Buffalo Sabres Goaltending Situation: What To Do? Part II
After yesterday’s part one of looking at the Buffalo Sabres’ goaltending situation, today, we move on to part two, which focuses on the organization’s netminding at the American Hockey League (AHL) level.
As of March 9, the Rochester Americans have played 57 games this season.
Four netminders have appeared in at least one game for the Buffalo Sabres’ AHL affiliate: Nathan Lieuwen, Andrey Makarov, rookie Linus Ullmark and Robin Lehner.
Lieuwen has appeared in the most games this season for the Amerks, largely due to the recall of Ullmark by the Buffalo Sabres for a solid portion of the NHL season.
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The trickle-down effect meant that with Ullmark up, the Amerks had to rely on their other netminders for service and support.
With that being said, Lieuwen has gone 14-9-1 this season, with a pair of shutouts – the lone ones by the Amerks this season – and a .915 save percentage and 2.72 GAA.
He was also recalled for a short time by the Buffalo Sabres, right after Lehner’s injury, but dressed only as backup and never actually played.
Makarov and Ullmark have each appeared in 16 games.
Makarov has gone 6-7-2 this season with a 3.09 GAA and .907 save percentage, while Ullmark has gone 7-8-0 with a 3.09 GAA and .913 save percentage.
Ullmark, of course, was missing from the AHL club’s lineup for a large portion of the season due to his recall.
Meanwhile, the situation with Makarov is interesting. He hasn’t dressed for a game since January 13, when he backed up Lehner, and hasn’t started a game since January 3.
It’s no big surprise, then, that the reports came out recently after Makarov’s supposed intentions to return to the KHL at the end of this season.
He’s not being used, not even as a backup most of the time, and is otherwise being allowed to fall to the wayside. He didn’t get recalled by the Buffalo Sabres in the time of Lehner’s injury – only Lieuwen and Ullmark were recalled.
Finally, Lehner appeared in three games with the Amerks as part of his conditioning stint. He went 1-2-0 and had a .888 save percentage and 3.36 GAA.
Here are the goaltending pairings we’ve seen this season with the Buffalo Sabres’ AHL affiliate (starter-backup):
- Lehner-Lieuwen (2 games — 1 win, 1 loss)
- Lehner-Makarov (1 game — 1 loss)
- Lieuwen-Lehner (1 game — 1 win)
- Lieuwen-Makarov (15 games — 7 wins, 8 losses)
- Lieuwen-Ullmark (7 games — 5 wins, 2 losses)
- Makarov-Lieuwen (14 games — 7 wins, 7 losses)
- Makarov-Ullmark (1 game — 1 loss)
- Ullmark-Lieuwen (13 games — 6 wins, 7 losses)
- Ullmark-Makarov (3 games — 1 win, 2 losses)
With that all being said, here are the facts: Ullmark’s contract has one year left on it after this season, while both Lieuwen and Makarov are set to become restricted free agents. (Lehner, of course, will be at the NHL level for the forseeable future and doesn’t really factor in here.)
So, what should we expect to see next season?
Well, obviously, at some point it all depends on what the Buffalo Sabres do. If they elect to give Ullmark the NHL chance next season, that could leave the Amerks with… well, nothing.
But do you re-sign Lieuwen, who’s been plagued with injuries over the course of his career and who appeared in just 16 games last season due to injuries? Do you re-sign Makarov, who hasn’t played for over two months and hasn’t even been dressed for a game in two months, and who might be ready to go to the KHL?
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There is no really easy option here for the Buffalo Sabres and their AHL affiliate. But there’s certainly some potential for new faces and to shake things up, which might be exactly what Tim Murray does in the offseason.