Sabres Come Up Short in Hard Fought Series With Montreal
“I appreciate all the guys. I appreciate everybody, how much they have put into this. As a group, we have put in so much. It sucks even more. We have such a good group of guys here, I think we could have gone further.” – Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen (Sabres.com)
1. Buffalo’s Playoff Struggles at Home Culminate in Game 7 Loss
The Buffalo Sabres had the 4th best home record in the NHL during the 2025-26 season at 26-10-5. Unfortunately, that did not translate well to the team’s first post season in what felt like an eternity. For whatever reason, Buffalo didn’t get the results they wanted at Keybank Center, despite the packed houses and passionate fanbase, inside and outside the arena. The Sabres won just 2 of 7 games on home ice, a particularly troublesome stat when you have “home ice advantage” in the first two rounds. Our boys took care of business on the road, winning 5 of 6, where they played more loose, dictating their game. In their own building, something didn’t jive for the team. Maybe the pressure was too much, maybe the Canadiens are just a damn good team. Montreal did have a 6-2 record against Buffalo over the past two seasons. No matter the reasoning, the woes at Keybank in the playoffs were too much to overcome.
“It’s tough. It stings.” said forward Tage Thompson. “I thought we played hard all year to get to this point. I don’t think anyone in this room felt like we were done yet.” (Sabres.com) Indeed, TNT. Perhaps if the Habs had the home ice advantage, things would have turned out different. Or if Buffalo drew Tampa Bay (like this guy hoped for) things could have drastically changed for the better. But there is no sense in dwelling on what could have been. It was a hard fought series between two evenly matched teams, somebody had to win. The lasting pain though will be how the Sabres didn’t quite play their best. As a unit and as individuals. Several players took turns at struggling and one in particular came up empty for the whole series.
2. Sabres Turnaround Season is a Building Block
“I told the team it hurts. That pain will go away,” head coach Lindy Ruff said. “But I won’t let this one game define the season we had. I told the players how proud I was of them. The battle that we took into Game 6 in Montreal, and then came back here and gave ourselves every chance to win.” (Sabres.com) The reality now is to learn from this and forge ahead. Buffalo endured a 14 year playoff drought only to go on an absolute heater to win the Atlantic Division title this season. (after wallowing in the depths of the league to start) It was an amazing turnaround that saw the team come a whisker away from the Eastern Conference finals. There are good things going on in Buffalo now, with some good young players starting to make a name for themselves.
While Jarmo Kekalainen brought experience to the new GM position and a tone shift for the organization, this is still very much Kevyn Adams team. How Jarmo proceeds this summer with these players will shape next year’s club. If Alex Tuch is still seeking 10 to 11 million per season, (and 7 or 8 years of term) I think he will be moving on, unfortunately. Too much sacrifices to the rest of the team will have to be made to accommodate Tuch’s expense. (not to mention his offensive no-show against the Habs) Zach Benson needs a new deal and it might be wise to lock him up long term, similar to what Josh Doan just got. (seven year, 6.95 million per season) Other teams will be quick to sniff around looking for Benny’s services. Peyton Krebs and others need a new contract too. Signing Tuch to huge money could mean dropping at least 2 current Sabres for cheaper options. Thankfully, a new wave of young players can help offset the cost and that is a distinct posibility to happen. Noah Ostlund, Konsta Helenius and hopefully Jiri Kulich should all be Buffalo Sabres to start the season. Their entry level deals should aid in staying under the cap while Jarmo looks to sign and trade for his final roster. I have a feeling he will be busy and I suspect anywhere from 3 to 5 players from Monday night’s game 7 could be gone.
Meanwhile, the Buffalo Sabres have nothing to hang their heads over. They really matured this season, learned how to win and overcame some big time adversity. They won a division and nearly broke into the final four for the Cup. Shortcomings reared their ugly heads towards the end and much of that needs to be addressed. There is work to do and decisions to be made. But this core group has a winning formula now and that is a great starting point. Jarmo must iron out the wrinkles and get this team over the hump and closer to elite status, which will be no easy task.