Buffalo Sabres Players Year In Review: Tyler Ennis

As far as this past season was concerned, the Buffalo Sabres were designed to be at the bottom of the league. There was no secret whatsoever that General Manager Tim Murray wanted Buffalo to be towards the bottom of the standings in order to guarantee a top two pick in the draft, but that didn’t stop the Buffalo players from giving their all every night.

A man that was guilty of giving such an effort and being the most consistent producer throughout the season was Tyler Ennis.

The spry left winger found himself as the Sabres top forward as he manned the wing on the first line. Playing most games alongside of Zemgus Girgensons and Matt Moulson, Ennis was given every opportunity to succeed despite the abysmal season goals.

Let’s have a look at how his year went overall.

Tyler Ennis found himself starting on the top line for the beginning of the season, and he took his chance to shine and ran with it. He not only gave an outstanding effort for his coaches night in and night out, but he was the sole dominant scoring threat that Buffalo had all year.

He played a great deal of minutes on the power play and led all Sabres in power play goals. In a place where Buffalo had constant struggles, he found his way to some of the best scoring areas to put home a few beautiful goals.

Ennis’ season was nothing short of spectacular. His best moment this season is when he made top goaltender and Vezina Finalist Carey Price look silly.

Not only did that goal make the NHL top ten goals of the year, but it is, without a doubt, the best goal scored by a Buffalo Sabre all season. The goal comes off of a rush that should have been a broken play, but Tyler Ennis decided otherwise.

He used every bit of determination he had and drove to the net hard and past Price in order to make his chance happen. As he fell over he looked back and shoveled in a pretty backhand shot to the middle of the net.

Taking a look at Ennis’ statistics only proves even further how well he played.

In a season where scoring was almost heretical against the church of Tim Murray’s tank, Tyler Ennis was the only player to eclipse the 20 goal mark, and on top of that he added 26 assists for a total of 46 points. That was good enough to lead the team. Added on to that were two game winning goals, a shorthanded goal, and only 37 penalty minutes.

Ennis was always the key performer in every game he needed to be this year, and he more than delivered.

At the end of the year, Tyler Ennis won the most valuable player (as far as the team awards go) for all of his stellar play. It got him enough recognition to be invited to play in the IIHF World Championships for team Canada. A Roster that features the likes of Sidney Crosby and Tyler Seguin.

As Sabres fans, it’s a wonderful thing to have a player with as much fire and determination as Ennis has. Last season he was the bright spot of hope for the future of this team. He will be looked to next season to, not only be a leader, but to be one of the biggest catalysts for the offense overall.

I for one will be looking forward to what he can do next season with a revamped roster, and a team with a new winning philosophy.

What do all of you think about Tyler Ennis’ performance this year, and where do you see him fitting in next season?

Next: Sabres Captaincy: A Cursed Position

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