Buffalo Sabres News

Lightning will go with the same lineup as Saturday; Bishop back in goal.

Saturday, Bishop allowed three goals on 32 shots and just one of seven in the shootout, but found himself on the wrong-end of a 4-3 final. It was his third straight loss as well as the third consecutive game he has allowed three or more goals. Bishop will look to get back on track tonight vs. Phoenix.

Ben Bishop
Bishop starts in goal for the Lightning.

Bishop surrendered three goals on 28 shots in a loss to the Blues on Tuesday. Bishop will have to bring his A-game tonight as he matches up against Tuukka Rask, who has been sensational against the Lightning this season. Bishop on the other hand, was pulled after allowing four goals on 17 shots in a 5-0 loss the first time he met the Bruins this season.

Ben Bishop
Bishop gets the nod for the Lightning.

Bishop surrendered four goals on 33 shots in a loss to the Colorado Avalanche on Sunday. He will get his second start of the season against the Blues. He stopped 28 of 30 shots in a 4-2 win in the first meeting, but tonight will be different with Ryan Miller standing at the opposite end. We should be in for a great goaltending matchup.

Ben Bishop
Reimer leads the Maple Leafs onto the ice for warmups; he starts.

Reimer will make his first start since January 25. He allowed four goals on 19 shots in a loss to the Jets in his last start and was 2-1-0 despite having a 4.68 GAA and .865 SV% in January. He will face the Blue Jackets for the first time since allowing six goals on 21 shots in October.

James Reimer
Bishop back in goal for the Lightning.

Bishop allowed two goals on 41 shots in a 4-2 win over the Stars yesterday. He will be back in goal tonight when the Lightning travel to Colorado. Bishop is second in the NHL in wins (29) and SV% (.933) and then third in GAA (2.00). He is a must-start in all formats, he will look to move to 2-0-0 against the Avs tonight.

Ben Bishop
Bishop gets the call for the Lightning.

Bishop stopped 26 of 29 shots in a 3-2 loss to the Predators on Thursday. The Lightning looked rusty in their first game back after the Olympics. Expect a better performance out of the entire team this afternoon in Dallas. Bishop has been the NHL's best netminder this season, so continue to play him night-in and night-out.

Ben Bishop
Ennis (lower-body) is on the ice for the Sabres' morning skate.

Ennis missed Wednesday's game after suffering a minor injury on a hit in the third period of Tuesday's contest. His presence at the morning skate is a good sign that he could be back in the lineup tonight vs. the Sharks. Ennis has 14 goals and 16 assists (30 points) in 58 games this season.

Tyler Ennis
Ben Bishop in net tonight for the #tblightning.

Bishop surrendered two goals on 33 shots in a 4-2 win against the Red Wings before the break. Bishop is a front runner for the Vezina Trophy as he sits 28-8-4 with a 1.98 GAA and .933 SV%. He will look to take down Carter Hutton and the Preds tonight, he enters play 13-5-2 on the road this season.

Ben Bishop
The Wild have placed Jason Zucker on injured reserve and recalled Stephane Veilleux from Iowa (AHL).

Zucker missed the most recent Wild game with a lower-body injury. His placement on IR allowed the Wild to recall Veilleux for forward depth. He is able to play as soon as he is healthy with his placement being retroactive to Feb. 6.

Jason Zucker
The Red Wings have recalled Riley Sheahan from Grand Rapids (AHL).

Sheahan has scored three goals while adding eight assists (11 points) in 18 games wit the Red Wings this season. He has displayed an impressive ability to be a productive playmaker at the NHL level in a short period of time with Detroit. The Red Wings will need their 2010 first round pick to continue to play well while Stephen Weiss and Henrik Zetterberg remain out of the lineup.

Riley Sheahan
Bishop leads the Lightning onto the ice for warmups, no Cedrick Desjardins on the ice suggests Bishop is healthy enough to go.

Bishop is dealing with an upper-body injury that forced him from Thursday's game. Usually leading the team onto the ice would confirm the starter, however with Bishop battling an injury, it is not 100 per cent. You can take the risk with Bishop, because we likely won't know for certain until minutes before he would lock.

Ben Bishop
Bishop (upper-body) left the morning skate early, appears he won't play tonight.

Bishop who is listed as day-to-day was injured in Thursday's loss to the Maple Leafs. With the Lightning heading into the Olympic break after tonight's contest it is not surprising to see Bishop sitting out with two weeks of rest ahead of him. Expect him to be back to 100 per cent when everyone returns from Sochi. Look for Cedrick Desjardins to gets the nod tonight.

Ben Bishop
Bishop (upper-body) is not on the ice with the Lightning this morning.

Bishop left Thursday's contest after the second period with an upper-body injury. This is the second time in a week that Bishop has been unable to finish a game due to injury. The last time he had a head injury, but played two days later. With the Olympic break on the horizon, don't be shocked to see Cedrick Desjardins start Saturday vs. the Red Wings.

Ben Bishop
Bishop gets the call for the Lightning.

Bishop allowed two goals on 26 shots in a 2-1 loss in Minnesota on Tuesday. Bishop has won five of his last 10 starts while posting a 2.39 GAA and .925 SV%. Tonight he looks for his 28th win as he takes on an inconsistent Maple Leafs team coming off of a bad loss to the Panthers on Tuesday.

Ben Bishop
Bishop will start for the Lightning.

Bishop stopped 28 of 29 shots and had a small dust-up with Habs forward Brandon Prust in Saturday's 2-1 OT win. Obviously he was feeling no ill effects from the collision on Thursday as he looked extremely sharp and was able to take a couple shots while dishing out some blockers. He is a must-start regardless of matchup, so get him in there in Minnesota tonight.

Ben Bishop