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Division rival almost gave the Buffalo Sabres an opportunity

By Sion Fawkes

HAMILTON, ON - MARCH 13: Auston Matthews #34 of the Toronto Maple Leafs gets into a battle with Rasmus Dahlin #26 of the Buffalo Sabres in the 2022 Tim Hortons NHL Heritage Classic at Tim Hortons Field on March 13, 2022 in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. The Sabres defeated the Maple Leafs 5-2. (Photo by Claus Andersen/Getty Images)
HAMILTON, ON - MARCH 13: Auston Matthews #34 of the Toronto Maple Leafs gets into a battle with Rasmus Dahlin #26 of the Buffalo Sabres in the 2022 Tim Hortons NHL Heritage Classic at Tim Hortons Field on March 13, 2022 in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. The Sabres defeated the Maple Leafs 5-2. (Photo by Claus Andersen/Getty Images) /
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The Buffalo Sabres currently hold the longest playoff drought at 11 seasons. And as fans, we need to see the misfortune as an opportunity. 

Fans of the Buffalo Sabres love poking fun at their geographic rival, the Toronto Maple Leafs. And this season, Sabres fans had a lot of reasons to. They only blew out their rival, one of the NHL’s best hockey teams, three times in a span of 45 days.

While the Maple Leafs and their fan base had their fun when the Sabres set a new record in playoff futility, rational Sabres fan shouldn’t think of their 11-season drought as embarrassment, but opportunity. An opportunity to rise to the top after hitting rock bottom.

The Maple Leafs, had they won their series against the Tampa Bay Lightning, would have broken their seven-series losing streak dating back to 2003-04. The longest drought without a postseason series win in the NHL. And the Sabres are second on that list.

Buffalo Sabres would have had a golden opportunity had the Maple Leafs won the Eastern Conference Quarterfinal

Many fans are rejoicing, but I’m not. I wanted to see the Maple Leafs win that series. I wanted to see the Sabres have the longest playoff drought and the longest drought without a postseason victory.

Why this counterintuitive thinking? Because psychologically, the Sabres would be entering 2022-23 with even larger chips on their shoulders. And with young talent on the roster that earned 35 points in March and April, we could expect even more wins with a talented Sabres team knowing they own a few undesirable droughts.

I also wanted the Sabres to have an opportunity to author a success story unlike any other for when they eventually hoist the Stanley Cup. Even if it meant initially suffering from the idea of owning the longest of two infamous postseason droughts.

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Yeah, fans of the other 31 NHL teams wouldn’t let us hear the end of it. But who cares? The Sabres were the 12th-best team in hockey in March and April 2022. Now that they know they can win games against anyone, the Sabres will quickly wipe smiles off the faces of the other 31 NHL franchises and their fans, starting in October.

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