Sabres Week Ahead: Schedule & Storylines – Game 7 Is Upon Us - The Hockey Writers - Buffalo Sabres

Game 7 Is Upon Us
Sabres Injury Updates
Sabres’ Schedule

Here is the latest news and updates around the Buffalo Sabres and their schedule for the week of May 18 – May 24, 2026.

Game 7 Is Upon Us

The Sabres are in a back‑and‑forth series in Round 2 of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs against division rival Montreal Canadiens. Both teams have dominated for stretches, with only one game, Game 4, being decided by a single goal.

The Sabres are playing in their eighth Game 7 in franchise history, with a 1–6 record, and their only win came in 1997 against the Ottawa Senators. Buffalo will need its stars firing on all cylinders if they want to advance to the Eastern Conference Final for the first time since 2007.

In Game 6, the Sabres dominated the Canadiens in an 8–3 win, powered by Rasmus Dahlin’s five‑point night (one goal, four assists) and Tage Thompson’s four‑point performance (one goal, three assists). They’ll need both of them to show up again in Game 7.

The team also needs Alex Tuch to step up. He has been subpar throughout the series; some have even called for benching him. Game 6 was his best game of the series, although he recorded zero points and was a minus-1 on the night. Tuch has zero points in the series and is a minus-9.

Sabres Injury Updates

Owen Power, who was a game‑time decision in Game 6, logged 22:22 of ice time in the Sabres’ win.

Noah Östlund has been sidelined with a lower‑body injury since Game 5 in Round 1 versus the Boston Bruins and is expected to miss at least Game 7.

Jiri Kulich has missed most of the season due to a blood clot that was made public on Nov. 10. He has continued non‑contact skating; however, he is expected to miss the remainder of the season.

Justin Danforth exited the Oct. 15 win against the Senators with a lower‑body injury, later announced to be a broken kneecap, after blocking a shot. He had surgery to repair the injury and began skating on his own in early January. He is currently skating “on and off” as he continues to deal with pain related to the injury.