Former Buffalo Sabres goalie Carter Hutton understands the weight of the franchise's playoff drought.
Hutton made 94 appearances across three years with the organization from 2018 through 2021, which was essentially the midpoint of the team's current 14-year absence from the NHL's Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Now the Canadian netminder is watching from afar as the Sabres attempt to make a long-awaited return to the postseason, as he explained during an appearance Monday on Daily Faceoff Live.
"I just think this is such an exciting time for them. You have Tage Thompson coming back with his gold medal. The amount of pressure, the amount of hype that's going into this team. This is a team I am going to keep eyes on," Hutton said. "For the Buffalo Sabres, it's kind of now or never. I think the pressure is on, but the excitement is up in Buffalo. I don't think there's a fanbase across the league that's more excited to see their team come out and play well to start because of the implications of their last little run since the GM change."
He's referencing the Sabres' 20-3-1 surge to climb the Eastern Conference standings, a hot streak that began shortly before Jarmo Kekalainen replaced Kevyn Adams as the club's general manager.
Buffalo sits in the East's top wild-card position with 70 points (32-19-6 record) as NHL play is set to resume Wednesday night after a three-week break for the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy.
Is Carter Hutton right about the Buffalo Sabres potentially facing a make-or-break situation?
The Sabres learned an important lesson about future uncertainty a few years ago.
In 2022-23, Buffalo enjoyed a breakthrough year under former head coach Don Granato. It posted a 42-33-7 record for 91 points, the club's highest total since 2010-11, but still fell a single point short of qualifying for the postseason.
It felt like the Blue and Gold were on a promising trajectory and would finally make the playoffs again as early as the following season. That didn't happen.
Instead, the Sabres saw their point total drop for two straight years — 84 in 2023-24 and 79 in 2024-25 — and their sluggish start to the current campaign (11-14-4 record after 29 games) led team owner Terry Pegula to finally move on from Adams as GM.
That's why, despite some optimistic projections about the organization's direction, nobody can take anything for granted. If Buffalo can't find its stride down the stretch and misses the playoffs again, there are no guarantees it'll happen next year or any time in the immediate future.
Hutton is probably leaning into that year-to-year precariousness with his now-or-never comment, and that's certainly an element of truth to it.
The Sabres are going to head into the summer with some serious question marks. They have limited financial flexibility, in large part due to a $6.4 million dead-cap hit for Jeff Skinner, and Kekalainen must still decide what to do with impending unrestricted free agent Alex Tuch along with RFAs Zach Benson, Michael Kesselring, Peyton Krebs and Isak Rosen.
In addition, Buffalo's front office has to clear out a goaltending logjam that includes Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, Alex Lyon, Colten Ellis and Devon Levi, and defenseman Bowen Byram may become the focus of trade rumors again as he enters his contract's walk year.
So, the Sabres' roster could look quite a bit different by Opening Night of the 2026-27 season, and it's not a lock the reshaped group will make the 2027 postseason.
That's why it's so important for the Blue and Gold to seize the opportunity right now. That includes the players on the ice as well as the front office, which could help end the drought by addressing a few roster weaknesses with moves before the March 6 NHL trade deadline.
The Sabres have 25 games, and a five-point cushion in the playoff race, to put the most miserable stretch in franchise history in the rearview mirror for good.