In Week 25, the Buffalo Sabres won two out of the three games they played. To kick off the month of April, the Sabres welcomed the Washington Capitals. This game was Jeff Skinner's 1,000th career NHL game and Buffalo did well in a 6-2 victory. After getting themselves four points back of the final wild-card spot with a victory against the Philadelphia Flyers on Friday night, the Sabres had their playoff chances pretty much diminish in a loss against the Detroit Red Wings yesterday afternoon.
While Buffalo isn't officially eliminated, it sure seems like it will be 13 consecutive years of no playoffs in Buffalo. As hard as it is to believe, Week 26 is the final week of their season. They will have four games this week and it starts with the Dallas Stars on Tuesday night.
The Stars are leading the Central Division with a 48-20-9 record and 105 points on the season. They still have yet to clinch the division, so this game will mean something to them. Dallas beat Buffalo back in February when the Sabres lost 2-1.
On Thursday night, Buffalo will have their final home game of the season when they host the Washington Capitals yet again. The Capitals are looking to get into the postseason, so the Sabres could play spoiler in ending Washington's playoff chances. Each team has won a game this year with this upcoming matchup being the rubber match.
To close out their season, Buffalo will be in the state of Florida for two games against the Florida Panthers on Saturday and the Tampa Bay Lightning on Monday. The Sabres have beaten Tampa Bay twice while they have yet to beat the Panthers. Both teams have clinched a postseason spot, so they could be resting some starters in this game.
For my predictions, I think Buffalo will split. They will beat Washington and Tampa Bay but will lose to Dallas and Florida to wrap up the 2023-2024 season.