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Buffalo Sabres – World Cup of Hockey Thoughts and Impact

By Brian Sieteski |
Sep 9, 2015; Toronto, Ontario, Canada; Steven Stamkos and Evgeni Malkin and Drew Doughty and Zdeno Chara and Brandon Saad and Tuukka Rask and Ryan McDonagh and Henrik Lundqvist and Sidney Crosby and Anze Kopitar and Dave Pastrnak pose during a press conference and media event for the 2016 World Cup of Hockey at Air Canada Centre. Mandatory Credit: Tom Szczerbowski-USA TODAY Sports
Sep 9, 2015; Toronto, Ontario, Canada; Steven Stamkos and Evgeni Malkin and Drew Doughty and Zdeno Chara and Brandon Saad and Tuukka Rask and Ryan McDonagh and Henrik Lundqvist and Sidney Crosby and Anze Kopitar and Dave Pastrnak pose during a press conference and media event for the 2016 World Cup of Hockey at Air Canada Centre. Mandatory Credit: Tom Szczerbowski-USA TODAY Sports

The Buffalo Sabres have three representatives currently playing at the World Cup of Hockey. This post will describe general thoughts on this event as well as the impact that our players have had.

Finally, the wait is over and we’re able to start watching hockey again. Granted, the regular season is still about a month away. Even still, the World Cup of Hockey has provided an exciting gateway to the start of the season. The Buffalo Sabres are represented by Jack Eichel playing for team North America, and Rasmus Ristolainen playing for team Finland. Robin Lehner would have played for team Sweden, however chose to withdraw to ensure that he is at 100% to start the season. I for one am more than glad that Lehner made this decision. Dmitry Kulikov is playing defense for team Russia.

Impact by our participating Buffalo Sabres

Jack Eichel played on the “second line” with Johnny Gaudreau and Brandon Saad for the majority of the first game against team Europe. While Eichel did pick up an assist in the game, his presence was most notable on the defensive side of the game. Multiple times throughout the game Jack could be seen back-checking and demonstrating his improved two-way ability. There were times during the game that Jack seemed disinterested. In my opinion his overall game picked up the more the game went on. Eichel was also tied for the lead in shots on goal for the team with 4.

Rasmus Ristolainen seems to be continuing his upward trajectory as a developing defenseman. In Finland’s first game he led his time in ice-time. In his team’s second game he scored a goal and collected an assist. Team Sweden is one of the stronger teams in this tournament, and Ristolainen has acquitted himself quite well as one of team Finland’s top pairing defensemen. It will be interesting to see if his positive play in the World Cup of Hockey impacts the contract he ends up receiving from Tim Murray.

Unfortunately I have not been able to watch Dmitry Kulikov play thus far. Team Russia is known for their offensive firepower, it will be interesting to see how Kulikov fares as this tournament continues.

General observations on the World Cup of Hockey

I’m going to be honest, prior to the start of this event I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect from an entertainment standpoint. After having watched a couple of games my opinion is nothing but positive. Team North America has impressed with their speed and skill. Johnny Gaudreau and Nathan Mackinnon were outstanding. McDavid has tremendous speed and skill, he will rack up some points as this event progresses. Auston Matthews was impressive in the first period, however not nearly as noticeable as the game went on. Team Europe has some high-end players but needs to add depth in talent. Anze Kopitar and Mats Zuccarello are by far their best players.

The game which featured team USA playing team Canada was incredibly entertaining to watch. Much more physicality and passion than expected in a preliminary game. It was pretty easy to see that team USA was outmatched in the skill department, however we able to come away with a win in the first meeting between the two teams. Team Canada was able to get some retribution by handily beating team USA 5-2 in their second game. I would like to see a bit more respect from some of the players. We need to get rid of these dirty hits. Other than that, great entertainment, can’t wait to watch more.

Final Thoughts

I cannot wait to see a line of the following: Gaudreau – McDavid – Eichel

I do not envy the defensive pairings going up against that forward line. Does anyone have any trade suggestions on getting Gaudreau to play for the Buffalo Sabres? Highly unlikely I know, but wow, watching him and Eichel play together makes the admission price worth it.

Next: Buffalo Sabres Training Camp Opens September 22

I will continue to provide World Cup of Hockey updates at this event continues to move forward. Thank you as always for reading, I look forward to hearing from you in the comments section.

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