Sabres Slashes: 2021-22 Season Preview

(Photo: Fred Kfoury III/Icon Sportswire)

The Buffalo Sabres are coming off of another disappointing season, but this seems to be the norm for this franchise. They finished the regular season in last place, and went on to win the NHL Lottery Draft. There are low expectations again this season, as they have a lot of younger players in key spots such as first-line and second-line center. The Sabres took Owen Power in the Entry Draft, and made a few key trades to get even more draft picks. The Pegulas didn’t exactly go out of their way to put a roster together that could win some games.

The Sabres traded defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen to the Philadelphia Flyers and got draft picks and Robert Hagg back in the deal. Sam Reinhart now plays for the Florida Panthers with the Sabres acquiring another draft pick and a goalie prospect in return. Linus Ullmark went to the Boston Bruins in free agency. The team signed Aaron Dell, Craig Anderson, Vinnie Hinstroza, Mark Pysyk, and John Hayden in free agency. The Sabres did manage to re-sign young players like Rasmus Aslpund, Rasmus Dahlin, Henri Jokiharju and Casey Mittelstadt to bridge deals. The biggest thing the Sabres failed to do in the offseason was trade center Jack Eichel, but they did strip him of the captaincy.

The forward group is on the smaller side with the exception of Tage Thompson, who is listed at 6’7”. The forwards are on the younger side, and will be asked to do a lot this season. There are some veteran players in this group, like Jeff Skinner, who can score some goals. They are going to have issues scoring since the team doesn’t have a true sniper. There are a ton of question marks with this group since they are young and are inexperienced. Can the youngsters produce and deal with the drama that is going on in Buffalo. 

The defense has no clear cut number one guy. Sure, they are going to put Dahlin in that role,  but he did struggle at times last season. The blue line group is not very physical, but will contribute in the offensive zone since they can also move the puck. This blue line consists of lower end defenseman who are going to be asked to do more than they should. Hagg and Colin Miller will bring some physicality in their own zone. The blue line might be pushed around a bit since they are on the smaller side. They’ll need to shoot more, and are going to give up chances and goals because they will be out of position and turn the puck over.

The goalie situation in Buffalo is not good either. They went down to the wire trying to re-sign Linus Ullmark to a deal, but couldn’t get it done. By the time the team realized it would need not one, but two goalies, it was slim pickings in free agency. I don’t think the team was wiling to make a trade and give up assets for a starter, so instead, Kevyn Adams went out and signed Craig Anderson and Aaron Dell. Dell lost the backup battle to Dustin Tokarski in camp and preseason. It is going to be a long season in Buffalo and the goaltending will just add to it. The duo will give up a ton of goals because neither is very good, so expect Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen to be called up before the midpoint of the season. 

Dylan Cozens is expected to be a big part of this team and he is going to surprise some people this year. He will likely be the second line center, and will see a ton of ice time. He should be used on the power play and that should help him get some points. The Sabres will put him in different situations, and he could play against the opposition’s top line. He is going to produce and be better defensively than some people think.

Skinner has been horrible since he signed a new long-term contract with the Sabres during the 2019 offseason. He’s scored a total of 21 goals the past two seasons, and had 37 total points. The loss of Eichel seemed to hurt him last season, which was the worst season of his career. The decline could also be due to age. The Sabres need him to bounce back and score some goals since they have some youngsters that they will be depending on this season. If he plays with a couple of younger line mates that could rejuvenate him and help him to have a bounce back season. He needs to shoot more, and that could also help him get more goals.

Mittelstadt is finally going to stick with the big club and have his breakout season. He has the potential to play with Skinner and Victor Olofsson. Mittelstadt struggled at times last season, but had nine goals, eight assists and 17 points in his final 22 games played. He will play under head coach Don Granato, who was his coach for the few months of the season last year. He is going to play minutes and see ice time so this should bode well for his confidence. He can create and finish, but if the shot is there he needs to be selfish and take it.

The youngsters are going to feel the pressure this season. The Sabres are going to have to rely on them especially on the offensive side of the puck. Will they be able to produce and handle the pressure? The veteran forwards are going to have to take the kids under their wings. The kids could face another tough situation if Eichel is still with the team come the later months of the season as that could be a big distraction.

If the team wants to win some games then they are going to have to score. The defense and goaltending are not going to be great this season. If the offense can average scoring three or more goals per game then the team will be in good shape. If not, then it will likely be another bottom dwelling season in the Atlantic Division. 

The goalies have a chance to be the x-factor since I’m not expecting much from the duo at all. Anderson and Tokarski can’t let in any cheap goals and will have to steal some games. The defense is going to give up chances so the goalies will need to erase some of those mistakes that they will make. The best way to do this is to make the easy save, and avoid second chances by having good rebound control.

The Sabres will win a few game that they aren’t supposed to because, well, hockey. I just don’t see this roster competing with too many other NHL teams as it stands before the season. Luukkonen will get the call up early, but will in no way save the season. It will be another year at the bottom of the League to go with another shot to get a top player in the NHL Draft Lottery.