Shots: BUF 21 | COL 34
Buffalo Sabres Goals:
- Byram (Thompson, Tuch)
- Greenway (Power, Doan)
- Thompson (Rosen, Krebs) (PP)
Colorado Avalanche Goals:
- Necas (Makar, Toews)
- Lehkonen (Malinski, Necas)
- Nelson (Colton, Brindley)
- Brindley (Manson, Burns)
- Necas (MacKinnon, Girard)
- Landeskog (Necas) (EN)
Minus 1: Back-to-Back Pain
This was an incredibly tough matchup for Buffalo. Taking on the top team in the league after playing the night before is a tall order regardless of the situation. Add in Buffalo’s injuries/absences and there wasn’t much hope for this one. After a brutal start, the Sabres fought back and gave the Avalanche a run for their money. Eventually, Colorado’s skill won out and Buffalo ran out of steam near the end of the third. Buffalo has now lost 8 of their last 9 games. The past few seasons have all been sunk by one or two extended losing streaks. This could be the one that prevents a playoff birth this year.
Minus 2: Missed Opportunities
Buffalo put together around 50 minutes of an admirable game against the Aves. Unfortunately, they let some opportunities go by that could have swung them the game. After recovering from their early 1st period deficit, they tied the game in the second with a nice powerplay goal from Thompson. Before they could build on the momentum, they surrendered the eventual game winner to Brindley just 1 minute and 26 seconds after they tied it. The goal itself was one you would expect your goaltender to handle: a wrist shot on the rush from the outside the slot. You could feel the team deflate immediately. However, they had another change before the end of the period after the Aves failed on a challenge of goaltender interference. Buffalo couldn’t capitalize on the opportunity and remained down. Unfortunately, the margin for error was too small for Buffalo to overcome.
Plus 1: Young Guns Show Life
Out of necessity, the “Kids Line 2.0” of Ostlund, Rosen, and Quinn was relied on heavily. They were 2nd, 3rd, and 4th in time on ice for forwards respectively. When out there, their chemistry was evident, and they had a jump in their step. Their speed was desperately needed against Colorado, and they seemed to inject new life into the forward group. What stuck out to me was their forechecking. Quinn is a known entity at this point, but Ostlund and Rosen displayed some great use of body position and stickwork to help win battles where they were at a size/strength disadvantage. This bodes well for their future as Buffalo needs more dogs on the forecheck while Benson recovers
Final Thoughts
Expectations were tempered for this game given the circumstances. Overall, Buffalo largely played well. They showed resilience to battle back from their abysmal start. UPL may have given up a weak game winner, but he made some great saves to keep it close in the third. Despite their effort, they’re now careening toward “draft watch” status in record time. They need to find a way to stay afloat while they wait for reinforcements or else it’ll be too late to salvage this season by the time they arrive.