The Buffalo Sabres' surprising nine-game win streak has been achieved by a revitalized defense, timely offense and veteran player performances.

Within their streak, they’ve shown a propensity to win in different ways. The game in St. Louis required overcoming a bit of early adversity. Noah Ostlund finished a 2-on-1 feed from Josh Norris for the game’s opening goal, but the Blues – playing with desperation out of the gate – responded with two of their own.

Rucinski was drafted in the seventh round this year by the Buffalo Sabres. The New York outfit has been stockpiling talent and Rucinski's playmaking ability will be valuable as the team looks to continue building depth and future firepower.

The Buffalo Sabres, trying to end a 14-year playoff drought, have won eight in a row. They recently changed general managers.

BUFFALO – Sabres center Josh Dunne figured at least 50 supporters, perhaps as many as 100, would be on hand Monday at the Enterprise Center to watch him play his first NHL regular-season game in St. Louis.

The Dallas Stars host the Buffalo Sabres at American Airlines Center on Wednesday, Dec. 31 at 8 p.m. ET. The matchup will air on ESPN+. Dallas had a 4-3 home loss against the Chicago Blackhawks in its last game on Dec. 27, falling in the shootout 2-1.

The Sabres' stats paint the picture of a team that should be in the wild-card race, and that’s where they are.

Grateful for his Blues development, Ellis embraces his NHL opportunity, seizing his Sabres chance despite a recent injury setback. "When they told me I was going on waivers, I know that’s a process, I really didn’t know what to expect.