Worst in NHL last year, Sabres are surging
After 10-0 run, Buffalo among top early surprises
BUFFALO, N.Y. — The Buffalo Sabres are on such a roll that captain Jack Eichel was having difficulty recalling the last time they lost.
“Um, was it Calgary?” Eichel said Monday, before being reminded the 2-1 overtime defeat to the Flames was three losses ago.
“Yeah, Rangers, in New York,” he said, finally recalling a 3-1 loss Nov. 4 that dropped Buffalo’s record to 7-6-2.
Ten games — and 10 wins — later, the Sabres are among the National Hockey League’s biggest surprises two months into the season.
A year after going 25-45-12 and becoming the league’s first team to finish 31st, following the addition of the expansion Vegas Golden Knights, the surging Sabres (17-6-2 after beating the San Jose Sharks, 3-2 in overtime on a goal by Jeff Skinner, his 19th of the season, Tuesday night) have 36 points and were sitting one point ahead of Nashville, who lost, 3-2, to Colorado later Tuesday, for the overall lead in the entire NHL.
“Just to think of where we came from a year ago, and to be winning games and doing this, obviously it’s great,” Eichel said.
Even Phil Housley could crack a smile when asked to reflect on the troubles he and his underachieving team endured last season, his first as coach. “I try to tend to forget last year,” he said.
The Sabres were so bad a year ago, they didn’t register their 16th victory until Feb. 10, and won consecutive games four times, including a season-best 3-0 run in late January.
Buffalo’s 10-game streak is the NHL’s longest since Columbus won 10 straight in March, and it’s matches the Sabres’ franchise record set twice and most recently when they opened the 2006-07 season on a 10-0 run.
“Extremely proud of this team,” Sabres co-owner Kim Pegula wrote in a text to The Associated Press. “Everyone is contributing in multiple ways, and when that happens anything is possible,” she added. “There’s still plenty of hockey left to play, but we are encouraged by the foundation that is being built and look forward to seeing the development continue.”
Buffalo’s turnaround is the result of a series of moves and soul-searching sessions that took place over the summer in a bid to spur a team that was the worst in the league in three of the past five seasons.
It began with Housley, who took action at the end of last season after centre Ryan O’Reilly went public in saying a losing mentality had crept into the locker-room. Housley challenged his leadership group with a summer-long series of frank discussions that allowed players to air their differences and raise concerns.
“I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again, I think the guys made a huge commitment in the summer. We talked about change,” Housley said. “It started with our leadership group leading in the right way.”
Forward Kyle Okposo credited everyone for buying in. “It’s pretty powerful what you can do if you get everybody on the same page, and people are willing to admit what they have to do to be better and then actually do it,” Okposo said. “It feels like a team. It’s pretty amazing.”
GM Jason Botterill followed by overhauling the lineup through a series of trades that included sending O’Reilly to St. Louis. He also acquired Conor Sheary from Pittsburgh and Skinner from Carolina, and upgraded his goaltending by signing Carter Hutton in free agency.
Skinner’s 19 goals are tied for the league-lead with Winnipeg’s Patrik Laine, while Hutton, with 12, is one win behind Vegas goalie Marc-André Fleury.
And then came the addition of rookie No. 1 draft pick Rasmus Dahlin, whose effortless skating and deft playmaking ability have energized what had been a plodding group of defencemen. Dahlin’s two goals and 13 points were tied for second among NHL rookies going into Tuesday’s play. And he’s part of a defensive group that has already contributed 14 goals after managing just 19 last season.
The 18-year-old shrugs off the Sabres’ hot start. “Of course it’s awesome to lead the league, but for me, I like to win, and I’m pretty used to it. I’m so happy that everyone is so glad in the locker-room.”
One major change has been the Sabres’ performance in close games. Buffalo has a league-best 10-0-2 record in games decided by one goal, a year after going 11-11-12. The Sabres are also 10-6-1 when tied or trailing after two periods, a year after going 9-44-7.