Sabres Need To Pile Up Points On Early Season Homestand

The Buffalo Sabres bounced back from a season-opening fizzle in Columbus with a 4-3 victory over the Chicago Blackhawks in their home opener at Key Bank Center, but the win came against a club that entered the game 0-2 and outscored 11-2 in road losses to Vegas and Utah, and playing with their top forward (Connor Bedard) and top defenseman (Bowen Byram). 

The Sabres trailed the Hawks 3-2 before mounting a third period comeback, with goals by Rasmus Dahlin and Jiri Kulich handing Buffalo their first win in the first game of an important five-game homestand. Last season, Lindy Ruff’s club started strong on home ice, going 4-2-1 in October, before a November plunge saw them drop to the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings. 

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With a much stronger Atlantic Division this season, with clubs like Florida and Toronto making significant changes and additions to their rosters, the Sabres will need to pile up points and get off to a strong start to stay ahead of the game. The four remaining games of the homestand start with three Western Conference clubs that made the playoffs last season. 

On Tuesday, the Minnesota Wild come to town. The Wild are 2-0 to start the year, in spite of losing Team USA blueliner Brock Faber to a fractured skull. On Thursday, the Dallas Stars visit KBC. The Stars have struggled out of the gate, with back-to-back losses to St. Louis and Nashville. The Utah Mammoth follow on Saturday, followed by a Columbus Day afternoon match against the Florida Panthers, who once again find themselves without team captain Aleksander Barkov. 

It will be imperative for Buffalo to make hay on home ice during this stretch, as they will play seven of the next eight games to finish out the month on the road.

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