On Saturday night, as the Buffalo Sabres steamrolled to a 5-0 road lead over the Tampa Bay Lightning, widely considered one of the NHL's top Stanley Cup contenders, it was hard not to think about comments winger Alex Tuch made back in January.
The Sabres had emerged as one of the league's hottest teams, but few prognosticators around North America were taking them seriously. It was a nice story but nothing else. Tuch proceeded to deliver a bold claim about the long-suffering franchise's aim for the remainder of the campaign.
"You know what, we're coming in with a lot of confidence. Everybody's coming in trying to prove themselves, and we're trying to prove as a team that we're legit," Tuch told reporters. "We're not just gonna go for the playoffs, we're gonna go for the Cup, and that's our goal: get better each and every day. That's it. That's the end goal. We're not in here just to squeak in."
At the time, those remarks probably generated more laughs than nods of agreement from those outside Western New York. Nobody's laughing anymore.
The Sabres have posted a 24-5-2 record over their last 31 games, and they've won all three games since the NHL's Olympic break ended. They're third in the Eastern Conference with 76 points, and they're closer to the East-leading Carolina Hurricanes (six points behind) than the first team below the playoff cut line, the Washington Capitals (seven points ahead).
There's now a better chance Buffalo wins the Stanley Cup (6%) than misses the playoffs (4%), according to HockeyStats.com. Those are the sixth-best Cup odds in the league and the third-best in the East behind only the Bolts (18%) and Canes (11%).
So perhaps it wasn't fair to think Tuch, who scored a power-play goal in Saturday's 6-2 victory over the Lightning, was looking for a cheap pop with his comments about chasing the Cup. Each passing game makes it feel like that's a legitimately attainable goal for the Sabres.
The winger's key role in that ascension toward the league's elite also makes it incredibly unlikely the 29-year-old Syracuse native, who looked like an obvious trade candidate during the club's early-season struggles, is dealt before Friday's 2026 NHL trade deadline.
Buffalo is all-in, not only on finally making a long-awaited return to the playoffs, but on trying to make some serious noise once they get there.
While it's amazing how fast things can change after 14 years of misery, it's hard to blame Sabres fans if they want to start dreaming big.
For now, let's dive into the latest installment of our Sabres player grades series following Saturday's emphatic win over Tampa Bay.
Rasmus Dahlin, Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen pave the way as the Buffalo Sabres score crucial Feb. 28 victory over the Tampa Bay Lightning
Sabres player grades
Player | Grade (1-10) |
|---|---|
Rasmus Dahlin | 9.5 |
Josh Norris | 9 |
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen | 9 |
Tage Thompson | 8.5 |
Zach Metsa | 8 |
Jack Quinn | 8 |
Josh Doan | 7.5 |
Alex Tuch | 7.5 |
Ryan McLeod | 7 |
Bowen Byram | 6.5 |
Peyton Krebs | 6.5 |
Jason Zucker | 6 |
Owen Power | 6 |
Mattias Samuelsson | 5 |
Zach Benson | 5 |
Beck Malenstyn | 4 |
Noah Ostlund | 3.5 |
Tyson Kozak | 3 |
Michael Kesselring | 2 |
Buffalo Player of the Game: Rasmus Dahlin
Nights like Saturday are when Dahlin is at his best. It feels like he's effortlessly in control of the game. He dictates the pace of play when he's on the ice, and it doesn't even appear like he's dominating until you check the box score: a goal, two assists and a plus-two rating against a Cup hopeful.
The Sabres are in the market for some defensive depth before the trade deadline but, even if that help arrives, the captain is still going to play monster minutes during the stretch run of the regular season (at least until Buffalo clinches a berth) and into the playoffs.
Of course, it's hard to blame head coach Lindy Ruff for trying to feed Dahlin as many minutes as possible when he's playing this well. The All-Star defenseman has recorded 23 points (eight goals and 15 assists) over his past 19 games. Buffalo is 13-4-2 in those contests.
He's also benefited from the breakout season being put together by Mattias Samuelsson. They've combined to form one of the NHL's best defensive duos in 2025-26.
Sabres quick hits
- Josh Norris has been flying all over the ice since his return from injury. Can he finally stay healthy?
- Another great performance from Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen. Now the question is whether it'll be a 50-50 split between Luukkonen and Lyon or if the Sabres will try to make UPL a clear No. 1 down the stretch.
- Zach Metsa with a two-point night and he may be jumping Michael Kesselring, who struggled on the Florida trip, in the defensive pecking order.
- It isn't always pretty but Jack Quinn continues to win his 5-on-5 minutes consistently.
- Zach Benson returned from injury and the Sabres looked like a more complete team. That's not a coincidence.
- Buffalo (35-19-6) is back home Tuesday night (7 p.m. ET) to welcome Jack Eichel and the Vegas Golden Knights (28-18-14) to the KeyBank Center.