x

Already member? Login first!

Comments / New

Sabres dominate the Devils in their home opener

Final Score: Sabres 7 | Devils 2

Shots on Goal: Sabres 36 | Devils 20

Goal Scorers: Jack Eichel, Sam Reinhart (2), Victor Olofsson (2), Kyle Okposo, Jeff Skinner, Kyle Palmieri, and Travis Zajac

Plus-1: Opening Ceremony

The crowd was into it early after an awesome opening ceremony from the Sabres to kick off their 50th anniversary season. They had 50 season ticket holders come onto the ice and were followed by the introduction of various captains throughout team history. If you missed it you can watch the full ceremony below.

Plus-2: Olofsson-Eichel-Reinhart line

The Sabres top line was dominant again last night. Not only at even strength, but on the power play as well. The trio ended the night with five goals and six points combined. They’ve picked right up where they left off last season.

Plus-3: The Defense

For the second straight game the Sabres defense just suffocated their opponent. The Devils couldn’t get through the neutral zone with speed and when they did get in the Sabres end, they couldn’t sustain any pressure. All three pairs were excellent once again. Rasmus Ristolainen continues his strong play with Jake McCabe and Henri Jokiharju has done a great job so far with Marco Scandella.

Plus-4: The Fans

To be honest, I can’t remember where I heard the building as loud as it was last night at times. That includes the 10-game winning streak from last season. Fans were into it from the start and the team rewarded them. Chanting and cheering throughout almost the entire game.

The Sabres did a great job with the in-game entertainment that kept the fans into during breaks. Heck, we even got to see a brief return for the Earl of Bud. Probably one of the most entertaining overall games I’ve been at in some time.

Final Thoughts

It’s hard not to get excited after two games, but they still have 80 left, so we shouldn’t plan the Stanley Cup parade yet. Having said that, this team appears to have bought into Ralph Krueger’s new system and are playing it very well. They’re a more aggressive team and are finally playing with pace.

We’ll see if they can keep it going when they visit the Columbus Blue Jackets tomorrow night.