3 takeaways from a lackluster Buffalo Sabres performance against Red Wings

After two rather impressive wins against the Columbus Blue Jackets, the Buffalo Sabres put together a lackluster performance in their first of two games against the Detroit Red Wings. The Red Wings jumped out to an early lead with a short-handed goal by Mason Appleton, but the Sabres responded shortly after with a goal of their own.

The Red Wings dominated the possession battle for most of the beginning of this game, but the Sabres were opportunistic when they had their chances and capitalized with goals. It was tied 2-2 midway through the second period, but it would be all Detroit after that as they would score three straight to win by a final score of 5-2.

While the final score doesn't matter as much in preseason, there are two concerning storylines, and one positive from this game.

Alexandar Georgiev let's an opportunity slip away

The Buffalo Sabres got some good news before the game on Thursday as Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen was able to practice for the first time this month. He entered training camp with a 'tweak' and it was one of the reasons the team went out and signed Alexandar Georgiev earlier this month.

The former All-Star looked really good in the first game against the Columbus Blue Jackets as he stopped all 16 shots he faced. However, this game against the Red Wings was a different story as he allowed five goals, including three straight after the Sabres had tied it up at two.

This game might have been his last chance in a preseason game to show the coaching staff that he is deserving of a spot on the Sabres roster.

It is worth noting that Georgiev didn't get much help from the Sabres defense in this game as he did face 40 shots, and he did make some great saves that could have made the score worse. The challenge is that he had to be almost perfect to beat out Lyon for the backup spot and that seems unlikely at this point.

Buffalo Sabres look better on the power play

One of the bright spots of this game was the Sabres' performance on the power play as they scored both of their goals with the man advantage. It wasn't perfect as they did give up a short-handed goal early in the first period, but responded in the same power play with a goal of their own by Noah Ostlund.

In the second period, the Sabres were back on the power play, and this time it was Josh Doan who scored off a rebound shot by Jack Quinn.

It was good to see what likely is going to be the Sabres' second power play unit this season be as effective as they were, capitalizing on two of their five power play opportunities. The power play is something that has to improve this season for them to have a chance at the playoffs after having a power play percentage of only 18.8% last season.

Buffalo Sabres struggle with the face-off

One of the reasons that the Detroit Red Wings were seemingly in control for a majority of this game was their success in the face-off circle. They finished this game winning 60% of the face-offs, and the Sabres had only one player over 50%, which was Josh Dunne at 55%.

Meanwhile, players like Peyton Krebs won only three of his 10 face-offs, and Noah Ostlund won three of his 12 face-offs. It shouldn't be much of a surprise, based on how this game played out, that the Sabres would have an ugly Corsi For % of only 30.8%.

The Buffalo Sabres will look to bounce back, likely with almost an entirely new set of players, on Saturday in Buffalo against the Red Wings.