NHL.com offers in-depth analysis of each of the 32 teams between August 1 and September 1. Today, three issues to watch for the Buffalo Sabers.
32 IN 32 SABERS: Team preview | Top five prospects | Advice for poolers
1. Will inexperience in goal hurt the Sabres?
All three Sabers roster goaltenders have a combined 100 games of NHL experience, while 21-year-old Devon Levi (7) and 24-year-old Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen (46) have only played slightly more than half of these encounters. Eric Comrie, 28, has played 47 games.
Levi was 5-2-0 with a 2.94 goals-against average and .905 save percentage in seven NHL games after leaving Northeastern University last season. Luukkonen (17-11-4, 3.61 MBA, %ARR. 892) was recalled from the Rochester Americans of the American Hockey League in mid-November when Comrie injured his lower body. He remained in the NHL for the rest of the season, winning 12 games between December and January.
Comrie returned to action Jan. 10 after missing seven weeks of action, but has played only eight games in the final three months of the campaign. He finished the season with a 9-9-1 record, 3.67 GAA, .886 save percentage and one shutout.
The Sabers were the team with the seventh worst shots against average (33.0) and goals against average (3.62) last season.
“I’m very excited about the goaltenders we have,” general manager Kevyn Adams said. “I am comfortable starting the season with the current portrait. […] We thought if we could add some depth defensively and get our hands on six or eight solid NHL players, it would take some pressure off our goalies. It will make our team a little more difficult to face defensively. »
2. How will players deal with higher expectations?
The Sabers caught the eye in the hunt for a Stanley Cup Playoff berth last season. They went 9-2-1 in their last 12 games and finished one point behind second-place fourth ace qualifying for the spring tournament in the Eastern Conference. This journey was made possible by lessons learned by the team during difficult times earlier in the season.
Individually, several players have set personal bests in the NHL. With 94 points (47 goals, 47 assists), Tage Thompson led Buffalo in scoring, followed by Jeff Skinner (82), Alex Tuch (79), Rasmus Dahlin (73) and Dylan Cozens (68).
Video: BUF@DET: Cozens sends between Husso’s pads
3. What will the portrait be like defensively with a lot of competition?
The acquisitions of Erik Johnson and Connor Clifton give the Sabers nine defensemen. Last season, injuries and poor performances by the team’s bottom three defenders prompted coach Don Granato to bet even more on Dahlin, Owen Power and Mattias Samuelsson in late games. If the group remains relatively healthy, there will be a heated fight between Henri Jokiharju, Ilya Lyubushkin, Riley Stillman and Jacob Bryson. The four were top-6 regulars last season, but this time around they could be on the press gallery much more often.
2023-08-03 23:55:58
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