Why the Buffalo Sabres will rule the Atlantic in three years: Part III
The Buffalo Sabres are one of the NHL’s teams on the fast track to end a long playoff drought in 2023-24, but they have potential to do more.
The Buffalo Sabres are in a prime position: Not only can they break their 12-year, or when April rolls around, basically a 13-year, playoff drought, but they can also set themselves up to rule the Atlantic Division.
Throughout this series, we talked about how their current prospect pool is better than everyone else’s in the division, and light years ahead of Toronto’s, Boston’s, and Tampa’s, something we discussed in Part I. We dived deeper into the Sabres prospect pool in Part II, and talked about how some may ultimately replace star players five to seven years (or longer) from today, while in the short-term, replacing players serving supporting or stopgap roles.
At this point, it’s easy to see Boston and Tampa backsliding as the decade progresses, as each must find a way to add fresh talent to their prospects pool while their respective lineups get older. Toronto is a team that can go either way, and the same goes for the Florida Panthers.
Why the Buffalo Sabres will rule the Atlantic, and not another “rebuilder”
So why do the Sabres also hold an edge over the Ottawa Senators, Detroit Red Wings, and Montreal Canadiens? Montreal for the moment, as they seem to be doing something similar at the moment to what general manager Kevyn Adams has done in Buffalo, but more on that later.
So far, the Yzerplan hasn’t performed as expected in the Motor City, and if I had to describe Ottawa’s plan, random draw is the only phrase I can come up with. I mean, this is a team that pulled off a blockbuster trade last year for Alex DeBrincat, only to trade him away when the winger made it clear he no longer wanted to be a Senator.
Sabres hold an edge over Detroit, Ottawa
There wasn’t much roster turnover north of the border next to the DeBrincat trade, as outlined in a previous piece. The Sens also appear to be one step behind Buffalo, despite splitting the season series last year, as they finished five points behind the Blue and Gold. However, they could wind up challenging Buffalo since they are also one of the league’s younger teams.
Going back to the Yzerplan, I’m not going to get so bold and claim that it won’t work. But vs. the Adamsplan, you got one general manager continually throwing players together each season without giving them a chance to build long-term chemistry. The same appears to be the case this year, and you have to wonder when this window is going to close and Detroit brass will be forced to admit defeat, and perhaps shift gears to calling up a few prospects.
Meanwhile, Adams already identified the Buffalo Sabres core and has half of them signed to long-term deals at solid prices. We know at least two players will join them in the not-so-distant future, and better yet, those who have signed long-term or will sign long-term have already shown they are capable of emerging as a pair of the league’s best at their respective position.
Biggest challengers
The Detroit Red Wings should be major challengers to the Buffalo Sabres, given the state of their prospects pool. Yet you can’t help but wonder how much longer those prospects will be in the system. Knowing Steve Yzerman, it’s more likely that he will use them as trading chips as opposed to calling them up through to the NHL ranks.
But as mentioned in the previous section, maybe he will be forced to shift gears and take stock of the pool. Either way, Detroit could be on the verge of lagging behind Buffalo if the Yzerplan doesn’t come into fruition this season.
The Montreal Canadiens are one team to worry about, even if it won’t be the case this season. However it’s important to remember, we’re talking about the 2020s and beyond. Like Adams and Company, it looks like Montreal’s front office is willing to make room on the NHL roster for their pool in the near future. If they can build chemistry, then the Canadiens could transform into one of the other major heavyweights in the division during the latter half of the decade.
light. Related Story. 2023-24 Prediction: Buffalo Sabres to have strong December? Part II
And of course, any one of the teams not mentioned in this section can keep reloading their roster and remain legitimate challengers to the Blue and Gold as the decade continues. With Auston Matthews in Toronto for another four seasons, the Maple Leafs could very well be that team IF they figure out their cap situation.
Source: Ranking NHL’s best and worst prospect pools: Nos. 1-16 by Ian Kennedy, Yahoo Sports