The Buffalo Sabres bumped Casey Mittelstadt to wing and have allowed Tyson Jost to center a line that also features Victor Oloffson.
Lately, Casey Mittelstadt and Victor Oloffson’s woes were so noticeable, even the most casual Buffalo Sabres fans were pointing them out. The duo literally looked as though they have been skating around and taking up space, so it comes as no surprise that both have received significantly less ice time.
Last night, however, we saw a bit of a rebound from Mittelstadt and Olofsson. The latter found twine to put the Sabres on the board in the second period, with assists from Jost and Mittelstadt. And Mittelstadt wasn’t done just yet, lending a helping hand to Jeff Skinner and Kyle Okposo to help send the game into overtime.
Buffalo Sabres may be (finally) solving their third line woes
For once, Mittelstadt looked physical last night. And while his best hit of the evening drew an interference penalty, it definitely shows the former eighth overall pick does have what it takes to be an effective player at this level. Now, he must find consistency.
As for Oloffson, he drove the puck right into twine thanks to Jost’s perfectly-timed pass. Olofsson, who has 12 goals on the year, has suffered a massive cold streak, as the score was just his second at even strength since late October.
While we saw some great things from what I will call the Misfit Line, Mittelstadt and Olofsson still have a lot of work to do. Of course, they both need consistency, but Mittelstadt is still struggling at 5-on-5 and the Buffalo Sabres are still nowhere near solving his woes.
Olofsson has periods where he breaks out and puts on scoring clinics. But he also has a bad habit of disappearing for stretches. He has also earned a reputation as a one-trick-pony, a guy who can score from the circle, often on the power play, and little else.
Overall, the door hasn’t closed on either player and last night’s improvement with Tyson Jost playing center could be a good starting point. But without much-needed consistency, the duo will continue to skate in circles.
(Statistics provided by Hockey-Reference and NHL.com)
Article Source: Observations: Jeff Skinner’s match penalty costs Sabres in OT loss to Penguins by Lance Lysowski
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