After the first four months of the NHL 2023-2024 regular season, the Buffalo Sabres are entering their bye week right before the All Star break. Honestly, it couldn't have come at a better time. The Sabres just got done with their California road trip after winning two out of three games and are on a two game winning streak heading into the break.
At the current moment, Buffalo is still on the outside looking in when it comes to the playoffs. They are 22-23-4 with 48 points, sitting in 6th place in the Atlantic Division. For the playoffs, they are nine points back of the second wild card spot. For as bad as the season has gone up to this point, they're still technically in the race and are so close to going over .500 on the season.
If they hope to turn the season around, they need to work on a few things. I'm going to tell you how they can turn the tide. A huge thing they need to improve in, the power play. As we all know, the Sabres power play unit has been a huge liability all year. It's really confusing because overall, it's the same team from last season.
I don't understand how the power play is struggling but whether it's coaching or just bad luck, Buffalo's power play HAS TO step up if it means them sneaking into the postseason. Another area of improvement, the next man up mentality. It looks like Jack Quinn will be missing out for the future. While we don't know the extent of the injury, it doesn't look good which is very unfortunate since Jack fought his way back after recovering from an achilles injury in the offseason.
Quinn is a difference maker in the lineup and now that he could be out for awhile, other players are going to have to step up. Guys like Alex Tuch, Tage Thompson and Dylan Cozens who are not having the kind of season we were hoping for. But it's not just the big name players, everyone needs to step up.
if the Sabres are serious about to turning their season around, EVERYONE needs to contribute. From the first line to the fourth line, it's going to be a full team effort if they hope to make a late run. Lastly, playing consistent good hockey. As we all know, this team has been incredibly inconsistent since opening night.
Buffalo cannot afford to keep playing the inconsistent brand of hockey they've been playing for the last 49 games. The Sabres have 32 games left on the season. Playing inconsistent hockey will not be good enough to make the playoffs. Obviously they are not going to be good every night, there will be some bumps and bruises.
With that being said, they are going into the break on a two game winning streak as I mentioned earlier. If they can just build off of it and string some wins or point streaks together, then they will be in the thick of things. It's easier said than done but I believe all of these points are how they can turn things around.