BUFFALO, NY. (WKBW) — The Buffalo Sabres' quest to end the 14-year-long playoff drought began with a 4-0 loss at the hands of the New York Rangers at the KeyBank Center Thursday night in their season opener.
1. Cold Start
It was pretty clear that one team had already played a regular-season game and the other hadn't. Buffalo came out looking like they were shaking off some pregame jitters/nerves and couldn't get into a comfortable flow on the ice. At the end of the opening period, Buffalo was outshot 16-11, which, all things considered wasn't as lopsided as you may have thought, given how they played.
2. Alex Lyon
Lyon faced a mix of close-range shots, breakaways, and just overall clean looks from the Rangers on Thursday and held his own in his first career start with Buffalo. This game could've gotten away quickly for the Sabres, especially early on if Lyon didn't bail them out in between the pipes. The key to Lyon's overall success here will depend largely on how he manages the workload that will be on his shoulders, given the injury to Ukko-Pekka Lukkonnen. It appears he's going to be the guy who will handle a bulk of the netminder duties.
3. Power Play
New season, same observation. The Sabres' power play, like in years past, struggled to help tilt the momentum in the team's favor at any given point. They end the night going 0-4, and you can give them the benefit of the doubt in the first game of the season if you want. But if this continues to be something we talk about throughout the season, then you have to ask yourself, who are what else is their left to blame for it.
4. New guys looked good
No need to be all doom and gloom on the season opener so let's talk about some of the new guys. I thought what you got out of guys like Josh Doan, Conor Timmins contributed some really solid minutes on the ice. I would've loved to see Josh Norris have some bigger moments and flash a little bit of that potential he brings to the lineup, but given how out of sync this team was in the offensive zone, I think it'd be unfair to be too critical of him in that regard. Especially as he left the game in discomfort late in the third period after taking a faceoff.
Lindy Ruff on Norris after the game, "He didn't finish the game, so that's not a good sign."
5. Gary Bettman
I'm adding this in here because NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman spoke with reporters during the second intermission about the organization. One of the very first questions after Bettman raved about Buffalo being a hockey town was how concerned he is that one of the league's "best hockey markets" hasn't made the playoffs in 14 years.
"Team performance is something I leave to the team. And no team enjoys having to rebuild and going through the drought. But there's no doubt in my mind that Terry Pegula is dedicated to hockey, committed to hockey, committed to Buffalo. And I assure you, he's not any happier than any fan is about it."
That was Bettman's response to the question, and I know that answer may not sit well with Sabres fans, so allow me to end on a positive note. With the new Highmark Stadium set to open in 2026, he was asked if the league would bring back an outdoor game for the Sabres and play it there. His answer, "We're going to come back, I promise. Just got to work out the schedule. And it's going to be great to put it in the new building."
Up Next: Buffalo at Boston - Saturday 10/11 7 pm EST.
