Buffalo Sabres Power Play A Blessing And A Curse
The problem with the Buffalo Sabres owning one of the league’s best power plays? It’s entirely dependent on NHL refs. Read on.
The Buffalo Sabres are going to miss the playoffs yet again, and there is a lot of blame to go around on that front . . . but for the first time in a while, you cannot blame the Sabres’ power play unit for the team’s offensive struggles.
As of today – March 23, 2017 – the Sabres own the second-best power play in the entire NHL, having converted on an impressive 23.9% of its power play opportunities. It is conceivable that Buffalo might even move up a notch – the Toronto Maple Leafs are just barely in first place, having scored on 24.1% of their man advantages – but chances are very good that the team will finish no worse than second in the league when the regular season is done.
The Sabres’ success with the man advantage is one of the few feel-good stories of the year coming out of the 716 – but there is a huge problem with a team that is great on the power play, and offensively challenged without it: namely, the Sabres’ greatest weapon on offense is entirely dependent on the whims of the referees around the NHL. Fifty-two of the 181 goals scored by the Sabres this season have come on the power play – 28.7%, for those of you who appreciate basic math.
On Saturday, March 11, the Sabres enjoyed five power plays against the Columbus Blue Jackets . . . but following that contest, it took four games for the team to hit five power plays. Here is the breakdown of the number of man advantages Buffalo has enjoyed since March 11:
March 14 against San Jose: Buffalo had one power play and went 0/1.
March 16 against Los Angeles: Buffalo enjoyed two power plays and went 0/2
March 17 against Anaheim: Buffalo had one power play opportunity and went 0/1.
March 20 against Detroit: Buffalo enjoyed two power play opportunities and went 2/2.
March 21 against Pittsburgh: Buffalo had only one power play and went 0/1.
Five power plays in one game; then, seven power plays spread out across the next five games. Not exactly the sort of consistency a team that lives and dies by its power play can count on, now is it?
Conspiracy theorists might start arguing that the Sabres’ lack of power play opportunities is the result of NHL refs turning a blind eye toward infractions committed against Sabres players. The problem with that theory, of course, is that the numbers don’t support it. With 117 power play opportunities at home, the Sabres rank 13th in the NHL in that category, and while the Sabres don’t rank nearly as high when it comes to road power play opportunities (101, only 21st in the league), they rank ahead of NHL darlings such as the Washington Capitals (99, 26th in the NHL) and the Chicago Blackhawks (92, 29th in the NHL). All told, the Buffalo Sabres are 16th in the NHL in total power play opportunities, so spare everyone your “The NHL hates the Sabres” explanation – it just doesn’t hold water.
No, the real problem with the fact that the Buffalo Sabres’ greatest strength this year is its power play is simply this: it depends on too many outside forces. For starters, it relies on the opposition – a team that plays on the edge is probably going to gift-wrap the Sabres a bunch of man-advantages, but teams that play disciplined hockey are going to keep Buffalo’s not-so-secret weapon off the ice. Furthermore, the Sabres are at the mercy of the referees, and the way this season has been going, no one in the NHL wants its best weapon being at the whim of the zebras.
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It’s amazing to think that a team with a bottom-ten offense can be so lethal on the power play, but that is exactly the case with these Buffalo Sabres. That’s great and all, but it’s a bit of a blessing and a curse, too. Hopefully, the Sabres figure out a way to add a semi-competent offense to its already dangerous power play next season.