Final · All games
PIT 3 – 1 BUF
Pittsburgh Penguins at Buffalo Sabres. Final. The model's pre-game price is kept below as recorded.
- Model
- BUF 55%
- Expected score
- 2.9 – 3.2
- Market
- —
- Venue
- KeyBank Center
Pre-game price
What the model says
Lineups not yet published: each club's usual lineup assumed. Starting goalie not confirmed: goaltending held at league average.
Source: CapOrCup game model (derived from club ratings, rest and starters)
Starters · depth chart 2026-09-28
In goal
The league names no starter before puck drop. First on each club's depth chart, from the licensed feed, is the expected starter.
Arturs Silovs
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen
Projected lineups · Sportradar NHL API v7, team depth charts · as of 2026-09-28
Expected lines
What each club intends per the feed's depth chart, with each forward's shooter rating (Elo, against the goalies faced last season). A listing is the club's statement, not a game sheet.
Pittsburgh Penguins
L1 Nick Robertson (above the league middle) · Sidney Crosby (top tenth of the league) · Rickard Rakell (above the league middle)
L2 Egor Chinakhov (top tenth of the league) · Thomas Novak (below the league middle) · Evgeni Malkin (above the league middle)
L3 Ville Koivunen · Hendrix Lapierre (below the league middle) · Bryan Rust (above the league middle)
D1 Declan Carlile · Erik Karlsson (above the league middle)
D2 Trevor van Riemsdyk (above the league middle) · Kris Letang (below the league middle)
PP1 Bryan Rust (above the league middle) · Thomas Novak (below the league middle) · Rickard Rakell (above the league middle) · Erik Karlsson (above the league middle) · Sidney Crosby (top tenth of the league)
Buffalo Sabres
L1 Peyton Krebs (below the league middle) · Tage Thompson (top tenth of the league) · Josh Doan (above the league middle)
L2 Konsta Helenius · Josh Norris (above the league middle) · Ryan McLeod (above the league middle)
L3 Zach Benson (below the league middle) · Noah Ostlund (above the league middle) · Jack Quinn (below the league middle)
D1 Rasmus Dahlin (above the league middle) · Louis Crevier (above the league middle)
D2 Owen Power (above the league middle) · Conor Timmins (below the league middle)
PP1 Jack Quinn (below the league middle) · Zach Benson (below the league middle) · Josh Doan (above the league middle) · Tage Thompson (top tenth of the league) · Rasmus Dahlin (above the league middle)
Injury listings · as of 2026-09-29
Who the clubs list as out
Club-announced listings relayed by the licensed feed. No cause is inferred; Day To Day players are shown but not counted as out.
Pittsburgh Penguins
Andrei Kuzmenko (LW): Out (personal), listed since 2026-09-24
Ben Kindel (C): Out (lower-body), listed since 2026-09-27
Blake Lizotte (C): Out (upper-body), listed since 2026-09-27
Bryan Rust (RW): Out (upper-body), listed since 2026-09-28
Gabriel D'Aigle (G): Out (undisclosed), listed since 2026-09-24, expected back 2026-10-29
Justin Brazeau (RW): Out (lower-body), listed since 2026-09-27
Melvin Fernstrom (RW): Out (undisclosed), listed since 2026-09-24, expected back 2026-10-13
Oliver Okuliar (LW): Out (lower-body), listed since 2026-09-25, expected back 2026-10-13
Ryan Graves (D): Out (lower-body), listed since 2026-09-27
Tristan Broz (C): Out (lower-body), listed since 2026-09-27
Buffalo Sabres
Conor Timmins (D): Out (lower-body), listed since 2026-09-28, expected back 2026-10-08
Justin Danforth (RW): Out For Season (kneecap), listed since 2025-10-15, expected back 2026-09-15
Goals · the league's own clips
4 goals
Each goal links to the league's clip on its own site. Nothing is rehosted.
PIT · P1 09:00 · S. Crosby (T. Novak, D. Carlile) · clip
PIT · P1 10:56 · V. Koivunen (H. Lapierre, B. Rust) · clip
BUF · P3 11:30 · R. McLeod (O. Power, N. Ostlund) · PP · clip
PIT · P3 18:55 · N. Robertson (R. Rakell, T. van Riemsdyk) · empty net · clip
Replay review once the condensed game has been read · Ledger