Score: Capitals 2 | Sabres 1
Shots: BUF-31 | WSH-21
Sabres Goals: Rasmus Ristolainen (1)
Capitals Goals: Jakub Vrana (2) and Tom Wilson (1)
Minus 1 | Power Play
The Buffalo Sabres power play let them down last night. They had five power-play opportunities and converted on none. In a close game like this one, that’s the difference between winning and losing.
The more concerning part is on these five power plays they weren’t even able to generate many scoring opportunities.
Minus 2 | Rasmus Dahlin
Dahlin is broken again and someone needs to fix him ASAP. He, along with Brandon Montour, performed poorly for the second night in a row. The Sabres need Dahlin to take that next step this season to have any chance at competing for a playoff spot.
Plus 1 | Better Performance
Even though they lost, the Sabres did play a lot better than opening night. They controlled the shot and quality share at 5 on 5. They just couldn’t breakthrough on the Capitals rookie goaltender.
Plus 2 | Ristolainen and McCabe
Outside of the first period on opening night, Ristolainen and McCabe have played very well for the Sabres. Both of them have a goal in the first two nights of the season. They started off strong together last season as well. Sabres have to hope they can keep it going and not the skids again like they did last year.