Burning Question! How can the Buffalo Sabres overcome slow starts?
It is no secret the Buffalo Sabres have been forced to play catchup more often than not during their eight-game losing streak.
The Buffalo Sabres, at one point in the game, went down 5-2 against the Vancouver Canucks on Tuesday night. On Wednesday, they found themselves down by two goals with just under six minutes to go in the game.
And with just under 13 minutes to go in the contest, they also fell behind by three to the Vegas Golden Knights, and by two with 17 and a half minutes to go in regulation to the Arizona Coyotes. And we don’t even need to rehash the hash that happened against Toronto.
Another common denominator? The Sabres allowed between one and two goals to all of the above before they put one in the back of the net. It happened against Arizona and Vegas, they allowed two goals in the early going to Vancouver, and the same thing occurred against the Ottawa Senators.
These slow starts have led to the Sabres heightening their sense of urgency later on in games. And unfortunately for them, given their overall inexperience, such a sense of urgency is causing them to make dramatic mistakes late in the third period trying to play catchup hockey. And it has directly contributed to the current losing streak.
Buffalo Sabres MUST overcome slow starts
So this bodes the question: How do the Buffalo Sabres overcome such slow starts? For one, they are showing little sense of urgency, passing the puck along the perimeter and trying for shots that opposing goaltenders can easily save. There is not enough crashing the net, display of speed, or decent positioning around the net. These have led to pedestrian, at best, offensive performances in the first period.
And when the Sabres have a big play brewing, a poor pass, or a forced pass, will negate that, and they find themselves facing an odd-man rush the other way. This has led to multiple scoring opportunities for the opposition.
In short, this team is playing with impatience, taking shots that they shouldn’t, and forcing passes that lead to either turnovers, or puck mishandling. Until they take the time to let the play develop in front of them, and set themselves up to crash the net to take advantage of a rebound when a good shot selection does present itself, they are going to keep digging themselves into early holes.
Must Read. Sabres will become one of NHL’s most physical teams. light
So how do they overcome the slow starts? Honestly, remember that patience is a virtue, and to come to the realization that what they are currently doing is not working. So why keep trying to make it work?
Article Source: Sliding Sabres suffering from inexperience, injuries, 5-on-5 struggles by Lance Lysowski
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