DET-BUF 12:09:24

BUFFALO -- The Detroit Red Wings and Buffalo Sabres will continue their season series when the Atlantic Division clubs face off at KeyBank Center on Monday night.

Puck drop between Detroit (10-13-4; 24 points) and Buffalo (11-13-3; 25 points) is set for 7 p.m., with broadcast coverage on FanDuel Sports Network Detroit and the Red Wings Radio Network (97.1 The Ticket in Detroit). The Red Wings are 1-1-0 against the Sabres this season, most recently earning a 2-1 win at Little Caesars Arena on Nov. 2.

Detroit saw its winless streak reach five games with a 2-1 loss to the visiting Colorado Avalanche on Saturday. Lucas Raymond scored and goalie Ville Husso stopped 23 shots for the Red Wings, who have allowed two goals or less in six of their last nine games.

“We just need a little bit more from all of us within our locker room,” Joe Veleno said. “We’re all capable, and we know we’re capable. The last few games haven’t gone our way obviously, games decided by one goal. You can almost look at it as a positive. We’re right there in the games. It’s just these little details that we’re not quite doing on a consistent basis.”

In fact, nine of Detroit’s last 10 games have been decided by a single goal. Marco Kasper said while they haven’t been on the right side of tight games as of late, the Red Wings are taking key lessons learned from each contest.

Joe Veleno, Derek Lalonde Morning Skate Media Availability vs BUF | Dec. 9, 2024.

“We can see that we can play with every team, but we don’t just want to play with every team -- we want to win those games,” Kasper said. “That’s how it is. We just have to battle for each other and cheer each other up.”

Hoping to spark the offense, head coach Lalonde shuffled Detroit’s forward lines for Sunday’s practice. He believes the line combos feature “different skillsets to hopefully complement some guys.”

“Just got to find a way to flip some of these games, and we need goals,” Lalonde said. “Obviously, we’re doing some pretty good things away from the puck and we’re defending pretty well. It’s frustrating we’re not finishing. This stretch of late was a lot different than the stretch we had early when we weren’t scoring.”

Buffalo currently sits one point above Detroit in the Atlantic Division standings. Aiming to snap a six-game winless streak in which they’ve been outscored 21-11, the Sabres are coming off a 5-2 setback to the Utah Hockey Club on Saturday.

Alex Touch (8-16—24) and Tage Thompson (14-7—21) are the only two players to cross the 20-point threshold for Buffalo this season, while captain Rasmus Dahlin ranks third on the club in scoring with 19 points (six goals, 13 assists).

Netminders Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, Devon Levi and James Reimer have all spent time in Buffalo’s crease this season.

“Watching them back, they’re doing a lot of good things too,” Lalonde said about the Sabres. “Obviously, it looks a little bit different in that they’re scoring goals. A very good offensive team, so I think both teams would be desperate to try to get some points especially the way it’s been going.”