Buffalo Sabres: Another opportunity to erase demons arises
By Sion Fawkes
The Buffalo Sabres struggled in three games against the Boston Bruins this season, with their Atlantic Division rivals outscoring them 13-5.
The Buffalo Sabres have not faced the Boston Bruins since January 1st. During that time, the Sabres were 10-17-5 (25 points), and they were stuck in the midst of falling victim to the injury bug.
The overtime loss to Boston set them back to 10-17-6. But since then, the Sabres are 21-21-5 (47 points), and a far cry from what they were in January.
They also struggled in the goal-scoring realm, having found twine just 90 times before their last matchup with Boston to date, an average of 2.81 goals per game. The Sabres, especially in March and April, have shattered their GPA, regularly scoring three or more goals.
Buffalo Sabres have an opportunity to exorcise demons one more time
Over most of March and the first half of April 2022, the Sabres played a plethora of NHL playoff contenders well. They scored massive upset wins over the likes of the Pittsburgh Penguins, Carolina Hurricanes, Calgary Flames, and the Toronto Maple Leafs, to name a few.
The real test came in April. While they played contenders well enough to be watchable most of the time, could they beat the NHL’s lower-echelon teams regularly?
The answer was a resounding YES. And the Sabres embarked on their first four-game winning streak of the season against the Philadelphia Flyers (twice), New York Islanders, and New Jersey Devils.
Now, in the penultimate game of the season, the Sabres face one more test: Can they beat a division rival that blew them out twice earlier in the season?
While the Sabres hung with the Bruins in their third matchup of the season, they need to approach this game as an opportunity, not an obstacle. Sure, they may be 0-3 against a Boston Bruins team that is now cruising into the playoffs, but the Sabres have also become a squad who can score at will.
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Their puck aggression has increased dramatically in recent weeks. And that could carry them to one more upset win this season. One against a team that has allowed just 2.68 goals this season.
(Statistics provided by Hockey-Reference)