Both JJ Peterka and Jack Quinn completed their first seasons in the with the Buffalo Sabres. Here is a deeper dive into both of their rookie campaigns.
Two thirds of the “Kid Line” have completed their first seasons in the NHL. Both Jack Quinn and JJ Peterka are playing for their respective countries in the IIHF World Championships. Before the tournament, they both had impressive starts to their NHL careers.
Starting off with Peterka, he scored 12 goals and registered 20 assists for 32 points in, ironically enough, 77 games played. For Quinn, he scored 14 goals, registered 23 assists for 37 points in 75 games played. For a couple of rookies, not too shabby.
The two were on a line together along with Dylan Cozens and found instant chemistry. For a good majority of the season, Quinn, Peterka, and Cozens were the Sabres best line, and they generated so many goals. Their line became known as the “Kid Line” and gave Buffalo a solidified top six.
Quinn, Peterka, enjoyed mostly solid rookie seasons for the Buffalo Sabres
In the past decade, the Sabres only had one source of offense who would be productive and score goals. Now, they have so many more weapons. Alex Tuch, Tage Thompson, Jeff Skinner, Rasmus Dahlin, Cozens, and of course, the youngsters in this article are just a few of those players.
Going forward, I think both Peterka and Quinn are just getting started. Them and Cozens should be on the same line next season and will give Buffalo a lethal top six. I can see them both scoring goals in the 20 range.
As long as they can stay healthy and perform like we expect them to, I think both of them will have long and successful careers. They were able to score double-digit goals, which is a great sign. Once they get acclimated to the league, they could very well become 30 goal scorers.
It’s hard to tell what they will do for the Sabres but going forward, they are a couple of key players who will look to lead Buffalo back in the postseason.
(Statistics provided by Hockey-Reference)