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Rangers, Sabres battle for playoff positioning

Mar 1, 2011 - 4:00 PM (Sports Network) - A key battle for playoff positioning is on tap tonight in the Big Apple, as the New York Rangers host the Buffalo Sabres at Madison Square Garden.

Just five points currently separate the Rangers and Sabres in the Eastern Conference standings. New York is seventh in the East with 70 points, while Buffalo is two points behind Carolina for the conference's eighth and final postseason berth.

The Sabres recently wrapped a six-game homestand with a 2-3-1 record and are beginning a seven-game road trip tonight. Buffalo is 15-10-4 as the visiting team this season compared to a 14-15-3 home mark.

Buffalo hopes it will get a boost from a new acquisition tonight, as forward Brad Boyes is set to make his Sabres debut after getting dealt from St. Louis over the weekend.

Boyes came over from the Blues in exchange for a second-round pick in the 2011 draft. The 28-year-old had 12 goals and 29 assists in 62 games with the Blues this season and he has posted at least 40 points in each of his six full NHL seasons.

The Sabres had a two-game win streak halted Saturday against visiting Detroit, but the shootout loss extend Buffalo's point streak to three games. Jiri Hudler and Pavel Datsyuk both scored in regulation and in the shootout to give the Red Wings the 3-2 win at HSBC Arena.

Mike Grier and Andrej Sekera each scored for the Sabres and Ryan Miller made 35 saves in the loss.

"At this point, we have to be upset not to come away with two points," Miller said. "If you don't get two points, you're not gaining much ground."

Buffalo defenseman Jordan Leopold missed Saturday's game with an upper-body injury and is questionable for tonight's tilt. Leopold is leading the Sabres' blue line in goals (11) and assists (22) this season.

The Rangers also had a two-game win streak halted in their last outing, dropping Sunday's close regulation decision to the visiting Tampa Bay Lightning. Dwayne Roloson made 22 saves and Vinny Lecavalier scored the winner early in the third period to lift the Bolts to the 2-1 win at MSG.

Brandon Prust scored the lone goal for the Rangers, while Henrik Lundqvist stopped 17 shots in the loss. Defenseman Bryan McCabe made his Rangers debut in Sunday's loss after he was acquired on Saturday from Florida for forward Tim Kennedy and a 2011 third-round draft choice. McCabe had two shots in 17 1/2 minutes of ice time.

Lundqvist will start tonight and New York's No. 1 netminder is likely to carry a heavy burden down the stretch after backup goalie Martin Biron suffered a fractured collarbone at practice on Monday. Biron, who is 8-6-0 with a 2.13 goals-against average in 17 games (15 starts) for New York this season, is expected to miss at least the next six weeks.

Goaltender Cam Talbot has been recalled from Connecticut of the American Hockey League to take over the backup role from Biron. Talbot, 23, has never seen action in an NHL game.

The Rangers are playing the middle test of a three-game homestand tonight and they have a 14-14-3 record as the host this season. New York is set to complete the homestand Thursday against Minnesota.

New York has won both meetings with the Sabres this season and the Blueshirts posted a 3-2 overtime win at MSG when the clubs last met on Nov. 11. The Rangers have taken four of seven overall in this series, but Buffalo has won five out of nine in Manhattan.