The Buffalo Sabres did not always play a physical game last season, but three hard-nosed players can pick up where they left off come October.
The Buffalo Sabres have the pieces in place to become one of the more physical NHL teams. The players listed in today’s show, however, were not always available last season, which may explain why the team’s overall physicality stagnated through most of the year.
But as the following players made their presence known on the ice, the team’s fortunes turned. Below and in the following slides, you will meet three defensive-minded chess pieces whose on-ice presence provided much-needed energy to the team, and it often translated into wins last March and April.
One name is an obvious shoo-in while another familiar face makes for a fantastic enforcer. The final name on this list is one you may not have seen coming. So who are these players? Let’s meet them.
3 Buffalo Sabres who can bring a physical edge: Player #1: Mattias Samuelsson
Samuelsson displayed arguably more physicality than anyone else with the Buffalo Sabres this past season. While he possessed an intimidating presence during his 12-game cameo in 2021 with 20 hits and 10 blocks, his numbers skyrocketed in 2021-22.
Last season, Samuelsson split time between the AHL’s Rochester Americans and the Sabres, appearing in 42 contests when injuries took their toll on the defensive rotation. And while he has yet to score a career goal, Samuelsson did not disappoint.
Overall, he logged 100 hits and 60 blocks, putting him on-pace for 195 hits and 118 blocks in 82 games, respectively. Only John Hayden and Rasmus Dahlin fared better in the hits category, but they appeared in substantially more games.
Now that Samuelsson will likely start the season on the first pairing, he makes for a perfect complementary piece with the two-way Dahlin. Look for him to threaten the 200-hit milestone in 2022-23.