Buffalo Sabres: Don’t let Eric Comrie’s “bad game” fool you
Buffalo Sabres goaltender Eric Comrie’s preseason debut could not have been worse statistically. But there is more to the story.
Eric Comrie may have posted just an 0.871 save percentage, finishing 27 for 31 on the night, but you can’t blame him for allowing three of those goals. Comrie went 0 for 1 on power play saves in the Buffalo Sabres loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets, and it was the only allowed goal you can really blame him for.
The defensive rotation that included Jacob Bryson gave up its fair share of breakaways, and for the pressure Comrie was under, he fared quite well, acing the first major test when he stopped a breakaway shot from Carson Meyer. Before that, Comrie faced a 2 on 1 and he blocked a would-be goal from Kent Johnson.
Comrie looked like an NFL quarterback making his debut for a team starting its backup offensive line, yet still completed 60% of their passes juxtaposed with a couple of “how did he do that” touchdowns. Nonetheless, Comrie stopping those aforementioned shots early was all many in the Sabres faithful needed to realize that he can be an effective goaltender.
Bad Buffalo Sabres lineup sunk Comrie’s debut
While you can chalk this one up as a blowout loss, Comrie’s play was the reason this young and inexperienced Sabres lineup for last night’s contest stayed in the game. He held the Blue Jackets to just two goals in the first and shut them out in the second period, while defenseman Chase Priskie linked up with Kale Clauge and Jack Quinn to put the Sabres on the board.
Comrie went over a period and a half without allowing another goal, before two more breakaways at the 7:58 and 16:36 mark sealed the deal for Columbus. Both goals you can blame on the Sabres defensive rotation for leaving Comrie out on an island.
You also can’t pin too much blame on the Sabres for allowing Columbus to dominate this game, with players like Kent Johnson, Jakub Voracek, and Emil Bemstrom suiting up for this one. The Sabres, meanwhile, had just three NHL regulars going last night with Victor Olofsson, Peyton Krebs, and Jacob Bryson. Of the trio, only Olofsson appeared in over 70 games.
So give Comrie credit for refusing to back down in this one, especially in the first period where the Sabres went over half a period without even logging a shot on goal. I would like to see Comrie suit up for another preseason game, but with more regulars on the roster instead of part-time NHL players and prospects gearing to make the leap.
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Chances are, he will play just as well as he did on Wednesday night, but with his save percentage encroaching that 0.910 to 0.920 mark. The Sabres play their fourth preseason game on Saturday, October 1st at 1pm vs. the Pittsburgh Penguins. Comrie likely will not dress for that one, but the Sabres still have two preseason games after the Saturday affair to give their new goaltender another look.
Article Source: Observations: Eric Comrie delivers promising debut for Sabres in loss by Lance Lysowski