Buffalo Sabres: What made Alex Tuch’s 2021-22 season so successful?
The Buffalo Sabres struck gold when they traded Jack Eichel for Alex Tuch and Peyton Krebs. And Tuch has made quite the impact.
It is no secret that winger Alex Tuch had a phenomenal first season with the Buffalo Sabres. In just 50 games, Tuch logged 38 points, 12 goals, and 26 assists. That’s 62 points and 20 goals across an 80-game season.
Tuch is also in a unique position. At age 26, he is already one of the older players on the roster. Had he remained with the Vegas Golden Knights, Tuch would just be another player at this point in his career. Most 26-year-olds would. But in Buffalo, he is expected to turn into a team leader come October.
Judging from the way he responded following his trade from the Golden Knights, it is not just optimistic thinking to believe he will embrace the role. Tuch became popular with the city of Buffalo and the Sabres organization this past year. And it was one of a few reasons behind his success last season.
Why the Buffalo Sabres saw immediate success from Alex Tuch in 2021-22
For one, Tuch saw his trade not as adversity, but opportunity. A native of Syracuse, New York, Tuch wanted to land with the Sabres at some point during his career. He didn’t think it would come so early, so when the opportunity presented itself, he rode it.
Tuch grew up a fan of the Sabres, which easily took his passion for the game to a new level when he got a chance to wear the blue and gold. His go-getter yet easygoing personality allowed him to build chemistry with his Sabres teammates, even before he took the ice for the first time on December 29th.
Finally, Tuch was not relegated to the third or the occasional second line, as was often the case in Vegas. He never averaged over 16:50 per game of ice time when playing for the Knights. That changed during his first year with the Sabres when he played on the first and occasionally the second line.
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He was also trusted to be an integral part of the power play and penalty-kill units, allowing him even more opportunities. We can go on and on about Tuch’s success in Buffalo this past season. But the reasons above primarily show us why he played so well with the Sabres in 2021-22.
(Statistics provided by Hockey-Reference)