Sabres “Hometown” Woes Continue With Loss To Senators

The Buffalo Sabres seemed to find their stride on their four-game road trip, earning seven of a possible eight points with an overtime loss to Washington and three victories over San Jose, Anaheim, and Los Angeles, but that success did not translate in the opening of their four-game homestand against the Ottawa Senators. 

The Sabres looked sharp wearing their new “Hometown Remix” jerseys, but did not play as they appeared, managing only 25 shots on Senators backup Samuel Ersson and one goal on a Peyton Krebs deflection of a Tage Thompson late in the second period. Buffalo relied on a strong performance by goalie Colten Ellis, but defensive lapses led to Shane Pinto’s tying goal and Michael Amadio’s game-winner with 3:09 left. 

"I  can  sum  it  up  this  way: I thought we  got  outskated, I thought that we got  outworked.  We  gave  up  six  or  seven  odd-numbered  rushes  and the game-winning  goal was an  odd-numbered  rush," Sabres head coach Lindy Ruff said. “sure. " I  thought we weren't skating  well,  some  of  the  puck  play  wasn't  very  good.  I'm not going to sit  here and  making  excuses.  We  weren't  good  enough.  (Ottawa)  won  more  puck  battles.  They  created  more  odd-numbered  situations.  They  were  smarter  than  us."

Other Sabres Stories

Mrtka Looking To Take The Next Step Towards The NHL

The Sabres have earned points in seven of their eight games on the road (4-1-3) and are averaging 3.63 goals per game (8th in the NHL), but on home ice, where teams need to have success to make the playoffs, they are under .500 and are averaging 2.14 goals per game (27th in the NHL).

"We talked this morning about being better in this building.  We  won't  better,  and  I  think  with  three  minutes  left,  we've  taken  a  lot  of  pride  in  not  giving  up  something  like  that  when  points  mean  big  points,  and  you  give  up  an odd-man rush  again." Ruff said. “had "When  we  started  getting  a  little  bit  going,  it  was  more, net- front  battles. You win a puck battle,  you come off the  wall,  you're  going  to  get  some  type  of  chance  if  you  make  the  right  play.  I  just  feel  that  we  didn't  win  enough  battles."

The loss leaves the Sabres tied for the bottom spot in the Atlantic with 17 points and the second-worst goal differential in the Eastern Conference (-7), but the bigger concern is their lack of scoring. Tage Thompson (10 goals) and Jack Quinn (8 goals) account for 40% of the club’s offense. 

Other than Noah Ostlund, no one has tallied more than three goals, which brings into focus the failure of GM Jarmo Kekalainen to address the offensive gap created by the departures of Alex Tuch and Bowen Byram, and why the Sabres are reportedly on the hunt for scoring help.   

Follow Michael on X, Instagram @MikeInBuffalo