Rehashing an "off night" in Anaheim with a look ahead to the Los Angeles Kings game

Published by hockeybuzz.com, 10-17-2019

You know the old adage, the whole is greater than the sum of it's parts and the 2019-20 Buffalo Sabres are no different. 

Everyone knew the flaws this team had coming into the season but they'd been able to overcome those through the first six games of the season. The Sabres left Western New York on Monday riding a 5-0-1 record into California for a three game road-trip in The Golden State. They got to that point by playing a fast, 200' game with support in every zone buoyed by a deadly powerplay that kept teams at bay in style and/or on the scoreboard.

After downing the Pittsburgh Penguins and steamrolling the New Jersey Devils to start the season, the new look, positive-thinking Sabres hit Columbus and found themselves in a heavyweight bout with a desperate team. Buffalo overcame two deficits in that game against the Blue Jackets and rode the powerplay (2/4) to get it to overtime before losing 4-3. They followed that up with three consecutive wins--one in overtime, one in the shootout and a 4-0 blowout of the Dallas Stars before heading west. 

Sabres begin a three-game California road trip tonight in Anaheim

Published by hockeybuzz.com, 10-16-2019


Buoyed by 5-0-1 start and a new lease on hockey life thanks to positive vibrations emanating from bench boss Ralph Krueger, the Buffalo Sabres are in California for a three-game swing through The Golden State beginning tonight. The first game on the docket has the surprising Sabres in Anaheim to take one the equally surprising Ducks at the Honda Center.

Anaheim is off to a strong start with a Pacific Division-leading 4-2-0 record born of a strong defense backed by firm goaltending. The Ducks have a league best 1.67 goals-against average (T-BOS) with the goaltending duo of John Gibson and former Sabre Ryan Miller sporting a rather staunch .944 save percentage (10 goals on 179 shots against.)

That strong goals-against average, however, is unfortunately countered by a fourth-worst 2.17 goals/game (tied with two other teams) which includes a powerplay that is anything but. Anaheim heads into tonight's game as one of three teams (NJD, OTT) without a powerplay goal. Going six games without makes it an issue with Ducks head coach Dallas Eakins telling the local media yesterday, "We'll try anything right now."

Looking legit

Published by hockeybuzz.com, 10-15-2019


Are the Buffalo Sabres surprising? Maybe the most surprising team in the league this year?

You betcha.

Are they legit?

Um...It's looking that way.

At 5-0-1 the Sabres are off to their best start since the 2008-09 season. They defeated four of five Eastern Conference opponents, lost another one in overtime and after last night's win now find themselves atop the National Hockey League standings with 11 points. They've scored 25 goals (24+1 for the shootout) and have allowed 13 for a league-leading +12 goal differential. Sure, we can revert back to last season when they went on a franchise-tying 10-game winning streak in November only to fold and finish 27th in the league as a comparison, but...

more on that later.

Sabres off to a raucous start this season

Published by hockeybuzz.com, 10-6-2019

The Buffalo Sabres couldn't have asked for a better start to their Golden Season as they're off to a 2-0 start with wins at Pittsburgh and at home against the New Jersey Devils by a combined 10-3 score no. Buffalo showed their new approach by throttling the Penguins 3-1 on Thursday through a high-pressure game-plan while outshooting Pittsburgh 41-29. They followed that up with an even more impressive performance in a 7-2 win before a raucous KeyBank Center crowd. In both instances it was full-throttle forward for the Sabres as they took it to both clubs.

Sabres kick off home portion of Golden Season tonight vs. NJD

Published by hockeybuzz.com, 10-5-2019


When all was said and done Thrusday night after the Buffalo Sabres disposed of the Pittsburgh Penguins 3-1, the general feeling from head coach Ralph Krueger on down was that the win was great, but there's a long hard road to hoe. "We haven't achieved anything yet with this win," the coach said to the gathered media post-game. We're just at the beginning of a long, long, difficult challenge to go where we want to go."

Where the want to go is the post-season, a place the Sabres haven't been since 2011 with their eight-season playoff drought being the longest current drought in the NHL. Since then there's been a full turnover of executives, management, the coaching staff and the roster. Terry Pegula had bought the team in February, 2011 and had been their owner only three months before his Sabres made a late-season run to get to the playoffs before they lost in seven games to the Philadelphia Flyers.

Since then. Nothing. Nada. Nyet, Zilch, when it came to playoff appearance. Heck, since then their highest point total and highest finish was 2012-13 when they had 89 points and finished third in the division. They eclipsed 80 points only one other time ('15/16,) had a couple of seasons with mid-70's point totals, hit 62 points once and tanked for 52 and 54 points in 2013-14 and 2015-16, respectively (or disrespectfully, if you choose to describe those two seasons.)