With the Buffalo Sabres now in first place in the Atlantic Division, it's hard not to think about the possibilities that await this team in a month's time.
Whether it's a closely-contested series with an experienced team like the Boston Bruins, a run-in with a fringe contender like the Montreal Canadiens, or even a series with a fellow playoff returnee in the Detroit Red Wings, people are starting to imagine a wide range of possible futures that involve a Sabres playoff appearance.
And, though it may sound as wild as Doctor Strange suggesting that there's only one outcome out of 14,000,605 that sees the Avengers beat Thanos, the idea of a deep run and Cup contention is a scenario that is gaining momentum. This is especially reflected by several media outlets, who are all starting to come to a similar conclusion.
Craig Button: Simply put, the Sabres can contend for the Cup
Though the sportscasters I will discuss later on make strong cases for the Sabres to be seen as contenders, TSN's Director of Scouting Craig Button makes the strongest point.
While appearing on SC with Jay Onrait, Button said that the team is starting to believe in themselves and once that belief truly materializes, they could be dangerous.
Button was asked directly whether Buffalo is a serious champonship threat and he replied: "Yes."
"They've been the NHL's best team since the beginning of December and there's no way, if you've been watching this Buffalo Sabres team, that you can suggest that they're not a legitimate Stanley Cup contender," Button added. "... As the team starts to build and as this team starts to believe, there's no reason for them not to think that they can go deep and contend for the Stanley Cup. Because there's enough evidence there to say that what they're thinking as a Stanley Cup contender is legitimate."
Though the Carolina Hurricanes and Brandon Bussi are making their case to finally get to the Stanley Cup Final after seven years under head coach Rod Brind'Amour and others like the Tampa Bay Lightning are set to continue their runs of success after re-acquiring role players, it's also the mentality that counts. As Button clearly pointed out, the Sabres now have that mentality; when fully utilized, it's going to be hard to beat this team four times in any seven game series.
Add on the fact that any playoff opponent will have to go to a raucous KeyBank Center at least three times, and it might be even harder to dispatch this Sabres team.
32 Thoughts: We saw this in Florida, and now we're seeing it with Buffalo
On Monday's episode of 32 Thoughts, hosts Elliotte Friedman and Kyle Bukauskas started the segment by commenting on Sundays game between the Sabres and the Tampa Bay Lightning. Though they did reinforce the notion that Sabres hockey is back and that the atmosphere at KeyBank Center is as strong as ever, it was Friedman's reference to the Lightning and Florida Panthers that interested me the most.
"It's different now, but if you wanted to win in the Eastern Conference, you had to go through the bully that was the Tampa Bay Lightning," Friedman said. "And yes, the Lightning have the great skill, the elegance of [Victor] Hedman, the skill of [Nikita] Kucherov, Brayden Point, all those other guys, but they rough you up too. And they did it to Florida and Florida realized 'we can't just be skilled, we have to be mean" and they turned into the two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers. And that was because they got thrown around by the Lightning and embarrassed by the Lightning by years.
"And now the Buffalo Sabres who, incredibly and unbelievably, are in first place in the Atlantic Division and two points behind Carolina for first place in the Eastern Conference are sitting here saying, 'We're ready to take on the Tampa Bay Lightning first hand.' Like it was the easiest bet that Sam Carrick would go into Buffalo and immediately become a fan favorite; that guy is a blue-collar Sabre. And I'll wait until Logan Stanley shows up and wait until Luke Schenn shows up, if those two guys were able to play today, they would've been right in the middle of all of that against the Lightning."
Over the past few years, we've seen some very distinct "eras" in the Eastern Conference. From 2019 to the start of the 2023 playoffs, it was the Lightning that dominated the Eastern Conference. Then, from the point that the Lightning lost to the Toronto Maple Leafs in the first round of that 2023 postseason to the present, it has been the Panthers that have run the Eastern Conference.
As referred to by Friedman, both teams hit their peaks after becoming mean, physical teams that would bully their opponents up and down the ice night in and night out.
While it's still too early to crown this Sabres team as the next big bad in the East and while the Panthers or Lightning could always assert themselves once more in the near future, the Sabres could very well be getting there. Carrick is the kind of player who will fight guys and who will energize a team. Not only did he score his first goal as a Sabre in that game against the Lightning, but he also took on Scott Sabourin in a first-period fight. Stanley is also a physical player, while Schenn can also be seen as an addition in that department.
If all three players can play their role in getting the Sabres over the hump and tormenting opponents, then maybe the team can fill the role vacated by the Panthers and assert themselves as a threat to win the Cup.
Martin Biron: The team has matured, and playoffs are top of mind at long last
It's not just renowned sportscasters like Friedman who are making claims about the Sabres' chances.
Several TSN analysts are now starting to see the same sort of idea that the Sabres are contenders and that they could go on a deep run. Former Buffalo Sabres goaltender Martin Biron commented on the Sabres becoming a playoff team and reinforced similar notions brought up on Tuesday's episode of 32 Thoughts.
"The one thing with the Buffalo Sabres is the way that they are built now, like they made a big deal over the summer, trading J.J. Peterka to Utah, they added Josh Doan, he's added depth," Biron said. "They added [Michael] Kesselring on the blue line, they went and acquired Logan Stanley and Schenn from the Winnipeg Jets, [Tanner] Pearson and Carrick up front, but they kept everyone in the locker room and their depth was already strong. Players coming up and playing big minutes from Rochester or being put in different roles."
The kind of depth that the Sabres acquired at the deadline is exactly what helps to push contenders over the edge. Sure, a team could go and trade for the best scorers, the best goaltender, or the best shot-blockers in the game. But it's the role players and the maintenance of the locker room that is the most effective trade deadline strategy. The Leafs successfully replicated this strategy before going on to win their playoff series' in 2023 and in 2025, the latter of which followed a division title, and Cup winners like the Panthers have done it preceding their title runs.
Now, it's the Sabres who are doing it, and analysts like Biron are catching onto that fact. Not only that, but they're starting to think that the creation of additional depth roles could set up a deep run.