The Buffalo Sabres made it back to the Stanley Cup Playoffs after 14 seasons, but there was the question of how they would do once they got there. There are players currently on the roster who have been to the playoffs before, but none have had a playoff game with the Sabres, and for some of their leaders, like Rasmus Dahlin and Tage Thompson, it was their debut.
However, in this first series against the Boston Bruins, the Sabres have passed every challenge that shows this team is built for a long playoff run. In Game 1, they showed that no lead is safe against them as they came back from a two-goal deficit to win 4-3.
They were unable to extend the series lead to two and had an ugly game in Game 2, where they were down 4-0 before two late goals in the third.
This set the Sabres up for their next challenge, which was how they bounce back from a loss, but also how they play on the road. Once again, the Sabres rose to the occasion and not only showed they can win on the road, but can play with a lead late with the empty-net goal to give them a 3-1 victory.
Then on Sunday, the Sabres had a statement win where they jumped out to an early lead and didn't let up with four goals in the first period as they cruised to a 6-1 victory.
Buffalo Sabres must now show they can close out a series
For Buffalo, the next big test in the Stanley Cup Playoffs is whether or not they can close out a series. Head coach Lindy Ruff talked about the challenge of playing a desperate team with nothing to lose in these types of games.
"You can expect this to be the hardest game that we're going to have to play short-term here because they're in the nothing to lose and everything to gain category," Ruff said.
For the Sabres, especially late in the season, they struggled in these situations as they were playing teams fighting for their playoff lives. Meanwhile, the Sabres while playing for the division were comfortably in the playoffs and didn't show the same intensity.
This was onle of the reasons they lost five out of seven games at the end of March and into April against teams like the Bruins, Red Wings and Senators.
The Buffalo Sabres have a golden opportunity in front of them where they can secure a series win at home and guarantee a few days of rest while the Tampa Bay Lightning and Montreal Canadiens finish their series, which is currently tied at two. However, a win by the Boston Bruins means the Sabres are back on the road and the series takes on a whole new dynamic.
It will be interesting to see if the Buffalo Sabres learned anything from their late season struggles and can match the intensity that the Bruins almost certainly will bring in Game 5.
Add us as a preferred source on Google