Buffalo Sabres First Half Report Card – Goaltenders

Buffalo has settled on Luukkonen as the primary starter after rookie Devon Levi continues to be inconsistent after returning from an AHL demotion

The Buffalo Sabres reached the first-half mark of the regular season last week and still have a sub .500 record, in spite of some recent improvements defensively. We will break down the club position by position, giving a grade on where they stand at the mid-point of the season, starting today with the goaltending.

GM Kevyn Adams was adamant this summer that the goaltending issues would be resolved internally and not by adding a veteran via a trade or free agency. The belief was that 21-year-old Devon Levi was ready for primetime after the club struggled to find consistency last season and missed the playoffs by a point with Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, an aging Craig Anderson, and Eric Comrie between the pipes.

Levi was impressive in a brief seven-game NHL stint coming out of college, but signs that he was not up to the task showed at the start of the year when he went 1-3. The youngster spent time on injured reserve, and allowed three or more goals in seven of his nine games, before being sent down to AHL Rochester in late November.

Luukkonen fell ill in early December, which necessitated his recall from the Amerks, and Levi went 4-0-1 in his next six starts, but after allowing four or more goals in three games in late December and early January, the youngster has lost the net to the more experienced Finn.

Following Comrie’s demotion to Rochester at the beginning of January, the Sabres once again embarked on a goalie rotation, but that was abandoned following Levi's subpar start at the beginning of their six-game homestand against Seattle.

Luukkonen, who was wildly inconsistent last season, has been more dependable, and the Sabres have opted to give him the net in hopes of getting back into the Eastern Conference playoff race. The 24-year-old has gone 3-1 in four straight starts during the homestand, has allowed one goal in his last three, and has consecutive shutouts over San Jose and Chicago, but they are two of the NHL’s worst clubs, so that has to be taken into consideration.

Grade

Levi - C-

Luukkonen – B-

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