Dear Buffalo Sabres fans: Top pick Owen Power will make his long-awaited NHL debut against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Tuesday, April 12th.
The Buffalo Sabres may be eliminated from playoff contention for an 11th straight season. But this year carries different vibes, since defenseman Owen Power is suiting up and taking the ice against the team’s Atlantic Division rival, the Toronto Maple Leafs.
The Sabres are coming off a debilitating 5-0 loss against the Tampa Bay Lightning. But it was one of those blowout losses where the Sabres actually played relatively well – they just didn’t find twine.
So perhaps Power’s presence will help them find more chances to hopefully capitalize on scoring opportunities and even help disrupt opponents when they creep into the team’s defensive zone. There is a lot of hype surrounding Power, but let’s not get too excited: He is merely making cameo appearances this season.
Owen Power watch ends for the Buffalo Sabres, set to make debut April 12th
Recently, the Sabres have played the Maple Leafs better than perhaps any other team on the schedule. The Maple Leafs are a tough team and they have been one of the NHL’s hottest with an 8-1-1 record over their last ten games.
The Sabres have taken a step back in April, and the loss to the Lightning shows they’re still a work in progress. Despite the team upping their game in the physicality and creating more scoring opportunities.
Power’s presence will definitely give the Sabres a bit of an advantage, even if he’s inexperienced at the NHL level. This is because opponents have little to work with on him at the moment. No one knows how the Sabres will use Power in these final eight games, so teams will need to learn how to adjust to him on the fly.
Expect Power to make his mistakes and to play like a rookie at times. But until teams figure out how to defend and answer to the Sabres game plan regarding him, he may just exceed expectations for a few games. We will find out for sure when he suits up against the Maple Leafs.