Buffalo Sabres can add a humorous new chapter in rivalry with Leafs
If there is one good thing about the Buffalo Sabres seven-game losing streak, it’s that they can end it on the Toronto Maple Leafs home ice.
It’s like I said in a previous article: These aren’t your same old Sabres. But if they are, then they have an opportunity to go out and embarrass the Team Up North, also known as the Toronto Maple Leafs. A team the Sabres beat three times last year.
And what better team is there than to end half-month-long losing streak against than Toronto? Could you imagine Tage Thompson, or anyone, scoring the game-winning goal and seeing the stunned looks on the Leafs and their fans’ faces as they just lost to a team that once again finds itself in the NHL’s doldrums?
While it’s no secret our Buffalo Sabres have been struggling, I have also gone on record to say they are closer to contending than their record shows than many think. Okay, well then, Sion, how would you back up such a crazy statement?
Watch those previous Sabres games closely if you’re currently snowed in the winter wonderland that is Buffalo, New York. You will notice that it’s just the tiniest little things that’s preventing the Sabres from playing 60 full minutes of effective hockey.
And that’s why they can easily take a Back to the Basics approach against Toronto, play a solid hockey game, exercise the virtue of patience, wait for plays to develop, attack the net, and escape Toronto with a W. Executing those little things is what makes teams good, and executing them for a prolonged period makes teams great.
But even struggling teams like the Sabres will execute those little things on occasion. Something they showed they are capable of earlier this year.
The Buffalo Sabres are due to win
Last February, the Sabres were facing one of their worst stretches of the season, and were due to win. Then March 2nd rolled around, then the 13th, and in both games, the Sabres scored a combined 10 points against the Team Up North. Can recent history repeat itself?
If so, then the Sabres will be laughing their way to Montreal while Toronto is left to figure out how they let those meddling Sabres escape their clutches yet again. But it will take more than luck to win a game against one of the Eastern Conference’s better teams.
And that’s why you may see the Sabres exert some flashes that yes, they can play cleaner than they have. This game also has some heightened stakes, coming against their biggest rival. So what better time to flick the switch and revert to October 2022 mode than tomorrow night?
While I won’t get bold and project a win, I will say with confidence that the Sabres will be passing the puck better. They will crash the net on rebounds, and they will exercise smarter shot selections. They always do when they play Toronto, and you can expect those Same Old Sabres to be ready and bring a sense of positive normalcy back to the organization.
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A normalcy where they might just say, Once again, no matter how bad things have gotten, we beat Toronto. And it will be one entertaining outing for the rest of the NHL. Even if the Sabres unfortunately lose, don’t expect a blowout, but a hardfought game.
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