PuckCast Edge
Every pick is free. The Edge is the rest.
Betting edges, stake sizing, props priced against the line, fantasy tiers and the graded ledger. $14.99 a month in season, or $99 for the year.
PuckCast Edge
Betting edges, stake sizing, props priced against the line, fantasy tiers and the graded ledger. $14.99 a month in season, or $99 for the year.
Final · Sat, Oct 31, 4:00 PM ET
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen · 0.910 SV%
The preseason ratings make Buffalo Sabres 55.8% to win on the road: a modest lean, worth 5.8 points over a coin flip, which grades B. Over a full season those same ratings project BUF for 104 points and LAK for 90.
The model leaned Buffalo Sabres at 55.8%.
PuckCast had Buffalo Sabres at 55.8% to win this game on Sat, Oct 31. The matchup detail follows.
BUF controlled play at 5v5 last season, 51.7% of the expected goals to 48.3%.
In goal, neither team has named a starter. Last season Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen (BUF) saved -1.3 goals above expected to Darcy Kuemper's -22.9, on save percentages of 0.910 and 0.891.
None of that is the model read. This is a rating-and-home-ice forecast; the full prediction, with confirmed goalies, rest and form, priced against the market, publishes inside the seven days before puck drop and replaces these numbers. Buffalo Sabres over Los Angeles Kings is where it starts, not where it ends.
No sportsbook has posted a price for this game yet. Prices usually appear roughly a week before puck drop.
No starter is named this far out. These are each side’s projected starters on the current roster, with last season’s numbers.
BUF
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen
35 games, 2025-26
LAK
Darcy Kuemper
50 games, 2025-26
| BUF | Metric | LAK |
|---|---|---|
| 51.7% | xGF% (5v5) | 48.3% |
| — | Shot share | — |
| — | Goals for / game | — |
| — | Goals against / game | — |
| — | Power play | — |
| — | Penalty kill | — |
| — | Faceoffs | — |
Buffalo Sabres
| Player | Pos | G | A | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Tage Thompson | C | 35 | 33 | 68 |
 Rasmus Dahlin | D | 18 | 50 | 68 |
 Ryan McLeod | C | 14 | 30 | 44 |
 Jack Quinn | R | 17 | 26 | 43 |
Los Angeles Kings
| Player | Pos | G | A | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Artemi Panarin | L | 25 | 47 | 72 |
| Team | Proj. points | Playoff odds |
|---|---|---|
| Buffalo Sabres | 104 | 67.2% |
| Los Angeles Kings | 90 | 44.3% |
Forecast method preseason-elo-v1; ratings as of 2026-08-19.
Final scores from the graded ledger. A loss in overtime also reads L.
Last three seasons: LAK 1, BUF 5
| Date | Game | Final | Our pick |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-03-21 | BUF @ LAK | BUF 4, LAK 1 | BUF hit |
| 2026-01-29 | LAK @ BUF | LAK 1, BUF 4 | BUF hit |
| 2024-11-20 | BUF @ LAK | BUF 1, LAK 0 | LAK missed |
| 2024-10-10 | LAK @ BUF | LAK 3, BUF 1 | LAK hit |
| 2024-02-13 | LAK @ BUF | LAK 0, BUF 7 | LAK missed |
| 2024-01-24 | BUF @ LAK | BUF 5, LAK 3 | LAK missed |
 Adrian Kempe | R | 27 | 31 | 58 |
|---|
 Quinton Byfield | R | 22 | 31 | 52 |
|---|
 Kevin Fiala | L | 22 | 28 | 50 |
|---|
NSH@
LAK
