The combined efficiency of the Buffalo Sabres' power play and penalty kill through nine games is 73.6%. As you'd probably guess, that's the worst mark in the NHL.
For reference, the Toronto Maple Leafs lead the league at 123.1%. There are 19 teams above 100%, and only four clubs are below 85%.
Last season, when the Sabres finally ended their 14-year playoff drought, their penalty kill checked in at 81.9% by itself. It was one of the main reasons for the Eastern Conference club's success.
The special teams woes continued in Saturday night's overtime loss to the Montreal Canadiens. Buffalo went 0 for 4 with the man advantage, dropping its PP conversion rate to a laughable 9.1%, and the Habs' first goal of the contest came on the power play.
While plenty of time has been spent over the first three weeks of the campaign discussing the lackluster play of the Sabres' goalies, and rightfully so, the completely ineffective work on special teams has an even greater chance to sink the team's season.
Head coach Lindy Ruff mentioned the power play again after coming up short against Montreal.
"We left quite a few plays out there. We didn't execute. I didn't think our passing was very sharp tonight. You get the chance on the late power play where we controlled it pretty good, missed a couple opportunities. We had the great opportunity in overtime. We could have made them pay, but instead it goes the other way and they made us."Sabres HC Lindy Ruff
Critics will point out the Sabres traded away Alex Tuch and Bowen Byram — it'd become clear neither player was going to sign a long-term contract extension with Buffalo — after both had established themselves as key special-teams contributors.
Buffalo hopes the impending returns of Jason Zucker (power play) and Conor Timmins (penalty kill) can provide a significant boost, but both units are digging out of major holes. It's probably going to take more than one player to get them clicking on all cylinders.
That said, it's still early and there are several young players getting used to expanded roles with those groups, so there's room to grow in the weeks and months ahead.
Ruff and Co. just have to hope that internal growth happens before they've given away too many points because of their downright terrible play on special teams.
Meanwhile, let's dive into the newest edition of our Sabres player grades series looking back at the OT loss against the Habs.
Buffalo Sabres push point streak to four games despite defeat by Montreal Canadiens
Sabres Player Grades
Player | Grade (1-10) |
|---|---|
Zach Benson | 8.5 |
Jack Quinn | 8 |
Mattias Samuelsson | 8 |
Tage Thompson | 7.5 |
Olen Zellweger | 7 |
Jiri Kulich | 7 |
Noah Ostlund | 6.5 |
Josh Norris | 6.5 |
Josh Doan | 6 |
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen | 5.5 |
Konsta Helenius | 5.5 |
Owen Power | 5 |
Zach Metsa | 4.5 |
Peyton Krebs | 4 |
Beck Malenstyn | 3.5 |
Justin Danforth | 3 |
Ryan McLeod | 2.5 |
Dennis Gilbert | 2 |
Louis Crevier | 2 |
Buffalo Player of the Game: Zach Benson
Zach Benson has yet to score his first goal of the season, though he's generated 4.66 individual expected goals (ixG), which is the best mark on the team, per Natural Stat Trick. His ability to finish high-danger chances is the last missing piece of his game.
Otherwise, the 21-year-old winger has been a force in all three zones for the Sabres. Against the Canadiens, he tallied an assist, three shots on goal, two penalty minutes (on a highly questionable call), a takeaway and a plus-one rating.
His ability to forecheck, backcheck and attack the net in transition, all while doing his best to get under the opponent's skin, gives him ample value, even if he's not lighting the lamp consistently. He's quietly becoming one of the NHL's most well-rounded wingers.
That's why he's received over 21 minutes of ice time in two straight games.
Sabres Quick Hits
- It was another game where Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen played decently well, but not well enough to quiet the trade rumors or Connor Hellebuyck speculation.
- Jack Quinn keeps rolling right along, which is great news for the Buffalo offense.
- Ryan McLeod continues to struggle finding his typically dependable two-way game. The fact he keeps changing lines probably doesn't help, but he needs to play better.
- Louis Crevier's performance has dipped since a strong initial surge to open his first season with the Sabres.
- Buffalo (4-3-2) is back in action Wednesday night (7:30 p.m. ET) when it welcomes the Philadelphia Flyers (1-6-3) to the KeyBank Center.
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