Carolina Hurricanes (26-15-3, in the Metropolitan Division) vs. Buffalo Sabres (16-22-5, in the Atlantic Division) Buffalo, New York; Wednesday, 6 p.m. EST BOTTOM LINE: The Buffalo Sabres face the Carolina Hurricanes in Eastern Conference play.

The Sabres power play ranks sixth in the NHL since Dec. 21 with a 32.1-percent conversion rate (9-for-28). The unit will be tested against a Hurricanes penalty kill that ranks second in the league at 85.0 percent and first since the beginning of December.

The Carolina Hurricanes held a morning skate at Lenovo Center on Friday morning before their final matchup against the Vegas Golden Knights of the regular season.

BOTTOM LINE: The Buffalo Sabres face the Carolina Hurricanes in Eastern Conference play. Buffalo has gone 8-11-3 in home games and 16-22-5 overall. The Sabres are third in league play with 181 ...

Back on Oct. 16 in Pittsburgh, the Buffalo Sabres started the habit of blowing leads. Buffalo had a 2-0 and 3-1 first period lead against the Pittsburgh Penguins, only to lose in overtime on a Sidney Crosby overtime goal,

They’re now 3-4-3 since the Christmas break, partially due to a major uptick in quality chances allowed at five-on-five; they were at 2.18 per 60 heading into the holiday, fourth-best in the NHL. In the 10 games since, though, they’re over 2.5.

The Rangers have now recorded a point in six consecutive games following a 5-3 come-from-behind victory over Utah.

McLeod’s hat-trick goal with 24 seconds remaining put the finishing touches on a bend-but-don’t-break performance by the Sabres, who were coming off a loss to Seattle in their most recent game in which goals against compounded into a blown lead.

Ryan McLeod scored on the first shot of the game, again just before the second period horn, and was awarded an empty-net goal for his first career hat trick in the Sabres’ 4-2 victory against the Carolina Hurricanes on Wednesday night at KeyBank Center.

The Tampa Bay Lightning return to Florida having received a little bit of everything on their three-game road trip, but now the attention turns to settling a score with a Western Conference club.

Ryan McLeod registered a hat trick, one on the game's first shot, as the Buffalo Sabres held off the Carolina Hurricanes, 4-2, Wednesday night in a nationally televised game in KeyBank Center.