The Buffalo Sabres finished fifth in the Atlantic in 2021-22, so how close are they to competing with the division’s top four teams?
It’s fair to say the Buffalo Sabres shocked the NHL universe in 2021-22 when they came out of nowhere to snag a fifth-place finish in the NHL’s Atlantic Division. At one point in the season, the lowly Sabres looked destined to finish seventh in the eight-team Atlantic, only to embark on a hot streak in March and April 2022.
In doing so, they defeated teams they otherwise would not have beaten. However, in that span, the only top four team they beat in the Atlantic were the Toronto Maple Leafs. In April, the Tampa Bay Lightning and Boston Bruins beat them by a combined score of 10-0, and they barely kept pace with the Florida Panthers.
While not out of the question, the Sabres most likely won’t earn a playoff spot in 2022-23. But to increase their chances of getting there, they must find a way to beat Toronto, Florida, Boston, and Tampa.
How close are the Buffalo Sabres to competing regularly against the Atlantic Division’s top teams?
1 – Toronto Maple Leafs
It’s safe to say the only team I am confident playing against are the Maple Leafs. And yes, it’s true everyone is calling them Stanley Cup contenders and the best team in the Atlantic. But really, the Leafs are an aging team whose ownership and its fans expect a Stanley Cup. Half of me thinks that if this team doesn’t snag one this season that a slow dismantling process will begin.
And the Leafs may have a weakness at goaltender with Matt Murray and Ilya Samsonov, neither of whom were brilliant in 2021-22. The Sabres took advantage of the Leafs last season, and the same could very well occur in 2022-23.
Verdict: Sabres will compete.
2 – Boston Bruins
The Bruins are second on my list since while they remain a touch team, the Sabres and most of the NHL may take advantage of Boston early on. Players like Matt Grzelcyk, Brad Marchand, and Charlie McAvoy will miss extended time to start the season. Come December, all three should return, but not before the two teams meet on November 12th.
Another question that arises is: How long will it take for these three to return to form? This team, like the Leafs, aren’t exactly young, with 11 players aged 30 or over slated to make the active roster. The Bruins also have a new coach in Jim Montgomery, so that may also pose as a learning curve.
Verdict: Sabres will at least compete in the November/December matchups.
3 – Florida Panthers
While it’s true the Panthers are deep, it’s also true that they too will be a weaker team early in the season. Like the Bruins, they have a new coach and they also traded away two remarkable puzzle pieces that fueled their Presidents’ Trophy win. But even without Jonathan Huberdeau and MacKenzie Weegar, Matthew Tkachuk is a more than viable replacement.
They also have a laundry list of upper-echelon NHL players all over the ice. Sergei Bobrovsky and Spencer Knight have the makings to be a dynamic goaltending duo while Sam Reinhart, formerly of the Buffalo Sabres, is another dynamic puzzle piece. And I have yet to mention Aleksander Barkov, Aaron Ekblad, and Anthony Duclair – though the latter will miss the beginning of the season.
Verdict: Will compete in October, and will also have a rough, tough time keeping pace in the final three meetings.
4 – Tampa Bay Lightning
The Sabres are striving to become everything the Lightning are. And I don’t know about you, but I’m calling the Lightning a dynasty if they win one more Cup with this team. You got arguably the game’s best goaltender in Andrei Vasilevskiy, one of the best defensemen in Victor Hedman, plus one of the NHL’s best head coaches in Jon Cooper.
Clearly, with teams of this magnitude who also have elite players like Steven Stamkos and Nikita Kucherov, there will be roster turnover. But for each player they lost, the Lightning seemingly had an answer. And like the Bruins, they won’t be at full strength to begin the season with injuries to Zach Bogosian and Anthony Cirelli, but it won’t affect them as badly.
This is a team that does not panic regardless of its situation, and it’s why they remain one of the NHL’s best.
Verdict: The Sabres are nowhere near Tampa’s level.
The Buffalo Sabres can realistically beat the Leafs this season, given the dominance they enjoyed over their cross-border rival in 2021-22. They can also hang with the banged-up Bruins early, but expect them to have a difficult time with the Panthers and Lightning.
Not that they won’t steal one from either team in 2022-23, but when the Atlantic Division’s two best teams from a season ago hit midseason form, they will be tough to stop. The Sabres just aren’t at their respective levels yet.
Article Source: Atlantic Division reset: Sabres have a long way to go to catch the elite trio by Mike Harrington