Thursday June 4 7:30pm
Now that Dominik Hasek is back to being "The Dominator," the Buffalo Sabres must be feeling good about their chances tonight in Game Six as they try to stave off elimination once more against the Washington Capitals in the Eastern Conference finals.
Hasek almost single-handedly helped the Sabres avoid elimination with 34 saves and Jason Woolley scored the spectacular tie-breaking goal with 4:26 remaining in a 2-1 victory over the Capitals on Tuesday.
After allowing a pair of questionable goals in a 2-0 loss in Game Four, Hasek was brilliant in Tuesday's victory. Hasek is 10-4 this postseason with a 1.97 goals-against average and a .939 save percentage. However, counterpart Olaf Kolzig sports a 1.69 GAA and a .946 save percentage.
Buffalo is trying to become the 15th team in playoff history and the second this year to rally from a three games to one deficit. Washington has blown 3-1 leads three times and still is seeking its first-ever appearance in the Stanley Cup Finals.
The Sabres are just 2-for-27 on the power play in this series but 16-for-83 (19.3 percent) overall. The Caps are 4-for-25 in this series and 11-for-61 (18 percent) overall.
Washington won both games in Buffalo earlier in this series and is 6-1 on the road this postseason. The Sabres had won their first four games on home ice in the playoffs before dropping both contests to the Caps.
Matthew Barnaby and Donald Audette each have 13 points to lead Buffalo, while Adam Oates leads Washington with 13 points.
Should Buffalo avoid elimination tonight, Game Seven would be Saturday in Washington.
