The San Jose Sharks are back home tonight and looking for a bit of retribution after last week’s drubbing at the hands of the Buffalo Sabres. The Sharks were humbled in Buffalo on March 10, losing to the Sabres 6-3 on a game that showed the Sharks have a lot to clean up in their game.
Luckily for the Sharks, the team has a chance to make up for that loss tonight. The team can start with stronger puck management, specifically making smarter decisions with the puck. In Buffalo, Edmonton and Ottawa, there were a lot of turnovers that did not need to happen because the Sharks were trying to force plays. This specifically happened in their own end, leading to goals by the opposing team. Cleaning that up could help the Sharks get back on track.
This will, of course, be a difficult test. The Sabres are still at the top of the Atlantic Division and remain one of the hottest teams in the NHL. Buffalo is 9-1-0 in its last 10 games and it’s just as good on the road as it is at home. In fact, the Sabres have earned at least a point in the team’s last 11 road games and have averaged 4.27 goals per game on the road during that span.
Tage Thompson still leads the team in scoring with 70 points in 68 games. He also leads the team with 34 goals. Rasmus Dahlin is second on the team with 60 points and Alex Tuch has 28 goals.
San Jose Sharks lines tonight
Per Sharks Hockey Digest’s Max Miller, it looks like Alex Nedeljkovic will be in the net for the Sharks today. Yaroslav Askarov was on the ice this morning but is still a few days at least from being ready to play. Here’s what Miller reports the lines were at the morning skate.
Note that Will Smith is bumped down to the second line. Head Coach Ryan Warsofsky hasn’t been thrilled with the way Smith has played the past few games so this isn’t a surprise. Nick Leddy remains in the lineup and it’s John Klingberg that sits this one out.
Forwards
Tyler Toffoli — Macklin Celebrini — Collin Graf
Pavol Regenda — Alexander Wennberg — Will Smith
William Eklund — Michael Misa — Kiefer Sherwood
Barclay Goodrow — Zack Ostapchuk — Adam Gaudette
Defense
Dmitry Orlov — Vincent Desharnais
Sam Dickinson — Mario Ferraro
Shakir Mukhamadullin — Nick Leddy
Goaltenders
Alex Nedeljkovic
Laurent Brossoit
Buffalo Sabres lines vs. San Jose Sharks
Alex Lyon is expected to start tonight for the Sabres. He’s won nine straight road games. He’s 19-8-3 with a .913 save percentage this season. According to NHL.com, this is what the lineup is expected to look like for Buffalo, with players like Michael Kesselring, Luke Schenn and Josh Dunne getting scratched.
Forwards
Zach Benson — Tage Thompson — Alex Tuch
Jason Zucker — Ryan McLeod — Jack Quinn
Noah Ostlund — Josh Norris — Josh Doan
Peyton Krebs — Sam Carrick — Beck Malenstyn
Defense
Mattias Samuelsson — Rasmus Dahlin
Bowen Byram — Owen Power
Logan Stanley — Zach Metsa
Goaltenders
Alex Lyon
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen
How to watch Buffalo Sabres at San Jose Sharks, March 19, 2026
The puck drops at 7 p.m. PT/10 p.m. ET at SAP Center in San Jose.
Sharks fans can watch today’s game on NBCSCA or listen on the Sharks Audio Network.
Sabres fans can watch the game on MSG or listen on WGR 550.
If you’re not headed to the game, be sure to come back here at game time to talk to other Sharks fans about what’s happening on the ice and around the league. The playoff race is going strong with the Seattle Kraken, Utah Mammoth, Edmonton Oilers and Los Angeles Kings all in action today.
