Sabres head to MIN on a four-game winning streak with some wind at their back

Published by hockeybuzz.com, 11-17-2018


Last night was a battle of two teams, both of whom were on three-game winning streaks. The Winnipeg Jets, widely considered Stanley Cup contenders were hosting a possible playoff-bubble team in the Buffalo Sabres. And for the first period and well into the second, both teams were playing their respective parts. A very fast and extremely talented Jets team jumped all over Buffalo through the first 30+ minutes of the game and the Sabres were very lucky to be down only 1-0, thanks to goalie Carter Hutton.

One could almost see the steam coming out from Hutton's mask as mistake after Sabres mistake led to golden opportunities for the Jets and he vented his frustration during a TV timeout seconds after Winnipeg opened the scoring. Although the MSG feed only offered a tease prior to the break, the TSN feed showed the encounter with an obviously pissed-off Hutton skating over to the bench and laying into his team for their play.

It didn't really help, at least not right off the bat as a mere 32 seconds after the TV timeout the Sabres got caught in their own end again and a wide open Jacob Trouba teed off from the slot forcing Hutton to make another big save. Luckily for them another shot off of that long rebound went wide of a gaping net and the Sabres were spared a two-goal deficit.

Hutton is one of two players brought in by GM Jason Botterill who have been instrumental in the Sabres 11-6-2 start. The other is Jeff Skinner who once again played a role in helping this team to a win. With Hutton, and the hockey gods, keeping it a one-goal game, the Sabres finally did find their legs and it lead to a Jets penalty very late in the second period. Buffalo opened up the third period with the man advantage and for the first time in 12 opportunities (spanning the last four games and the first two periods of this one) they scored as Skinner roofed a wicked backhand from the crease to tie the game.

Holding the fort, whether his team is ahead or playing from behind, has been a Hutton-hallmark as he's been instrumental in Buffalo's present four-game winning streak. He held Montreal at bay in a third period relief appearance and allowed his team to tie a game they eventually won in overtime. Two days after that his play kept the Pacific division-leading Vancouver Canucks from increasing their 3-1 lead and the Sabres tied it on two late third period goals. He stopped two of three "Nucks players in the shootout while his skaters scored twice and they go another win.

Next up was a game against the Eastern conference-leading Tampa Bay Lightning. After going up 2-0, Tampa closed the gap and was relentless in the pursuit of the game-tying goal. A boat load of saves and two very late goal-posts later, Hutton and the Sabres emerged with a hard fought 2-1 win.

The combined record of those three teams was 30-15-2 at the time Buffalo faced them while Winnipeg's record heading into last night's game was 11-5-1.

Analytics and overall stats be damned, this Buffalo Sabres team is finding ways to win. Hutton has been making the big saves when needed and keeping things close while Skinner is scoring timely goals. He scored the game-tying goals against Montreal and Winnipeg, made the score 3-2 against Vancouver and opened the scoring against the Lightning. He's doing things for the Sabres the likes of which haven't been seen since Daniel Briere and Chris Drury were scoring clutch goals for Buffalo's back-to-back Eastern Conference Finals teams over 10 years ago.

The Sabres head down to Minnesota for a 6 pm EST start against the Wild tonight. This season marks the fourth year in a row that their mid-continent road trip has them playing Winnipeg and Minnesota in consecutive games. Last season Buffalo lost to the Wild then proceeded to lose to the Jets. The prior two seasons they started out in Winnipeg and swept both teams each time.

Minnesota presently sits second in the Western conference with a 12-5-2 record and the Sabres have had a ton of difficulty against them as of late. The Sabres are only 2-7-1 in their last 10 games vs. the Wild with their only wins coming two and three years ago on the road at Xcel Energy Center. However, the Sabres are on a roll having won four in a row for the first time since December, 2014 and they've done so against some of the best teams in their respective divisions.