it looked treacherous early in the month as the team started with a tough, seven-game road trip...although they stayed on the east coast, they played some eastern conference heavyweights in the process as well as games vs. playoff bubble teams they were battling...
they came through strong during the month by kicking in the offense (going from 12th to 9th in the league) and dropping their goals against from 2.88 to 2.77...the latter stat was bolstered by snaring three shutouts in the last five games of the month...
both the pp and the pk got better with a significant jump in the penalty kill which went from 20th in the league to 13th (80.4% to 83.2)
all-in-all, the sabres, save for a couple of breakdowns have gotten stronger on defense, have kicked in the offense and are comfortable and composed no matter where they are within the game...they can come back from two-goal deficits and win (philly and boston) or lock down a one-goal lead (montreal, njd, ny rangers)...
sure, they had a couple of clunkers in the month, but they did not have a losing streak and they had one three-game winning streak...that's how they moved up the standings, have a firm grip on a playoff spot and are looking to move up further instead of worrying about who's on their heels...
here's a look at how where the sabres are league-wide at the end of march...
wins:
- march--16th (39)...(1st, van--52)
- february--21st (29)...(philly--40)
- january--23rd (23)...(philly--33)
- december--26th (15)...(pitt--25)
- november--26th (9)
- october--27th (3)
points:
- march--17th (87)...(1st, van--113)
- february--22nd (65)...(van--87)
- january--23rd (51)...(philly--71)
- december --26th (34)...(pitt, det--53)
- november--25th (21)
- october--28th (8)
eastern conference standing:
- march--7th...(#1, philly)
- february--9th...(philly)
- january--10th...(philly)
- december--12th...(pitt)
- november--11th
- october--14th
northeast division standing:
- march--3rd...(boston)
- february--3rd...(boston)
- january--3rd...(boston)
- december--4th...(boston)
- november--4th
- october--5th
goals/game:
- march--9th (2.87)...(#1, van--3.19)
- february--12th (2.80)...(det--3.32)
- january--16th (2.71)...(philly--3.46)
- december--21st (2.57)...(det--3.45)
- november--25th (2.40)...(col--3.52)
- october--22nd (2.50)...(tampa--3.50)
shots/game:
- march--4th (33)...(#1, sjs--34.6)
- february--4th (32.9)...(sjs--34)
- january--3rd (33.3)...(sjs--34.1)
- december--5th (33.2)...(sjs--33.5)
- november--4th (32.7)...(sjs--35.6)
- october--5th (33.2)...(sjs--35.6)
goals against/game:
- march--16th (2.77)...(#1, van--2.20)
- february--20th (2.88)...(van--2.30)
- january--20th (2.94)...(bos--2.14)
- december--23rd (2.92)...(bos--2.03)
- november--23rd (2.92)...(mtl--1.96)
- october--23rd (3.17)...(bos--1.38)
shots against/game:
- march--16th (30.6)...(#1, njd--26.1)
- february--19th (30.8)...(njd--27.0)
- january--18th (30.4)...(lak--27.4)
- december--11th (29.4)...(tbl--27.3)
- november--11th (29.4)...(stl--26.8)
- october--10th (28.5)...(stl--25.8)
powerplay:
- march--11th (18.8%)...(#1, van--24.7%)
- february--12th (18.2)...(van--24.8)
- january--12th (18.7)...(chi--25.6)
- december--23rd (16.2)...(van--25.3)
- november--26th (13.4)...(van--29.3)
- october--20th (13.0%)...(sjs--31.8)
penalty kill:
- march--13th (83.2%)...(#1, van--86.6%)
- february--20th (80.4)...(#1, pitt--86.7%)
- january--17th (81.6)...(pitt--88.5)
- december--15th (81.6)...(mtl--87.8)
- november--20th (81.6)...(pit--90.5)
- october--27th (74.7)...(bos--93.1)
faceoffs:
- march--26th (47.7%)...(#1, van--55.1%)
- february--26th (47.9)...(#1, van--55.4)
- january--27th (47.2)...(van--55.8)
- december--26th (48.0)...(van--56.8)
- november--27th (47.9)...(van--56.9)
- october--27th (47.7)...(sjs--56.4)
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