Buffalo Sabres are once again a complete disaster as November arrives

If the Buffalo Sabres somehow get this right, then maybe someone my age (33) will star as Lindy Ruff in an underdog story about the 2024-25 team getting the franchise back on track two or three decades from today in some hit blockbuster film. Right now, it looks like the Lindy Ruff Era: Act II is off to a horrible start as the Sabres once again looked like the dysfunctional team they’ve been for far too long. 

Yeah, they shot the puck often last night, and yep, they matched the NY Islanders in physical play at times, and yep, they scored on the power play once again. They also couldn’t have found themselves in a more winnable situation last night, yet, somehow, managed to lose the game. 

If you were stunned by what happened, I’m not sure why because haven’t we read this familiar story time and again? It’s like reading the sequel to that book with an unsatisfying ending or watching that next movie in a series that looks like it may have a better ending than its prequel, and the bad reviews online show it, but you watch anyway, full of optimism, only to have everything you heard reinforced. 

Sabres bad season (so far) could turn more disastrous tonight at Red Wings

Just seven days ago, the Sabres faced off with and beat the Red Wings in what was a much-needed win. Now, you can argue they need a W more than they did on October 26th because losing two straight games and allowing nine goals in the process is bad enough. But, as noted earlier, it’s worse when the team they faced last night wanted to give them the game. 

So, how do the Sabres start salvaging their season? Paying attention to detail and focusing on the basics would be two excellent places to begin. In other words, simplify the game, get the puck to your playmakers, fire the puck at the net, and try to score off of rebounds. 

This doesn’t need to be hard, nor does it need to be complicated, but the Blue and Gold are overcomplicating just about everything. You would think Lindy Ruff could put a stop to this nonsense, but he’s been less-than-successful so far, and there’s no reason to believe the process won’t continue tonight. 

Sure, the Red Wings have been a bad hockey team so far, meaning the Sabres should be in position to take this one. But then again, I was confident last night’s game vs. the Isles would be such a surefire win that Brock Nelson would have wanted to change uniforms, even if I’m unsurprised that they lost. So, I’ll be rather unapologetic when I say I’m not expecting much out of the Sabres tonight.