The Buffalo Sabres will soon clinch a berth in this year's NHL playoffs, bringing an end to the longest postseason drought in league history at 14 years.
It's been a miserable stretch for the best hockey fanbase in the United States and, while some fans understandably took a break from the Sabres during a decade of laughingstock status, others remained fully committed and have finally been rewarded with winning hockey again.
Buffalo sports fans have started filling the KeyBank Center up for every game in recent months as the club started climbing the Eastern Conference standings. So, the outpouring of support for that first playoff game back in Buffalo later this month will surely be extraordinary.
It's time for a new generation of Sabres supporters to make lifelong memories.
Party in the Plaza
As over 19,000 fans pour into the KeyBank Center for playoff home games, thousands more will likely hang outside in Alumni Plaza to experience the atmosphere in a unique way.
The Party in the Plaza took on a life of its own in the early 2000s as a Sabres team led by Chris Drury, Daniel Briere and Ryan Miller make back-to-back runs to the Eastern Conference Finals. Enduring images of those outside celebrating goals will live on forever.
On May 4, 2007, the #Sabres took Game 5 in their series against the #Rangers after Chris Drury scored with 7.7 seconds remaining and Maxim Afinogenov scored in overtime. Full game at https://t.co/xX4Qb4bPps pic.twitter.com/5fUALNLezh
— SabresClassics (@SabresClassics) May 4, 2025
There's nothing quite ride like riding the escalators toward the exits at the KeyBank Center with a horde of other fans waiting outside to celebrate a Sabres postseason win. It adds to the already immaculate vibes that come with playoff hockey.
At long last, those moments are coming back to Buffalo.
Playoff overtime hockey
Nothing in sports can match the edge-of-your-seat thrills of playoff hockey. Every rush down the ice by either team can end an instant classic in the blink of an eye. Heroes are born and legends are built.
Then sometimes an announcer, like the late Sabres Hall of Fame play-by-play man Rick Jeanneret, can amplify the moment even further with a call for the ages: "Oh, now do you believe? Now do you believe? These guys are good! Scary good!"
Jason Pominville vs Ottawa 5/13/2006 #sabres pic.twitter.com/r0jmUeN8gx
— Sabres Goal a Day (@SabresGoalADay) May 13, 2018
A series can be won and championships can be lost because of a single bounce, and there isn't anything else in sports that can provide that type of feeling. It's equal parts anxiety and exhilaration.
Not being able to experience that every spring is the biggest thing Buffalo sports fans have been missing out on over the past 14 years. Welcome back to the mayhem.
Stanley Cup dreams
The best part about making the playoffs is, no matter where your favorite team lands in the bracket, there's at least some belief a championship could be on the horizon. Drought nightmares can transition into dreams of a parade around the city with the Cup in tow.
Are the Sabres going to win the title this season? Maybe not. They have a modest 5% chance to raise Lord Stanley in June, based on the latest odds from HockeyStats.com, and that only represents the eight-highest mark in the league.
Yet, 5% is certainly not 0% and Buffalo has been the league's best team since mid-December, so having a little bit of optimism about what's about the happen adds to the excitement. Anything is possible.
That hasn't been the case for the Sabres and their fans for far too long. The only luck they could hope for is a ping-pong ball bounce helping them win the draft lottery. Now, as the page finally turns, they can start dreaming big once again.