson, 27, has surpassed the 40-goal mark.
The Sabres (34-36-6, 74 points) have won four consecutive games while placing an emphasis on their defensive play.
Thompson commented on their recent success, saying, "I think we knew that if we just played the right way, the goals would come for us. We've proven to ourselves that we can score. So I think it's just a matter of not getting bored with playing the right way when we don't see immediate results. I like our commitment to battling and finding a way to grind out a win."
The Hurricanes (46-26-4, 96 points) currently sit in second place in the Metropolitan Division but have dropped their last two games.
Their most recent loss came on Saturday, a 5-1 defeat at the hands of the Boston Bruins on the road.
Hurricanes coach Rod Brind'Amour shared his thoughts on the game, saying, "I thought we had a decent start, but then we gave up a couple of goals right at the end of the first period that set us back and we just couldn't get going. Then they got another odd goal that shouldn't have gone in, and now we're chasing the game. We generated a lot of offense, but when you're behind like that, it's tough. Their goalie played really well."
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Carolina narrowly avoided being shutout when Justin Robidas, who was playing in his second NHL game, scored with just 55 seconds remaining in the game.
Robidas expressed his excitement about contributing offensively, saying, "It's always fun to contribute offensively. It's unfortunate that it came in a loss like that, but it's definitely something that I'll remember. It's been a pretty big weekend for myself, my family, and everyone who has supported me, so it's definitely very special."
Despite his goal, Robidas was reassigned to the AHL affiliate Chicago on Sunday. He made his NHL debut on Friday in a 5-3 loss to the Detroit Red Wings, where he recorded an assist for his first NHL point. In the AHL this season, Robidas has tallied 48 points (17 goals, 31 assists) in 65 games.
Frederik Andersen, who had won his last seven starts, made 21 saves in the Hurricanes' loss to the Bruins on Saturday.
Carolina Hurricanes vs. Buffalo Sabres
Dougie Hamilton scored midway through overtime as the Carolina Hurricanes recovered after surrendering a two-goal lead to defeat the host Buffalo Sabres 5-4 on Thursday night.
Hamilton, a defenseman, is tied for the team lead with nine goals. He was set up by Martin Necas' rush into the zone with the puck before ending the game at the 2:28 mark.
Jordan Staal, Sebastian Aho, Teuvo Teravainen and Andrei Svechnikov also scored for the Hurricanes. Teravainen and Svechnikov both assisted on two goals while Hamilton and Aho added one assist apiece.
Buffalo pulled even with 6:25 to go in the third period when Henri Jokiharju converted off a Carolina turnover for the team's second unassisted goal of the game.
However, the Hurricanes benefited from the high-sticking penalty on Buffalo's Sam Reinhart to set up Svechnikov's go-ahead, power-play goal with 3:54 remaining in regulation.
Then Johan Larsson tied the game again for the Sabres, scoring with 40.1 seconds to play in regulation.
Jeff Skinner and Curtis Lazar also scored for the Sabres, who were playing for the first time since last week's two-game set in Sweden. Buffalo lost twice to Tampa Bay.
Aho's goal came on Carolina's first power play of the game.
Goalie Petr Mrazek made 29 saves for the Hurricanes, who began a three-game road stretch. They have won their past 10 meetings with Buffalo.
Buffalo goalie Carter Hutton stopped 24 shots. The Sabres have a six-game losing streak (0-4-2).
Skinner, who has eight goals, is in his second season with the Sabres after beginning his career with Carolina. He also assisted on Larsson's goal in the final minute of regulation.
Staal's goal was his 100th as a member of the Hurricanes.
The Hurricanes went up 3-1 just 49 seconds into the second period on Teravainen's goal.
Lazar's unassisted goal with just less than five minutes to play in the middle period trimmed the margin to one.
The Hurricanes were coming off an eight-goal outing Monday against Ottawa, their biggest offensive production of the season. They've won twice in a row since a four-game losing streak.
The contest was Buffalo's first home game in nearly two weeks.