The Boston Bruins seriously tested the Buffalo Sabres in the opening round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Boston, likely aware it couldn't keep pace with a high-flying Buffalo offense, implemented a hyper-conservative, defense-focused style of play that caused a lot of frustration for a Sabres group featuring numerous young players making their first foray into postseason hockey.
In the end, however, the Sabres' talent prevailed in six games to advance to the second round in the franchise's first playoff appearance since 2011.
Bruins winger David Pastrnak was highly complimentary of the Atlantic Division champions after his team's season came to an end on home ice Friday night.
"I am super proud of the way the group came together from Day 1. The way we worked every single night, and the way we built to the team we ended up being," Pastrnak told reporters. "Unfortunately, just ran into Buffalo. There's a reason they won the division. A lot of skill and speed over there."
The four-time NHL All-Star did his part, tallying three goals and four assists in the series, but the rest of Boston's offense just couldn't find the net enough to pull off the upset.
"Made a push, made a couple mistakes, and end up in our net. They're too skilled to do that," Pastrnak said about the Sabres' taking advantage of the Bruins' errors.
Buffalo won all three games at TD Garden in the series by a combined score of 13-3 after the B's posted the NHL's second-best home record (29-11-1) during the regular season.
The Sabres await the winner of Sunday night's Game 7 between another pair of Atlantic Division powerhouses, the Montreal Canadiens and Tampa Bay Lightning.
Meanwhile, let's analyze the newest edition of our Sabres playoff player grades series after a commanding Game 6 victory to close out the Bruins.
Alex Lyon backstops the Buffalo Sabres to Round 2 with terrific Game 6 performance vs. the Boston Bruins
Sabres player grades
Player | Grade (1-10) |
|---|---|
Alex Lyon | 9.5 |
Rasmus Dahlin | 9 |
Zach Benson | 9 |
Tage Thompson | 8.5 |
Alex Tuch | 8.5 |
Josh Doan | 8.5 |
Mattias Samuelsson | 8 |
Josh Norris | 8 |
Peyton Krebs | 7.5 |
Bowen Byram | 7 |
Conor Timmins | 6 |
Beck Malenstyn | 5.5 |
Ryan McLeod | 5 |
Jason Zucker | 5 |
Jack Quinn | 4 |
Jordan Greenway | 3.5 |
Owen Power | 3 |
Tyson Kozak | 2 |
Michael Kesselring | 1 |
Buffalo Player of the Game: Alex Lyon
Everything changed for the Sabres after Lyon inherited the crease from a struggling Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen late in the Game 2 loss. The journeyman goaltender brought a sense of calm to a club that desperately needed it after UPL's shaky start to the series.
Lyon proceeded to stop 106 of the 111 Bruins shots he saw (.955 save percentage), including 25 saves on 26 shots in the clincher on Friday night.
Buffalo built a 2-0 lead in the first period of Game 6, but Boston made a strong push late in the opening frame and throughout the second period. The 33-year-old Yale product limited the B's to just one goal over that span before the Sabres offense came back to life in the final period.
"He bailed us out, I don't know how many times," center Tage Thompson said. "In big games like that, there's a lot of momentum swings, you're getting each team's best, and a couple huge saves at key moments in the game when it's still 2-1. ... He likes the big moments, and he's not afraid of them. He stands on his head when we need him."
Lyon should retain the starting role for as long as he maintains his current form, and he should expect to see a lot more consistent pressure in Round 2, regardless of whether the Habs or Bolts are the opponent.
Sabres quick hits
- Buffalo is going to need a lot more from the Ryan McLeod, Jason Zucker and Jack Quinn line in the next series. They were invisible for much of the opening round.
- Here's some free advice for Quinn: Shoot the puck! There was a moment in Game 6 where he skated uncontested to the middle of the slot and tried to pass. His shot is his biggest weapon. Use it.
- Most of the Sabres' best players were great on Friday night, and they're an incredibly difficult team to beat when that's the case.
- Zach Benson and Josh Doan are exactly the type of hardworking players who tend to thrive in the playoffs. That was on full display in Game 6.
- Josh Norris looked good in his first game back from injury and got rewarded with an empty-net goal.
- That was one of the worst games Owen Power has played all season. He looked uncomfortable with the puck on his stick and made some poor decisions in the defensive zone. A couple extra days for a mental reset comes at a perfect time for the typically dependable defenseman.
- Michael Kesselring played just five shifts while replacing Logan Stanley, who missed the game with an illness, and it was immediately clear he couldn't be trusted. It's understandable since he's rarely played in recent months, but it adds to a lost season for one of last summer's big additions.
- The Sabres likely won't find out their second-round schedule until after Game 7 between Montreal and Tampa, but a Tuesday night start makes the most sense.
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