With the playoffs set to begin in just under a week, all that’s left for the regular season is determining seeding and who the Buffalo Sabres will face in Round 1.
The Sabres control their own destiny in regards to the Atlantic Division. Should they win their final two games, they will clinch their first division title since they won the Northeast Division back in the 2009-10 season.
While the team is playing well, riding a three-game win streak, there is an area of their game that needs to improve: the power play. With no goals in their last 17 chances on the man advantage, they’ve dried up in one of the most crucial elements of the game. Changes were made to the first unit, swapping in Alex Tuch for Josh Norris, as well as repositioning Jack Quinn and Rasmus Dahlin. Dahlin will line up on the right flank allowing a left handed one time opportunity opposite of Tage Thompson.
After practice on Saturday, Coach Lindy Ruff was asked about the power play. Buffalo’s power play is just below the league median, ranked 18th in the league at 19.9 percent.
“We’re going to take a look at this for a game or two, which we have that luxury. ... We’ve run a little bit dry, so now it’s time to just try something,” Ruff said.
Although fewer penalties are typically called in the playoffs, in some games nobody can buy a goal at even strength, and a single power-play goal can be the difference-maker. Alex Tuch spoke to the media and highlighted the importance of special teams in the postseason.
“Five-on-five, it’s gonna be tight, it’s gonna be hard to score. ... When you get those chances on the power play and penalty kill, I think that’s what makes the best teams in the playoffs,” Tuch said.
This Sabres group is more than capable of figuring it out
The first unit is loaded with goal-scorers, everyone has at least 20 goals this season except for Dahlin, who is one shy with 19. Zucker leads the team in power-play goals with 10, often cleaning up the garbage in front of the net. He also led the team last season.
Somewhat surprisingly, only six of Tage Thompson’s 38 goals have come on the man advantage. And he hasn’t cracked double-digit goals on the power play since 2022-23 when he had 20. Clearly teams are defending that side of the ice more intentionally, however Thompson’s lethal shot is inevitable. With the way teams defend him, Tage has tapped into his playmaking abilities, registering 18 power-play assists.
I believe adding Alex Tuch to the first unit to occupy the bumper spot will help immensely. Just another sniper to be aware of for the penalty kill, he will force the opposition to collapse and monitor the middle of the ice. A criticism has been the lack of shooting and the team seeming to dance around the perimeter looking for a perfect shot, which hasn’t generated many high-danger chances. Josh Norris, while skilled, is another perimeter player on the power play, and swapping him with Tuch, who gets in the dirty areas, was the right move.
Don’t sleep on Buffalo's second power-play unit
Many teams like to load up their first unit and have them play the majority of minutes on the man advantage. However, Buffalo is pretty generous with the opportunity the second unit is given. That being said, it’s still the second unit, and the players on it know they have to earn every bit of extra ice time. This is where guys Zach Benson, Josh Doan and Ryan McLeod thrive.
If the first unit fails to generate anything in the first minute, they send out the second unit and they come out like a hungry pack of dogs. Most notably, Josh Doan has found success, and his nine power-play goals rank second on the team.
Having two formidable units gives Buffalo lots of options, and if the struggles continue, they can mix things up and just about everybody on the team has some level of chemistry with one another.
The Sabres' play with the man advantage will be crucial should they face the Tampa Bay Lightning
No matter who the Sabres face in the first round, they’ll take all the scoring they can get. But especially if that opponent ends up being the Lightning. In their four meetings this season, the Sabres have gone on the power play a total of 19 times, highlighted by seven chances in the 8-7 win on March 8, with Buffalo scoring on four of them.
In their game last Monday, the Sabres weren’t able to get a goal on any of their four chances. But the point being, the opportunities will come. Should they draw the Lightning in the playoffs, we can expect the penalty box to be busy. The Blue and Gold will need to capitalize on the boneheaded antics of the Bolts and make them pay.
Buffalo will close out the regular season with two non-conference opponents, traveling to Chicago on Monday night to face the Blackhawks, and welcoming the Dallas Stars into KeyBank Center on Wednesday.
Two meaningful games to end the regular season, but the most meaningful games of the campaign are still to come for the Sabres.