For the first time since 2011, the Buffalo Sabres will be playing postseason hockey. They certainly earned it, as they had a 39-9-4 record in their final 52 games of the regular-season. This helped them finish the season with a 50-23-9 record and 109 points. With this, the Sabres are not only a playoff team but have been one of the best teams in the NHL. They are certainly a club that has the potential to go on a run this spring because of it. However, a new playoff prediction from ESPN would be a complete and utter nightmare for Buffalo if it came to fruition. ESPN made a bold prediction that the Sabres would beat the Boston Bruins in the first round, but then blow a 3-0 series lead in the second round by getting reverse swept. "Buffalo blitzes its way through the first round past Boston and takes a 3-0 series lead in the second. The Sabres then suddenly go cold and drop four straight to be stunningly cut from the postseason field one win shy of the conference finals," ESPN wrote [https://www.espn.com/nhl/story/_/id/48503526/2026-nhl-playoffs-stanley-cup-x-factors-bold-predictions-best-teams-players]. If the Sabres' first playoff run in 15 years and magical season ended in a reverse sweep, it would be incredibly heartbreaking for the team's fans. Thankfully, with this being a bold prediction, the likelihood of this happening is immensely low. We will now need to wait and see how the Sabres' playoff run goes from here. Goal number one will be getting by the Boston Bruins.
