The Buffalo Sabres found themselves on the wrong side of a 3-0 loss on Thursday night to the St. Louis Blues. It was a deflating performance against a team in St. Louis that came into this game struggling and decided to make one of their best players a healthy scratch for this game.
In the end, it didn't matter, and the Sabres looked like the team that had only four points in the past nine games. The Sabres looked to have their chances based on the box score as they outshot the Blues 28-17, including 12-5 in the third period. However, they couldn't get any pucks past Joel Hofer, who certainly kept St. Louis in this game with some highlight-reel saves.
It wasn't just the shots but the high-danger chances as the Sabres finished the game with 10 compared to the Blues having only four in 5v5 situations, according to Natural Stat Trick.
There was plenty of blame to go around, but after the game, one of the team's leaders pointed to himself. According to WGR550's Brian Koziol, Alex Tuch after the game said, "we got to bear down on our opportunities, and it starts with me."
Buffalo Sabres need someone to step up and Alex Tuch appears to want to be that player
The injuries have certainly mounted for the Buffalo Sabres and there is no question this has impacted their performance. However, Tuch's line alongside Ryan McLeod and Josh Doan has remained relatively unchanged and been one of the team's best lines all season.
When this line isn't playing at that level, it is only magnified because of the lack of production elsewhere on the roster. In the game against the Blues, these three were on the ice for at least four high-danger chances according to Natural Stat Trick and were the Top 3 for the Buffalo Sabres.
Tuch was right that the chances were there for him and his line tonight. If they can convert even just one of these opportunities, it would drastically changed the dynamic of this game against St. Louis.
After 11 points in nine games, Alex Tuch has been quiet with two straight games without a point. The Sabres are entering their first extended road trip with four straight games on the road. They are going to need Tuch and his line to lead the way for Buffalo if they hope to win a few of these games on the road.