Prediction! Buffalo Sabres goaltending improves in 2022
By Sion Fawkes
Many are predicting the Buffalo Sabres goaltending to be the team’s Achilles heel in 2022-23. Nonetheless, expect improvement.
When you think about patchwork goaltending units in the NHL, the Buffalo Sabres tandem of Eric Comrie and Craig Anderson comes to mind. Of course, this duo comes with numerous flaws:
Anderson is 41, inconsistent, and injury-prone. While he achieved his 300th win against Jack Eichel and the Vegas Golden Knights this past season, he wore down in the waning stages of 2021-22 while the rest of the team progressed.
On the flip side, Comrie looked phenomenal with the Winnipeg Jets as Connor Hellebuyck’s backup. But he played in just 19 games and the Jets could have given him more ice time, which would have made Comrie a restricted free agent. Clearly, this did not occur.
Despite the flaws, it is not-so bold to project the Buffalo Sabres will have an improved situation on their hands at goaltender.
This article is not saying the Sabres will enjoy a sound season in the net. For all we know, Comrie will prove he is nothing more than a backup while Anderson may show he should have hung up the skates. But is this season’s top tandem any worse than last season’s when Dustin Tokarski served as Anderson’s primary backup?
Like Comrie, Tokarski played in no more than a handful of games per season until he hit a career high of 29 in the Queen City. Before joining the Sabres in 2020-21, his best season came in 2014-15, where his GAA sat at 2.75 with a save percentage of 0.910. Tokarski was 25 at the time, and he played in just seven more NHL games before coming to Buffalo.
This also included a three-season absence from the NHL before he re-emerged with the Sabres at age 31. Comrie is younger, he has more momentum in his corner, and he is coming off of a career-high in starts with better overall numbers than what Tokarski put up in 2014-15.
Best yet, he is not stepping into the net for a team that is completely in rebuilding mode. You will see a far better unit playing in front of both Comrie and Anderson, and that will further contribute to both of their successes. Even Anderson, considering he doesn’t make too many back-to-back appearances.
Again, this is not saying that the goaltending situation will be any good. I am merely pointing out that, because of the circumstances surrounding the Sabres and the unique circumstances surrounding the goaltenders, that it will be better than the 3.50 GAA accumulated last season.
Article Source: NHL BURNING QUESTIONS: BUFFALO SABRES by Adam Proteau
(Statistics provided by Hockey-Reference)