It is the Christmas break for the Buffalo Sabres. What is the state of this team after 32 games, and what do things look like for the immediate future?
Today is the last day of NHL games before the Christmas break. As for the Buffalo Sabres, they get a little extra time off because of a winter storm that has hit the Buffalo area, forcing the NHL to postpone the Lightning/Sabres game that was supposed to take place last night.
So with the Sabres officially on their break, I thought I would get you up to date where the team stands before we enter the final week of 2022. The team is 16-14-2 and are sitting fifth in the Atlantic Division. With other Atlantic teams playing, it’s possible the Sabres could drop a bit in the standings but regardless, they are in good shape.
With 34 points on the season, they are in the thick of things when it comes to a playoff spot. Who would’ve thought that would be the case at this point of the season? During the last 11 years, the Sabres would be at the bottom of the standings. But now, it’s a completely different story.
Buffalo Sabres in a much better spot in 2022 than they were in 2021
Like I said, the team have put themselves in great shape despite losing eight games in a row last month. When they come back from break, they will be riding a four game winning streak and will hope to extend it. What I want to see from this team is consistent hockey and playing better defense.
During this winning streak, Buffalo has looked good except for playing in their own end. The offense and goaltending have been doing their part. If they can just figure stuff out defensively, then they can make a playoff push.
I know they have injuries on the blue line but I would love to see general manager Kevyn Adams add another solid defenseman. There are rumors about possibly adding Jakob Chychrun, but the asking price might be too high for Adams.
I’m not sure what’s going to happen with the goaltending situation but I would not be surprised if Adams acquired a goaltender. Even though it stinks that we have to wait for next week to see them play with the momentum they have, this break will definitely benefit the Sabres.
All season the team has been banged up. Buffalo has some injuries that they are dealing with, headlined by Owen Power. No one really knows when Owen and others will be ready to go but this break could help a little bit.
So this is where the team stands. Even though they are in a good position, they need to keep playing the way they did before the break. They most likely will have some bad games but as long as they keep playing well, we could potentially see them in the postseason as crazy as it sounds.
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