Another slow start dooms Buffalo in an embarrassing beat down
Score: Devils 7-2 Sabres
Shots: NJD 38, BUF 12 (!!)
New Jersey Devils Goals: Holtz (6), Toffoli (10), Hischier (3), Palat (2), Toffoli (11), Mercer (4), Hughes (2)
Buffalo Sabres Goals: Skinner (10), Okposo (2)
Minus 1: Not Showing Up Early On
It wasn’t that long ago that the Sabres gave up an early goal to the Bruins and them promptly caved in for a walloping. If you thought lessons had been learned from there.. not really. A couple of nights ago against the Penguins the Sabres started flat and it took the jeers of the frustrated home fans to spark them to a stirring comeback in the third period.
There was to be no such repeat performance last night on the road in New Jersey. It didn’t matter that the Devils had been terrible before that, losing three on the trot. In fact, the Devils had not even taken a lead into the second period in nine previous home games this season. On the way to getting outshot 18-3 in the first stanza, and seeing Eric Comrie given the mercy hook at the end of the period that somehow finished only 4-0, the Sabres emulated one of the worst first periods we’ve seen them play in many years.
Minus 2: Time To Sit Clifton
It’s becoming pretty visible to even those who have refused to see it that giving Connor Clifton a three-year free agent deal is going to go down as one of the worst decisions General Manager Kevyn Adams has overseen. You can also see why the Bruins had benched him for long periods of last season’s playoffs and that they were pretty much happy to see him walk at the end of the campaign.
The 28-year-old is setting new records in futility, leading Buffalo from the wrong end in +/-, penalty minutes and hits. Paired with veteran Erik Johnson you would have thought there was some hope for Clifton but alas. At this point playing a carboard cutout will give you a better on-ice presence than whatever Clifton is doing.
A wake-up call is needed for the defenseman, and there’s nothing like a stint sitting high up in the sky boxes to give him some time to feel shame.
Minus 3: No Dream Debut For Duo
Spare a thought for poor Isak Rosen and Jiri Kulich who had to make their NHL debuts in this tire fire. The pair have made a torrid start to the AHL season with the Rochester Americans, scoring 19pts (8G, 11A) and 17pts (11G, 6A) respectively in 16 games and were overdue for a call-up.
However, what should have been a memorable occasion to remember for the pair turned into a nightmare of enduring proportions at the hands of Lindy Ruff’s boys. Rosen ended up with a -2 in about 13 minutes of action without a shot, playing on the third line with Tyson Jost and Victor Olofsson. Kulich did marginally better with one shot and a -1 in just under 15 minutes with Peyton Krebs and Kyle Okposo.
Hard to judge them either way given how horrendously the team played last night as a whole. so save your torches and pitchforks and torch forks and what have you until they’ve at least played a handful of games.
Plus 1: Power Play Picking Up
Even in a spanking like this there was a silver lining. The power play has been a major issue to start the season, and the injuries haven’t helped. However both goals last night came on the man advantage, making it four straight games now where the Sabres have scored a power play goal.
This takes Buffalo up to a power play efficiency of 16.4%, which is good for 23rd in the league. Not great, but definitely an improvement.
The penalty kill is still looking good despite giving up a goal last night to the Devils – who boast the league’s best powerplay – scoring on their only attempt last night. The Sabres have tightened up on giving away penalties, and the shorthanded goal against the Devils is the first they have conceded in five games.
Final Thoughts
I started writing this recap near the end of the first period. It was already pretty clear how the night was going to go, so I decided wisely to step away from the computer and come back to it much later after the game. Problem was, when I came back much later yesterday evening I was still seething at what I had witnessed. Again, I shut the laptop.
This morning I’m trying to write this piece and I’m still pretty mad about what’s happening with the Sabres. We’re a much better team than this. Yet we’re playing incredibly immaturely and it shows in the wide variations in quality from game to game. In a way it’s good we’re not reeling into long losing streaks like last season, but also it’s not good that we can’t string together a handful of wins either.
Try to enjoy your Sunday and get the bad taste from last night out of your mouths. And if you’re expecting anything positive out of the other Buffalo team later this afternoon, close this page right now and go touch some dirt or anything that will ground you in reality again.