Tim Thomas had to settle for second star honors from the NHL for the month of October despite his historic start to the season, but it appears he will at least get to work through any frustration over the slight.
Thomas was the first goalie off the ice at the morning skate, indicating he will likely get the start in goal again in Buffalo when the Bruins continue their three-game road trip against the Sabres on Wednesday night.
Thomas doesn’t have great career numbers against the Sabres. He’s 6-9-2 with a 3.24 goals-against average and an .893 save percentage versus Buffalo, and has lost his last five starts against the Sabres. Thomas last beat Buffalo back on Nov. 10, 2007, making 45 saves in a 2-1 win at the Garden.
Thomas has to go back even further to find his last win in Buffalo, which was all the way back in the 2006-07 season. He made 22 saves in regulation and overtime, then stopped all eight Sabres attempts in an epic shootout won by Petr Tenkrat in the eighth round for a 4-3 victory on Feb. 17, 2007.
But if Thomas is ever going to break the Buffalo hex, now seems like the time, as he is 6-0-0 with an NHL-leading 0.50 GAA and .984 save percentage to start the season.
The Bruins shouldn’t have any other changes on Wednesday. Daniel Paille will remain a scratch against his old club, as will Brian McGrattan. The line changes made Saturday in Ottawa will remain, with Blake Wheeler now skating with Tyler Seguin and Michael Ryder and Mark Recchi back with Patrice Bergeron and Jordan Caron.
For the Sabres, they will be without their top goalie, as reigning Vezina winner Ryan Miller will be out with a lower-body injury. Patrick Lalime is expected to start his second straight game, while Jhonas Enroth has been recalled to back him up. Enroth’s only NHL game came against the Bruins nearly a year ago, as he allowed four goals on 37 shots in a 4-2 Bruins win at the Garden on Nov. 7, 2009.
Buffalo will also be without former Boston College star Nathan Gerbe (broken jaw), who will likely be placed on injured reserve to open a roster spot for Enroth. Jason Pominville will return, however, and pay for the first time since suffering a concussion on a blind-side hit on Oct. 11. He finally passed his neuro-psych exam on the third try on Monday to be cleared to play.
Buffalo will also have captain Craig Rivet back in the lineup. The veteran defenseman was a surprise healthy scratch the last two games. His return will likely shift Chris Butler to the press box, while Mike Weber will remain a scratch as well.
Projected Bruins lines:
Forwards
Milan Lucic-David Krejci-Nathan Horton
Jordan Caron-Patrice Bergeron-Mark Recchi
Blake Wheeler-Tyler Seguin-Michael Ryder
Brad Marchand-Gregory Campbell-Shawn Thornton
Defense
Zdeno Chara- Andrew Ference
Mark Stuart- Dennis Seidenberg
Matt Hunwick-Adam McQuaid
Goalies
Tim Thomas
Tuukka Rask
Scratches: Daniel Paille, Brian McGrattan, Johnny Boychuk (forearm)
Projected Sabres lines:
Forwards
Jochen Hecht-Derek Roy-Jason Pominville
Thomas Vanek-Tim Connolly-Patrick Kaleta
Tyler Ennis-Rob Niedermayer-Drew Stafford
Cody McCormick-Paul Gaustad-Mike Grier
Defense
Jordan Leopold-Steve Montador
Shaone Morrisonn-Tyler Myers
Craig Rivet-Andrej Sekera
Goalies
Patrick Lalime
Jhonas Enroth
Scratches: Chris Butler, Mike Weber, Nathan Gerbe (jaw), Ryan Miller (lower body)
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