Sabres vs Wings Prediction & Odds (Sep 24)

Preseason Chaos in Detroit

Two games in, the Red Wings have not lost in regulation and the Sabres have already taken one on the chin. Then look at who is not dressing: Detroit hosts this without Dylan Larkin. That is the real tension in Sabres vs Wings. One side is home with a clean regulation record and a hole down the middle. The other is on the road with three players out. Odds are not posted yet for this Thursday night at Little Caesars Arena, and that is its own small edge. You get to build your own number before the market hands you one.

The Matchup

This is an exhibition game, listed under season type 1 of the 2027 season, with puck drop Thursday, September 24, 2026 at 7:00 PM ET. As of publication, Buffalo is 1-1-0 and Detroit is 1-0-1. Read a hockey record left to right: wins, then regulation losses, then losses that happened in overtime or a shootout.

So Detroit owns one win and one loss that got past regulation. Buffalo owns one win and one regulation defeat. There is no season series to lean on and no standings points at stake in a preseason game. What is at stake for a bettor is roster quality on the night. In Wings vs Sabres exhibition hockey, the lineup card outranks the crest on the sweater.

Players to Watch

Anton Johansson leads the Detroit Red Wings with 4 points. Owen Power leads the Buffalo Sabres with 3. A point is a goal or an assist, so those two have been on the ice for the plays that finish. Johansson at 4 points in a Detroit lineup already missing Larkin tells you he is getting heavy minutes and likely power play time.

Power at 3 points is the more established name of the pair, and Buffalo has every reason to run him hard in a tune-up. Track both in warmups. If Johansson is scratched or shifted down the lineup while Power plays a regular shift, the gap in this game widens quietly.

The Numbers

Nothing is posted yet, so here is exactly what to look for when it is. The moneyline is the simplest bet: pick the team that wins the game, including overtime or a shootout. The price tells you the cost. A minus number is what you risk to win $100. A plus number is what you win on $100 risked. The puck line is hockey's spread, almost always set at 1.5 goals, so the favorite must win by two or more and the underdog can lose by exactly one and still cash.

That is a different bet from the moneyline with a different outcome, not a discount version of it. The total is the combined goals by both teams, and you take over or under. Books bake in a small commission called the vig, which is why both sides are never priced at even money. Check every book you have before betting. Half a goal on a total or ten cents on a price is real money over a season.

Where the Value Is

No-vig means stripping that commission out of the posted prices to see the market-implied probability underneath. Expected value is the average result per $100 risked if you could replay the bet forever. With no price posted, neither can be calculated here, so we anchor on roster value instead. Detroit is missing Dylan Larkin, a top-line center whose absence is the single hardest thing on this sheet to replace in a short exhibition. Buffalo's outs are two defensemen and a winger, which is depth, not spine. We lean Buffalo, and we want plus money to take it.

Injuries

Five names are out between the two clubs. Detroit lists two: Carter Bear and Dylan Larkin. Buffalo lists three: Olen Zellweger, Mattias Samuelsson and Jason Zucker. Larkin is the one that moves a number.

The Pick

Desk lean: Buffalo Sabres moneyline, played only at a plus-money price, shopped across the US sportsbooks we track once the market posts Thursday. This is Wise Guy Desk analysis, not Ross's documented play.

The Prediction

Buffalo 4, Detroit 3. Preseason games get loose in the third period when both benches empty out, and the team with its top center available should win those minutes. Take the best number on the board, not the first one you see. That is the read on this game, and the Desk's documented free play sits right below.