3 Buffalo Sabres who took a step forward in 2023/2024
After what was an up-and-down 2023/2024 regular season, the Buffalo Sabres will not play hockey until the Fall. Even though it resulted in the club not making the playoffs for the 13th straight year, there were some promising spots on Buffalo.
While some players took a step back, some individuals had a good season and took a step forward. I understand fans don't care because the team failed to qualify for the postseason, but three players left a positive impact on this team. In this article, we take a look at two forwards and one goaltender who had a good 2023/2024 campaign.
1. Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen
The goaltender is Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen. UPL had an awesome season for Buffalo after some fans didn't want him on the team or were losing faith in Ukko. Luukkonen had a record of 27-22-4 with a goals-against average of 2.57 and a save percentage of .910. After there were questions about him putting together a complete season, those were put to bed.
Luukkonen was impressive this year and was a huge reason why the Sabres were in the conversation for the postseason. It's been a long time since a goaltender on Buffalo has had the season like he had and it's great to see. As I mentioned, some fans had question marks about Ukko which is fair.
It felt like this was the year to determine if Luukkonen should be on the Sabres or not and he answered the bell. He is due for a new contract very soon and hopefully Buffalo can bring him back. Along with Devon Levi, UPL can give the Sabres a good 1-2 punch going forward as they look to end the playoff drought. I'm very happy for Ukko as he performed well this season.
2. JJ Peterka
Up next is JJ Peterka. In his second season, JJ took a big leap from his rookie year. During the 2022/2023 campaign, Peterka had 12 goals and 20 assists in 77 games played. This season, he scored 28 goals and registered 22 assists. He was also the only Sabres player to play in all 82 games this year as well.
Ever since being placed on the top line, Peterka took his game to the next level. Even though he didn't get any points in the last five games of the season, he put together a really good sophomore campaign. JJ did take a small dip after a hot start but finished strong during the last month or so of the season.
I cannot wait to see what he does next year and going forward as he will be a cornerstone player.
3. Zach Benson
The Sabres 2023 first-round pick is the final player who took a step forward this season. In 71 games played, Zach Benson scored 11 goals and registered 19 assists during his rookie year. While his numbers weren't anything crazy, it was a successful first NHL season for the 18-year-old from British Columbia.
Anytime you can get double digits in goals in your first season is pretty impressive, especially with how difficult the NHL is. Benson made the opening night roster after a strong preseason and did pretty well in the games he played.
He registered 30 points in his first year and I can't wait to see how he does going forward in his career.
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