Critical Game Against Buffalo Sabres as Penguins Prepare for Playoff Positioning

The Pittsburgh Penguins finish off their three-game road trip with a stop in Buffalo to face the Sabres at KeyBank Center. Puck drop is at 7 PM.

Pittsburgh has also had Buffalo's number of late, going 14-5-1 in the clubs' last 20 matchups. They are 15-3-3 in their last 21 trips to Buffalo since 2012 but 2-2-1 in their last five.

The Penguins have scored three or more goals in nine of their last 11 games against the Sabres.

Sidney Crosby, who had an assist in Tampa Bay, is one point away from his 20th point-per-game season, which would surpass Wayne Gretzky's record of 19.

Crosby's eight-game point streak, which is currently the longest active in the NHL, has seen him register 13 points over his last seven games.

Defenseman Erik Karlsson leads Pittsburgh's blueliners with 50 points (10G, 40A) and is two points from tying Markus Naslund for the ninth-most by a Swedish-born player. He is also one goal from 200, second among active defensemen.

Evgeni Malkin has amassed 12 points in 15 games since the 4 Nations break and is one assist away from tying Henrik Sedin for the 13th-most assists with one franchise in NHL history. Unfortunately, he will not be playing tonight to hit that record.

Bryan Rust is closing in on career milestones, needing two goals to tie his career-best 28 and three points to match his career-best 58.

He is riding a three-game goal streak (4G), which ranks second in the NHL over that span, and has five goals in his last six games. Rust is two goals away from the 200-goal plateau, which eight Penguins have achieved.

Both teams currently sit near the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings, but until they are officially eliminated on paper, anything is possible.