The Eastern Final features the fifth seeded Pittsburgh Penguins and the President’s Trophy winning Buffalo Sabres.  The Sabres went 1-0-1 against The Pens during the regular season, winning a close 3-2 game early in the season, then tying 3-3 in the final matchup midseason.

Buffalo wins most of the intangibles from the regular season.  They had the most wins in the league with 59, the most goals with 346, and the best goal differential at 140.  Pittsburgh actually had the better powerplay, ranking 2nd overall, where Buffalo was 7th.  The Sabres had the most shots per game in the league, but Pittsburgh ranked 2nd.

The Sabres have cruised in the playoffs so far, not losing a game.  They swept Toronto in the first round and Carolina in the second.  Pittsburgh was up 3-0 on Ottawa, but had to beat them in game 7 to move on.  They defeated the New York Islanders in round two in 6 games.

In 8 games, Darcy Kuemper is a perfect 8-0, with a GAA well under 2 for Buffalo.  Jaro Halak and Jacob Markstrom have been splitting the starters role for Pittsburgh, with Halak going 6-2 and Markstrom 2-3.  Both have GAA’s in the high 2’s.