With the release of the 2025-26 NHL regular season schedule on Wednesday, the Buffalo Sabres decided they were in a position to get cocky.

You know, do a little chirping? Get a little spicy?

The day before the schedule came out, the Sabres took to social media to assign chicken wing flavours and names to correspond with their opponents around the league. Buffalo is famous for its wings, so the Sabres figured they'd create wings for other clubs, mostly based on general stereotypes about the team or city.

For the Ottawa Senators? They went with a photo of a chicken wing that was boringly labelled “Plain.”

That’s right. No flavour, just an eye-rolling jab that Ottawa is plain. The Sabres’ post about the Sens featured a plain wing sitting alone on a plate. It looked cold and confused, not unlike the Sabres’ power play.

2025 Sabres Opponents As Chicken Wings | Buffalo Sabres The official National Hockey League website including news, rosters, stats, schedules, teams, and video.

It would appear the Buffalo Sabres have lost sight of the fact that... they're the Buffalo Sabres. When this franchise last made the playoffs 14 years ago, people still used iPods, Netflix hadn’t launched in Canada yet, and Tim Stutzle was 9 years old.

Maybe they're not getting this.

This Sabres drought isn’t just the longest active streak, it’s the longest drought in the entire 108-year history of the National Hockey League. They’re now tied with the New York Jets for the longest active playoff drought in all of pro sports.

Buffalo wants to talk about plain? 

The Sabres throwing shade at anyone for anything is hilarious. It's like if Josh Norris started mocking people for being injury-prone. Or Scott Norwood telling you to stop kicking so far to the right. Or Brett Hull demanding you keep your skate out of the crease.

Listen, in all fairness, they're just lashing out. They're still sore at Ottawa for sending them packing in the '07 Eastern Conference Final, back when the Sabres still had playoff games to lose. Buffalo won the President’s Trophy that year, so that loss had to be super duper disappointing. Emphasis on duper.

The Sabres, by the way, also took digs at other NHL rivals, not just Ottawa. For example, the Toronto Maple Leafs' wing was labelled “Choking Hazard," which I'm willing to allow at this time.

At the end of the day, the Sabres hurling stones from the balcony of their glass house was good for a laugh. But maybe they should just stick with what they know: Buffalo wings, missing the playoffs, and knowing their place.

The Senators and Sabres will meet three times this upcoming season: October 15 in Buffalo, and December 23 and April 2 in Ottawa.

By Steve Warne
The Hockey News - Ottawa
Image Credit:  Timothy T. Ludwig-Imagn Images

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