Last season, the Buffalo Sabres had several young players take that next step but none might have had bigger breakout seasons than Josh Doan and Zach Benson. It is why it wasn't all that surprising that both signed seven-year extensions that keep them in Buffalo long-term.
Recently, Benson was on Morning Cuppa Hockey and talked about several topics, with his relationship with Josh Doan being one of them, and what he brings to the team.
"Always on the puck, always in the corners, always winning puck battles, and probably the best stick in the league," Benson said. "He strips everyone, and one of those guys that's just a dream player to play with. He does all the little things, and I think we both play similar styles, so it works really well when you have got kind of two guys going all out."
The numbers certainly back that up, especially in the playoffs this past season. Zach Benson would be tied for the team lead with Tage Thompson in goals with five while Doan was one of three Sabres to have 10 or more points.
According to Natural Stat Trick, when Benson and Doan were on the ice together, they had an xGF% of 61.30%, but when neither was on the ice, it dropped to 47.88% in 5v5 situations.
The reason they were so successful was exactly what Benson described as they are doing the little things that makes a team successful. The way they were able to forecheck, especially in the series against Boston, helped create chances and put pressure on the opponent.
Benson also mentioned Doan's ability to generate takeaways and he certainly did that as he was fourth in the entire NHL with 46 behind only Jackson LaCombe, Ryan O'Reilly and Filip Forsberg.
Zach Benson and Josh Doan expected to have even bigger roles next season for the Buffalo Sabres
Even with the season these two had, it feels like both are just scratching the surface. This year's team is going to be different with the departure of Alex Tuch, but Benson and Doan are more than capable together to replace some of that production with the way they play.
When looking ahead to next season, both players have firmly entrenched themselves in the Top 6 but the question is where they might play. The Sabres certainly could move Tage Thompson inside to center and have Benson and Doan on either side on the top line.
However, with the depth they have up the middle, it might make more sense to keep Thompson on the wing. In that scenario, Benson is probably on the top line with either Josh Norris or Jiri Kulich, while the second line seemingly is an open battle with several options to play with Doan.
Regardless of how the lines shake out in training camp, the Sabres are going to be expecting big things from these two players going into next season.
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