Tage Thompson jokes Buffalo Sabres teammate is 'one of the dumbest human beings'

Buffalo Sabres superstar Tage Thompson recently joined the popular Spittin' Chiclets podcast and sent some friendly fire toward one of his teammates.

The target? Winger Zach Benson.

"He's a beauty. He's probably one of the dumbest human beings I've ever met," Thompson told the Spittin' Chiclets crew. "He's like white trailer trash. Yeah, he doesn't care, he'll fight the toughest guy in the league. He'll start shit every game. I love his game, he's a little rat. He's got some good skill, too."

Sounds about right.

What Benson lacks in size (5'10'', 177 pounds) he makes up for with sheer determination. It's rare he's not the hardest working guy on the ice any given night, and he causes endless headaches for opponents with his hard-nosed forechecking and post-whistle antics.

It's quickly made him a fan favorite in Buffalo since being selected in the first round of the 2023 NHL draft.

Zach Benson, Tage Thompson helping lead Buffalo Sabres into contention for the Stanley Cup Playoffs

Benson was sidelined a few times early in the 2025-26 campaign because of injuries, and his absence is felt every time he's forced out of the lineup.

That's best evidenced by the fact Buffalo has a 17-7-3 record in the 27 games he's played this season (.685 points percentage). The Sabres are 4-8-1 (.346) when the 20-year-old winger is not available.

Those numbers help illustrate that Benson's impact goes beyond his personal stat line, though he's on pace to set career-high point total. He's recorded 17 points (four goals and 13 assists) along with 14 penalty minutes, 12 hits, 11 blocked shots and a plus-six rating.

In late December, the Canadian forward explained why the Blue and Gold were suddenly one of the NHL's hottest teams, highlighted by a 10-game winning streak, after a slow start to the season.

"During this streak, we've seen compete, will and want," Benson told reporters. "I think we got a lot of skill in this room, and I think it just comes down to competing every night, being consistent, and I think we're doing that of late, and it's paying off for us."

He added: "Our belief level is super high. We know the skill we have in this room. We know if we bring it every night we have a very good chance to win hockey games, and you're seeing that of late."

Another reason for the rapid rise up the Eastern Conference standings? Thompson.

The 2023 All-Star, who was recently named to the Team USA roster for the 2026 Winter Olympics, has posted 20 goals and 17 helpers in 40 games. It puts him on pace to hit the 40-goal plateau for the third time, and lighting the lamp 50 times remains within reach.

It's helped the Sabres move up to 10th place in the East. They are three points behind the final wild-card spot and six points back of third place in the Atlantic Division, and they're tied for the fewest games played in the conference, giving them a chance to gain some ground.

You can tell Buffalo is having fun right now because Thompson's Spittin' Chiclets interview was fun and lighthearted. He's usually more serious and direct when things aren't going well for the franchise.

Now the question is whether the Sabres will be able to carry those positive vibes into the second half of the season to ultimately end the organization's miserable 14-year playoff drought.

If they do, it'll almost surely be because Thompson and Benson played crucial roles down the stretch.