Published by hockeybuzz.com, 11-29-2018
If there's a hockey fan on earth who predicted that the last place Buffalo Sabres from 2017-18 would be atop the National Hockey League just over a quarter-way into this season, stand up and be counted...and bring the proof. Fact is, no one predicted that quick of a last-to-first move as it's never been done before. According to the team, the 2018-19 Sabres are the first team ever to lead the NHL outright in points 25 games into the season after finishing the prior season with the worst record in the league.
Buffalo sits atop the mountain and heads into tonight on a 10-game winning-streak, which ties franchise-best, and will face a Lightning team that is only one point behind them in the league standings. With their win last night the Toronto Maple Leafs are second-overall, tied with the Sabres at 36 points apiece but having played one more game. The Nashville Predators, who host the Arizona Coyotes tonight, are tied with Tampa at 35 points.
It's jumbled at the up their right now, but just the very fact that Buffalo is a part of that jumble is pretty amazing. The Sabres started out the month having lost two of three but that lone win represented a breakout offensively as the pummeled the Ottawa Senators 9-2. They had a 7-6-2 record prior to their road game at Montreal to start this run and sat fifth in the Atlantic division, 18th in the league, which actually wasn't so bad for a team that finished dead last the season before. But Buffalo has managed to cobble together a 10-game run by winning in many different ways with all but one of the games having been decided by one goal including four that went to overtime and three in the shootout. The Sabres three regulation wins included one-goal wins vs. Tampa (2-1) and at Minnesota (3-2.) Buffalo defeated the Philadelphia Flyers 5-2 at home for their only win of more than one goal.
Along with timely goals and an overall team resiliency giving them the belief that no lead is too large to overcome, goaltending has played a key role in this run. Starter Carter Hutton is on an eight-game winning streak, giving him the third-longest winning streak in franchise history. He, like the team, started out his run against the Canadiens as he made a relief appearance for backup Linus Ullmark and won in overtime. Prior to that Hutton was 4-6-1 with a 2.87 goals-against average and a .909 save-percentage. He heads into tonight's game with a 12-6-1 record, a 2.50 GAA and .920 Sv%. Although it doesn't show up in the overall stats, Hutton and Ullmark have both been excellent during this run (and even beforehand) in that they're coming up with the big save when needed.
The duo of Jeff Skinner and Jack Eichel have been on fire during this run, both with 11 points. Skinner has 10 goals during the streak, two of them game winners while Eichel has 10 assists with his lone goal being the overtime winner against the Pittsburgh Penguins. Adding to that duo is a defense that has been a handful for the opposition. During the streak d-men have contributed eight goals including three multi-goal games with Rasmus Ristolainen potting the game-winner in overtime at Montreal to start the winning -streak.
And in a tribute to Buffalo's depth, nine different players have scored game-winning/deciding goals. In order they were Ristolainen (overtime,) Casey Mittelstadt (shootout-winner,) Kyle Okposo, Conor Sheary (SO,) Jason Pominville, Eichel (OT,) Evan Rodrigues, Skinner (OT,) Sam Reinhart (SO,) Skinner.
Lest we forget while basking in the enthusiasm of this run, the Sabres face Tampa team that has been a final four playoff team in three of the last four seasons while making it to the Stanley Cup finals in 2014-15. The Lightning came into the season as Cup contenders and still remain so despite the loss of starting goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy for up to six weeks. From their speed and firepower up front to their solid d-corps, Tampa boasts the league's second-best goal-scoring rate at 3.68 goals/game and the league's sixth-best powerplay unit at a 26.7% conversion rate. The Sabres own the league's eighth-best penalty kill with an 81.9% kill rate.
Interesting note, Buffalo's defensemen have outscored the Lightning d-men 14-12 on the season with every Sabres blueliner scoring at least one goal (Tampa has two without.)
Friday, November 30, 2018
Thursday, November 29, 2018
Skinner w/the OT winner as (now) NHL-leading Sabres win-streak hits 10
Published by hockeybuzz.com, 11-28-2018
Just how much fun are the Buffalo Sabres having right now? Maybe this goal by defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen is a good indication.
And just how into it are the fans? Listen to the roar as Buffalo's Jeff Skinner scores the game-winner in overtime of the 3-2 win over the San Jose Sharks.
Ten games, 10 wins, three in regulation, four in overtime, three in the shootout and a Buffalo Sabres team that once again sits atop the NHL standings.
Just how much fun are the Buffalo Sabres having right now? Maybe this goal by defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen is a good indication.
And just how into it are the fans? Listen to the roar as Buffalo's Jeff Skinner scores the game-winner in overtime of the 3-2 win over the San Jose Sharks.
Ten games, 10 wins, three in regulation, four in overtime, three in the shootout and a Buffalo Sabres team that once again sits atop the NHL standings.
Wednesday, November 28, 2018
KeyBank should be rockin' as Sabres reach for a piece of franchise history
Published by hockeybuzz.com, 11-27-2018
Buffalo Sabres head coach Phil Housley has said that he and his team aren't thinking about the winning streak, preferring to focus their energies on the task at hand. It's a pretty good philosophy as you only play one game at a time and looking ahead will only get you in trouble. But while he and his Sabres are focused upon tonight's matchup against the San Jose Sharks, for those who still may not have heard, Buffalo is on a nine-game winning streak with the opportunity tonight to match two Sabres teams for the longest winning streak in franchise history.
With some of the talent that's run through Buffalo since they came into the league beginning with the 1970-71 season, it's a bit of a surprise to think that the Sabres have had a double-digit win-streak only twice in their 48 yr. history. The first time was 1983-84 when a 19 yr. old Housley was in his the sophomore season of his Hockey Hall of Fame career. It was the year the Edmonton Oilers finally dethroned the NY Islanders and their four consecutive Stanley Cups before they went on their own run winning four of the next five Cups. Speed and skill was the name of the game and the Sabres were in transition being led by 33 yr. old veteran, and Hockey Hall of Famer, Gilbert Perreault and his 90 points (31+59,) followed by 20 year old Dave Andreychuk (38 goals, 80 points) who was also in his sophomore season and would eventually join Perreault and Housley in the Hall of Fame.
Housley was third on that team in scoring that year with 77 points (31+46.)
Buffalo Sabres head coach Phil Housley has said that he and his team aren't thinking about the winning streak, preferring to focus their energies on the task at hand. It's a pretty good philosophy as you only play one game at a time and looking ahead will only get you in trouble. But while he and his Sabres are focused upon tonight's matchup against the San Jose Sharks, for those who still may not have heard, Buffalo is on a nine-game winning streak with the opportunity tonight to match two Sabres teams for the longest winning streak in franchise history.
With some of the talent that's run through Buffalo since they came into the league beginning with the 1970-71 season, it's a bit of a surprise to think that the Sabres have had a double-digit win-streak only twice in their 48 yr. history. The first time was 1983-84 when a 19 yr. old Housley was in his the sophomore season of his Hockey Hall of Fame career. It was the year the Edmonton Oilers finally dethroned the NY Islanders and their four consecutive Stanley Cups before they went on their own run winning four of the next five Cups. Speed and skill was the name of the game and the Sabres were in transition being led by 33 yr. old veteran, and Hockey Hall of Famer, Gilbert Perreault and his 90 points (31+59,) followed by 20 year old Dave Andreychuk (38 goals, 80 points) who was also in his sophomore season and would eventually join Perreault and Housley in the Hall of Fame.
Housley was third on that team in scoring that year with 77 points (31+46.)
Tuesday, November 27, 2018
Another tough group of upcoming games for the streaking Buffalo Sabres
Published by hockeybuzz.com, 11-26-2018
It's been over 12 years since the 2006-07 edition of the Buffalo Sabres began the season with an NHL record-tying 10 game win-streak while on their way to the President's Trophy for best record in the league. That streak also tied a franchise record for longest winning streak and for those who may not remember, Buffalo took the league by storm that season as they were likened to a Ferrari and were capable of coming back from any deficit at any time.
We're getting glimpses of that this season with a fast Sabres team that's feeling very comfortable regardless of the score or time of game. During this nine-game winning streak the Sabres have overcome third period deficits six times, twice they scored the game-tying goal with less that three minutes to go and in one of those two games scored twice to tie it. Six of their games have gone beyond regulation with three wins in overtime and three won in the shootout, including the last one when Tage Thompson scored to extend the session.
The adrenaline rush this team is on carried them through a tough patch where they played a total of nine games in 17 days including a mid-continent back-to-back as part of a three-game road-trip. They started out this run with a win against Atlantic division rival Montreal and faced off against division leaders Vancouver and Tampa Bay before heading west to take on Winnipeg and Minnesota, who were two top-five teams in the NHL at the time. After a stint in Pittsburgh against the struggling Penguins where they overcame a three-goal deficit, Buffalo came home to face Philadelphia before a back-to-back Friday vs. Montreal at home and at Detroit on Saturday to finish this stretch.
It doesn't get any easier for the NHL's third-best team beginning tomorrow night when they take on the San Jose Sharks at KeyBank Center before facing off against three of the NHL's heavyweights. After the Sharks the Sabres hit the road to face off against the top two teams in the league--the No. 2 Tampa Bay Lightning followed by a trip to Nashville to take on the No. 1 Predators. It will be no rest for the team as they fly back to Buffalo to take on arch-rival Toronto who are fourth in the league, two points behind the Sabres.
Buffalo head coach Phil Housley is icing a talented, yet imperfect, group of players that continue to find ways to win. Against Tampa they held on to a one-goal win (with the help of a couple of Lightning posts late in the game,) against the Philadelphia Flyers they jumped out to a four-goal lead in the first period and in Detroit they pulled it out despite giving up a one-goal lead in the third period and falling behind in the shootout.
Continuity has been a contributing factor as well. The Sabres have been largely injury-free with this lineup so far this season, save for Zach Bogosian starting the year on the injured list, Marco Scandella missing the Montreal game and forward Patrik Berglund hitting IR recently. However, Housley has been able to integrate his depth players into the lineup without his team missing a beat.
That could change somewhat as reports from the rink have forward Conor Sheary taking the ice for this morning's practice but leaving shortly thereafter. Buffalo has called up only one player so far this season as defenseman Lawrence Pilut was brought up from the Rochester Americans for the injured Scandella. Pilut did not get into game-action and was sent back down a few days later.
Regardless of who they ice, the streaking Sabres will be looking to tie the longest winning streak in franchise history held by the 1983-84 Sabres, of which Housley was a part of as a defenseman, and that '06-'07 Sabres squad. They'll have as good a chance as any facing off against a Sharks team that is sixth in the Western conference with a 12-8-4 record but after that it's showdowns with the heavy-weights for Buffalo as Tampa Bay, Nashville and Toronto have a combined 50-20-2 record this season and occupy three of the top four spots in the league.
The third-place team?
The streaking Sabres.
It's been over 12 years since the 2006-07 edition of the Buffalo Sabres began the season with an NHL record-tying 10 game win-streak while on their way to the President's Trophy for best record in the league. That streak also tied a franchise record for longest winning streak and for those who may not remember, Buffalo took the league by storm that season as they were likened to a Ferrari and were capable of coming back from any deficit at any time.
We're getting glimpses of that this season with a fast Sabres team that's feeling very comfortable regardless of the score or time of game. During this nine-game winning streak the Sabres have overcome third period deficits six times, twice they scored the game-tying goal with less that three minutes to go and in one of those two games scored twice to tie it. Six of their games have gone beyond regulation with three wins in overtime and three won in the shootout, including the last one when Tage Thompson scored to extend the session.
The adrenaline rush this team is on carried them through a tough patch where they played a total of nine games in 17 days including a mid-continent back-to-back as part of a three-game road-trip. They started out this run with a win against Atlantic division rival Montreal and faced off against division leaders Vancouver and Tampa Bay before heading west to take on Winnipeg and Minnesota, who were two top-five teams in the NHL at the time. After a stint in Pittsburgh against the struggling Penguins where they overcame a three-goal deficit, Buffalo came home to face Philadelphia before a back-to-back Friday vs. Montreal at home and at Detroit on Saturday to finish this stretch.
It doesn't get any easier for the NHL's third-best team beginning tomorrow night when they take on the San Jose Sharks at KeyBank Center before facing off against three of the NHL's heavyweights. After the Sharks the Sabres hit the road to face off against the top two teams in the league--the No. 2 Tampa Bay Lightning followed by a trip to Nashville to take on the No. 1 Predators. It will be no rest for the team as they fly back to Buffalo to take on arch-rival Toronto who are fourth in the league, two points behind the Sabres.
Buffalo head coach Phil Housley is icing a talented, yet imperfect, group of players that continue to find ways to win. Against Tampa they held on to a one-goal win (with the help of a couple of Lightning posts late in the game,) against the Philadelphia Flyers they jumped out to a four-goal lead in the first period and in Detroit they pulled it out despite giving up a one-goal lead in the third period and falling behind in the shootout.
Continuity has been a contributing factor as well. The Sabres have been largely injury-free with this lineup so far this season, save for Zach Bogosian starting the year on the injured list, Marco Scandella missing the Montreal game and forward Patrik Berglund hitting IR recently. However, Housley has been able to integrate his depth players into the lineup without his team missing a beat.
That could change somewhat as reports from the rink have forward Conor Sheary taking the ice for this morning's practice but leaving shortly thereafter. Buffalo has called up only one player so far this season as defenseman Lawrence Pilut was brought up from the Rochester Americans for the injured Scandella. Pilut did not get into game-action and was sent back down a few days later.
Regardless of who they ice, the streaking Sabres will be looking to tie the longest winning streak in franchise history held by the 1983-84 Sabres, of which Housley was a part of as a defenseman, and that '06-'07 Sabres squad. They'll have as good a chance as any facing off against a Sharks team that is sixth in the Western conference with a 12-8-4 record but after that it's showdowns with the heavy-weights for Buffalo as Tampa Bay, Nashville and Toronto have a combined 50-20-2 record this season and occupy three of the top four spots in the league.
The third-place team?
The streaking Sabres.
Sunday, November 25, 2018
The beat goes on. Buffalo heads to Hitsville, U.S.A on and 8-game win-streak
Published by hockeybuzz.com, 11-24-2018
When it comes to the Buffalo Sabres NHL-high eight-game winning streak there will always be some that offering up deficiencies in their game or schedule meant to detract from an impressive run. The might be the argument that the overall record of their opponents isn't the greatest and/or they're facing a lot of backup goalies and/or the analytics aren't where they should be, etc. etc. etc.
Some, maybe all, of the above may end up being true either for a portion of a game or like the one against the Tampa Bay Lightning, nearly the entire game, but the fact of the matter is, the Buffalo Sabres are "King of the Mountain" right now and no one has been able to knock them off.
A key point to make in all of this is that Buffalo isn't catching any teams off guard as the opposition is prepared to bring their 'A-game'. Take Buffalo's latest , the Montreal Canadiens. The Habs came to KeyBank Center last night having given up five goals in each of their last two games, both losses. "There's two parts to the game," said Habs coach Claude Julien prior to yesterday's game. "and defense is an important part as well.
"I've been saying it over and over again, we're giving up too much on the defensive side of the game. It goes back to a commitment to closing the play quickly, a commitment to take pride in our defensive game."
Montreal did that for large chunks of the game against Buffalo yesterday despite giving up 40 Sabres shots and allowing three goals. The Canadiens gave up the first goal 12:39 into the game and did a good job of doing what Julien asked, being quick to the puck on defense and closing the play throughout much of the rest. They did, however, have their moments of trepidation and goalie Antti Niemi had to come up with some big saves which included one that was described by TSN announcers as "not textbook." That type of attention to the defensive side of the equation allowed for Montreal to score two unanswered goals and keep a one-goal lead until late in the third period.
However, they couldn't finish the Sabres off something four other teams failed to do. Buffalo started this run coming from behind to beat Montreal back on November 10. After the Canadiens, the Vancouver Canucks, Winnipeg Jets, Minnesota Wild, Pittsburgh Penguins and Montreal again yesterday all had third period leads on the Sabres. None of them could hold it. Buffalo tied the game every time and five of those six, including the Canadiens twice, were decided after regulation.
When it comes to the Buffalo Sabres NHL-high eight-game winning streak there will always be some that offering up deficiencies in their game or schedule meant to detract from an impressive run. The might be the argument that the overall record of their opponents isn't the greatest and/or they're facing a lot of backup goalies and/or the analytics aren't where they should be, etc. etc. etc.
Some, maybe all, of the above may end up being true either for a portion of a game or like the one against the Tampa Bay Lightning, nearly the entire game, but the fact of the matter is, the Buffalo Sabres are "King of the Mountain" right now and no one has been able to knock them off.
A key point to make in all of this is that Buffalo isn't catching any teams off guard as the opposition is prepared to bring their 'A-game'. Take Buffalo's latest , the Montreal Canadiens. The Habs came to KeyBank Center last night having given up five goals in each of their last two games, both losses. "There's two parts to the game," said Habs coach Claude Julien prior to yesterday's game. "and defense is an important part as well.
"I've been saying it over and over again, we're giving up too much on the defensive side of the game. It goes back to a commitment to closing the play quickly, a commitment to take pride in our defensive game."
Montreal did that for large chunks of the game against Buffalo yesterday despite giving up 40 Sabres shots and allowing three goals. The Canadiens gave up the first goal 12:39 into the game and did a good job of doing what Julien asked, being quick to the puck on defense and closing the play throughout much of the rest. They did, however, have their moments of trepidation and goalie Antti Niemi had to come up with some big saves which included one that was described by TSN announcers as "not textbook." That type of attention to the defensive side of the equation allowed for Montreal to score two unanswered goals and keep a one-goal lead until late in the third period.
However, they couldn't finish the Sabres off something four other teams failed to do. Buffalo started this run coming from behind to beat Montreal back on November 10. After the Canadiens, the Vancouver Canucks, Winnipeg Jets, Minnesota Wild, Pittsburgh Penguins and Montreal again yesterday all had third period leads on the Sabres. None of them could hold it. Buffalo tied the game every time and five of those six, including the Canadiens twice, were decided after regulation.
It's not a dream, 9-game winning streak propels Sabres to top spot in NHL
Published by hockeybuzz.com, 11-25-2018
There's a nice symmetry to the Buffalo Sabres nine-game winning streak as they've won three in regulation, three in overtime and three in the shootout. In addition to that, nine different Buffalo players have scored the game-winning/game-deciding goal during the streak.
Last night in Detroit it was Sam Reinhart's turn. But it almost never happened as his giveaway in the neutral zone with only :17 seconds left led to a golden opportunity for the Red Wings that was snuffed out by the quick glove-hand of Sabres goalie Linus Ullmark. After the whistle one could see Reinhart in a gesture of thanks then saying some words that might have included, "I owe you one."
Seven rounds into the shootout both goalies had allowed one goal each and Reinhart skated to center ice with a chance to win it. He roofed a nifty backhand from in tight past Detroit Red Wings goalie Jimmy Howard for the 3-2 shootout win and the call from Sabres play-by-play man Dan Dunleavy said it all, "Say hello to your first place Buffalo Sabres."
Prior to this winning streak Buffalo sat fifth in the Atlantic division with a 7-6-2 record good for 16 points and had just come off of a 3-1 loss in New York where they were stonewalled by Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist. All-in-all their place in the standings at the time wasn't bad considering where they came from the prior year and the difficulties they had coming out of the gate this year.
There's a nice symmetry to the Buffalo Sabres nine-game winning streak as they've won three in regulation, three in overtime and three in the shootout. In addition to that, nine different Buffalo players have scored the game-winning/game-deciding goal during the streak.
Last night in Detroit it was Sam Reinhart's turn. But it almost never happened as his giveaway in the neutral zone with only :17 seconds left led to a golden opportunity for the Red Wings that was snuffed out by the quick glove-hand of Sabres goalie Linus Ullmark. After the whistle one could see Reinhart in a gesture of thanks then saying some words that might have included, "I owe you one."
Seven rounds into the shootout both goalies had allowed one goal each and Reinhart skated to center ice with a chance to win it. He roofed a nifty backhand from in tight past Detroit Red Wings goalie Jimmy Howard for the 3-2 shootout win and the call from Sabres play-by-play man Dan Dunleavy said it all, "Say hello to your first place Buffalo Sabres."
Prior to this winning streak Buffalo sat fifth in the Atlantic division with a 7-6-2 record good for 16 points and had just come off of a 3-1 loss in New York where they were stonewalled by Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist. All-in-all their place in the standings at the time wasn't bad considering where they came from the prior year and the difficulties they had coming out of the gate this year.
Saturday, November 24, 2018
Shrug off the tryptophan and pecan pumpkin pie, it's game day
Published by hockeybuzz.com, 11-23-2018
Grab your plate of Thanksgiving leftovers and settle in this afternoon as the Buffalo Sabres are hosting the Montreal Canadiens for a 4pm start at KeyBank Center. The two teams met just over two weeks ago in Montreal with the Sabres coming out on top of a 6-5 overtime thriller which kicked off their present, league-high seven-game winning streak.
The goal-fest at Bell Centre featured Buffalo goals from Vladimir Sobotka (2,) Conor Sheary, Jeff Skinner (2) and an overtime blast from gassed defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen. Four times the Sabres took a one-goal lead only to see it matched before the Canadiens took a 5-4 lead on a shorthanded goal by Nicolas Deslauriers, who was traded by Buffalo to Montreal last October, late in the second period. Sabres backup goalie Linus Ullmark was in net for the first two periods before being pulled in favor of Carter Hutton to start the third period.
Neither Ullmark nor Habs starter Carey Price had a particularly good night as Ullmark only stopped 27 of 32 shots on goal (.843 save percentage) while Price was worse stopping only 25 of 31 (.806 Sv%.) Hutton only faced five shots in the third period and none 1:38 of overtime for the win.
Grab your plate of Thanksgiving leftovers and settle in this afternoon as the Buffalo Sabres are hosting the Montreal Canadiens for a 4pm start at KeyBank Center. The two teams met just over two weeks ago in Montreal with the Sabres coming out on top of a 6-5 overtime thriller which kicked off their present, league-high seven-game winning streak.
The goal-fest at Bell Centre featured Buffalo goals from Vladimir Sobotka (2,) Conor Sheary, Jeff Skinner (2) and an overtime blast from gassed defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen. Four times the Sabres took a one-goal lead only to see it matched before the Canadiens took a 5-4 lead on a shorthanded goal by Nicolas Deslauriers, who was traded by Buffalo to Montreal last October, late in the second period. Sabres backup goalie Linus Ullmark was in net for the first two periods before being pulled in favor of Carter Hutton to start the third period.
Neither Ullmark nor Habs starter Carey Price had a particularly good night as Ullmark only stopped 27 of 32 shots on goal (.843 save percentage) while Price was worse stopping only 25 of 31 (.806 Sv%.) Hutton only faced five shots in the third period and none 1:38 of overtime for the win.
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