The Raleigh-based Hurricanes have won three straight games and gone 7-2-1 in their last 10 to assume their usual spots atop the Metropolitan Division and in the upper echelon of B/R's NHL Power Rankings, where they climbed one ladder rung from fourth to third after this week's voting.

Brandon Bussi is continuning his historic rookie campaign, once again making NHL history after the victory over the Sabres

The Senators' upcoming opponents won't make it any easier for the squandering squad. After Saturday's clash with Hurricanes, Ottawa will play host to the Vegas Golden Knights on Sunday before squaring up against the league-leading Colorado Avalanche on Wednesday.

There are eight games on the NHL schedule for Thursday, with two nationally televised in the United States and one in Canada. Thursday also marks the 14th week of "NHL Coast to Coast," a weekly whip-around studio show on Prime Video in Canada that provides live look-ins, highlights and analysis of all the games.

The Hurricanes hoped Jesperi Kotkaniemi could be their second-line center, but his production has lagged, and he’s been a frequent healthy scratch.

Nystrom scored his first career goal in Thursday's 4-3 shootout loss to Chicago.

The Hurricanes are looking to trade Jesperi Kotkaniemi, per Elliotte Friedman. The 25-year-old is under contract through 2030.

The Sabres are 8-1-0 in their last nine road games and 15-2-1 in their last 18 games overall. They’ll be tested against one of the NHL’s top home teams at Lenovo Center, where the Hurricanes boast an Eastern Conference-leading .721 points percentage since the start of the 2019-20 season.