Buffalo Sabres Opponent Outlook: Detroit Red Wings

By Melissa Kania |

The Buffalo Sabres and the Detroit Red Wings will face off five times this season – the most meetings between the two since the 1977-78 season. In fact, several of the seasons in the 1970s saw the teams meet five, even sometimes six, times in a season – but with the way the NHL has progressed over the years, different conferences, etc., it’s meant that the two have often played each other just once or twice in a year. Not anymore.

Before we look ahead at this season, it’s time for a quick look at last season.

As per usual, Detroit was good last season – what else is new? The Red Wings finished third in the Atlantic Division, going 43-25-14 on the season. They put up 100 points for the first time since 2012, and gained points in 31 of 41 home games. They also went a respectable 21-15-5 on the road, but somewhat surprisingly, struggled in shootouts, winning just four of 14. Detroit seems to be one of those teams that is, somehow, always good, and last year was no different.

Last season, the Red Wings won three of four meetings with the Sabres, outscoring Buffalo 17-11 and outshooting them by a margin of 133-78. In four games, the Red Wings went 7-for-18 on the power play, while the Sabres went 1-for-10.

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Tyler Ennis and Brian Flynn led the Sabres with four points each against the Red Wings last season. Ennis led the team with three goals and one assist, while Flynn registered a goal and three assists.

Chris Stewart and Drew Stafford each registered three points against Detroit, while Zemgus Girgensons, Tyson Strachan, Andre Benoit, Cody Hodgson and Nikita Zadorov each had two points. Mike Weber, Matt Moulson, Nicolas Deslauriers, Mikhail Grigorenko and Andrej Meszaros each had a point.

For the Red Wings, there were three players who each registered six points against the Sabres last season. Tomas Tatar led the way with an outstanding five goals and one assist; Henrik Zetterberg had four goals and two assists, while Gustav Nyquist put up two goals and four assists.

Danny Dekeyser and Pavel Datsyuk each put up a goal and four assists. Justin Abdelkader: four assists. Kyle Quincey: three assists. Brendan Smith and Jakub Kindl: two points each. Riley Sheahan, Stephen Weiss, Johan Franzen, Tomas Jurco, Luke Glendening, Darren Helm, Niklas Kronwall, Drew Miller and Joakim Andersson each registered a point.

Of the 18 Red Wings players who registered at least a point against Buffalo last season, 17 are returning to the Detroit organization this season. The lone exception, Stephen Weiss, is an unrestricted free agent. Compare that to five of 14 players left on Buffalo of those who registered points against Detroit last season.

They may just be numbers, but they’re quite indicative of the overhaul in Buffalo and the general consistency in the Red Wings organization.

The Red Wings made two big signings via free agency this summer, bringing in Brad Richards and Mike Green. Those are two significant pieces that will only further contribute to Detroit’s successes. Also incoming is Eric Tangradi, who is likely bound for Grand Rapids at this point.

Returning to Detroit: Dan Cleary, Tomas Jurco, Gustav Nyquist and Teemu Pulkkinen, all big-name contributors to the Red Wings. Louis-Marc Aubry, Nick Jensen and Mitch Callahan also re-signed with the Red Wings organization.

The Red Wings and Sabres have to wait until December to see each other for the first time this season, but no worries – they’ll get plenty of each other.

In fact, they’ll play twice in a span of two weeks, facing off on December 1 and December 14, with both games at 7:30 p.m. at Joe Louis Arena. The next two meetings, both in Buffalo, will be on January 2 and January 22, with the first of those another Saturday matinee. The final meeting between the teams will come on March 28 when they convene in Detroit for a 7:30 p.m. matchup.

Next: Sabres Then & Now: 2009-2010

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