When the Buffalo Sabres won ten games in a row in the Fall of 2018, two coaches and a general manager ago, I was positively euphoric. The Sabres were on top of the league with a record of 17-6-2 and all was right with the world.
What I failed to see through my rose-colored lenses was the fact that seven of those ten wins were after regulation, including three shootouts. Two of the other three wins were by one goal. That simply wasn’t sustainable. But my unbridled joy masked the truth.
Had I looked at those ten wins with my eyes instead of my heart, I would have been more prepared for the dumpster fire that followed. It took almost 30 games to get the next ten wins and the team dropped like a stone in the standings. They even threw in a stretch of 15 losses in 16 games toward the end of the season for good measure.
Brutal.
I am opening this wound because I am wondering if I have done the same thing with the unexpectedly positive start to this season.
With everyone predicting doom and gloom for the Sabres this season, the first few wins were a welcome surprise. The wins over the Lightning and the Ducks were a nice bonus, too. It isn’t nearly the same feeling as ten wins in a row, but this has been the most fun I have had since those ten games, so I am wondering if I am setting myself up for another fall.
There are lots of things about this start that have me looking at the cloud inside the silver lining.
-The first three wins of the season don’t look so impressive anymore considering the fact that the Canadiens, Coyotes, and Canucks only have five wins between them in their first 28 games combined.
-The win over the Lightning was really good, except for the fact that the Sabres were run out of their own building for most of the first 40 minutes of the game. The final score of 5-1 looks like domination but anyone who saw that game knows that Craig Anderson gets most of the credit for that win.
-The win against the Ducks was also good, except for the fact the Sabres blew a 3-goal lead and got outplayed for most of the second half of the game. A great play by Victor Olofsson in overtime to set up Rasmus Asplund saved Buffalo’s bacon.
-The Sabres gave up 34 or more shots on goal four games in a row. They won two of those games but a goalie in his 40’s and his backup can’t keep getting shelled and expect to hold up.
I want desperately to believe that the Sabres can keep up their level of effort and keep picking up wins. I am at least confident that we won’t have to suffer through another 18-game nightmare. But I am also readying myself for the novelty to wear off.