Buffalo Sabres stay on their heater with win over Carolina Hurricanes

Buffalo Sabres stay on their heater with win over Carolina Hurricanes

Sabres beat a team they rarely beat and they are slowly climbing up the standings. We’ll get to it coming up here on the Locked On Sabres podcast. Your Locked On Sabers, your daily podcast on the Buffalo Sabres, part of the Locked On podcast network, your team every day. What is up everybody and welcome in to this Monday edition of the Locked On Sabers podcast. Thanks for making us your first listen every day. We are free and available wherever you get your podcast. Part of the Locked On podcast network, now the number one sports podcast network. You can watch the show on YouTube. Be sure to hit the like and subscribe button there. You can also become a part of our Locked OnSabers text club. And if you are not already, go to joinsubtex.com/lockedonsabers. Today’s episode is presented by FanDuel. Download the FanDuel app right now. Visit fanuel.com and win $300 in bonus bets if your first $5 bet wins. Sneaky Jody Bassi. The Sabres get the win on Sunday afternoon against the Carolina Hurricanes. The Bills off. Sabres slide into that one:00 window on Sunday while you might have been watching some football, too. And the Sabres put on a show. They did great at home. They have been awesome all year and the last two games are absolutely uh representative of that. They have outscored in just their last two games the Blackhawks and the Hurricanes by a combined score of 13-4. It was a great weekend for the Sabres and they are getting healthier. They are starting to jump over a couple of teams in the standings and we enter a new week and things are starting to look up. a little bit. Maybe there is a light at the end of the tunnel that ends this year. We’ll get to what the standings look like, what the lineup is beginning to look like, and what you could look forward to this week as well. But starting with the win over Carolina, the Sabres are now 84 and2 at home this season. They have taken care of business when they are at Key Bank Center. And to be fair, they actually, to my surprise, they have actually done a job against the Hurricanes when they’ve been at home. The the thing about Carolina watching that game and I’m thinking, you know, like they never play this well against Carolina and they were playing really well through the first two periods, the chances that they were generating, they were going toe-to-toe with what is probably the best team in the Eastern Conference right now. And the Sabres were were skating with them, they were shooting with them. And I did find that even though the Sabres have not won in Carolina in almost a decade, it’s been like nine years since they’ve won in Carolina, they’ve actually done a good job winning five in a row now against Carolina when they have been at home. So maybe that’s not the biggest, you know, stunner. But that’s a good hockey team that they just managed to beat. And the weird part about the Sabres in the last week is the only game they’ve really lost was the game against the bad team that they should have defeated in Calgary. Now Calgary’s actually won a couple games since then, so maybe that doesn’t look as bad, but it looked bad at the time. You lose to Calgary, who was in last place in the NHL at the time. Otherwise, they have defeated in this stretch of winning four out of five. That’s where we’re at now. Four wins in five games. They’ve beaten the Red Wings who are number one in the Atlantic division at the moment. They’ve beaten the Oilers who are not off to a great start and are actually not even in a playoff spot, but they’re the Oilers and it’s McDavid and it’s Dry idol. It’s good team, talented team. You beat them. Chicago, who’s having a little bit of a bounceback year here. Uh they’ve actually lost three in a row, but I think they were in a playoff spot at the time when the Sabres played them. And then you beat Carolina, who’s in first place in the Eastern Conference. So, some good teams that they have put away while they were at home here. And then that Red Wings game of course was on the road. So, a good job to kind of get back into the season. And in this game against the Hurricanes, I wouldn’t say it was really a wellbalanced effort. Four lines through. I mean, there were moments. The Beck Malenstein goal, that’s a moment. It is one of the most flabbergasting goals, maybe the most impressive goal from an unlikely source by the Buffalo Sabres since, can I go back to Ilia Leouchkin overtime against Tampa three years ago? I mean, that wasn’t necessarily a skilled goal like Malenstein scored. Labouchkin walked in and just beat Vasileleski one-on-one with kind of a snapshot. But Malenstein of all people would have never guessed he even would have thought of that move, which is just to basically go around Sebastian Ao, put the puck out in front of him, cut underneath him, and Aaho is not a defenseman. He’s an elite player, great player, but he’s not he’s not a defenseman. And Malenstein maybe knew that. So he gets out to the front and then to finish. Respect to Malenstein for finishing the job on Freddy Anderson to stick handle a little bit, make him think he’s going to the backhand and then flip it back to the forehand and get it just underneath um it would have been the blocker. So or the glove, but a great job by Malenstein to get that goal through. Uh Sports Center top 10. He’ll I don’t want to guarantee this. I’m pretty darn sure he will never score a more impressive goal for the Buffalo Sabres than the one that he scored in that game. And that was a big one, right? Like everybody got really energized off that. Do you see the Sabres bench reacting? If you watch the playback, MSG cut to it just for a moment and you see everybody’s faces on the bench like they were energized by that. And that is a 2-1 hockey game at the time. the Sabres had the lead and you are 90 seconds away from going into the third period and to get just that little extra cushion I think did a lot for them going into that third period and then they shut Carolina down from there. So that was a great moment from Malenstein but where I was getting to is you had a good moment from Malenstein, you had a good moment from Alex Tuck who put away an an easy power play goal. Great passing sequence. Josh Don getting the puck behind the net. Um, finding Ryan Mloud all the way across the ice and hitting him with the pass. And then the patience from Mloud to not just whip it on net. Realize that the defenseman has gone down to the ice. Anderson is overcommitted to your side. And why rip it into traffic when if you are able to get that pass across then Tucks got a wide open net? That’s exactly what happened. He scored. The thing that won them this hockey game. I’m bored with all that and Lucinan having a very strong outing. He stopped 29 of 30. His best game of the year. He was awesome in this game. Big saves at big times. Um no complaints at all. He deserve he earned his next start I think this week after what he did yesterday. The reason they won that game to me was they had one line that every time they stepped on the ice, they were dangerous and they were keeping Carolina pinned in their own end. Ryan Mloud, Jason Zucker, and Jack Quinn were awesome yesterday in this game against the Hurricanes. They led the team in ice time cuz Lindy saw it. Lindy saw how well they were playing and he kept throwing them back out there. They were just first to every loose puck. They were playing with so much speed and energy and even physicality. None of those three guys are really known for throwing their body around, but they were winning battles, including Jack Quinn. By the way, Quinn has been a very up and down guy for me this season. I thought he actually started the year really well. I’ve hated him for probably two weeks. Dumb plays every single night and bounced back yesterday. I thought that was maybe his best game of the year. He was flying out there and he was generating chances. He did score in this game. I thought he could have had a hat-tick, honestly, the way that it was going. Quinn was incredible. Again, when he’s moving and he’s using his speed, that’s when you get him at his best. I believe that there are some players in the league that they just can’t think the game. Dylan Cousins was always this guy for me and that when the game gets slowed down, they really struggle. That’s that’s where I’m starting to get to with Jack Quinn. I feel like with Jack Quinn, when the game is getting slowed down, he struggles a lot. That’s why I don’t really like him on the power play because everything is very slow and you got to make the right decisions. You got to be kind of quick. Um, you got to be quick when you have the opportunity. Everything else is slow. This game kind of a microcosm of I think when you see him at his best. His line was moving a million miles an hour and they were just hitting Carolina with speed. And when you’re playing fast and with instinct, I think you’re getting more out of Jack Quinn and that’s what you saw in this game. Mloud and Zucker are two guys that could play that style with him. Very good skaters, quick players, skilled guys, um, also responsible defensively that can cover up if Quinn wants to be a little bit more aggressive. That line was great on the night. They were the only line by the Sabres that had more shot attempts than Carolina that um shots were actually even. Every other shot line basically got outshot um and they got their goal at five on five. They had more scoring chances than Carolina when they were out there. And again, all the other lines for the Sabres um at five on five at least were outplayed by the Hurricanes. But that line that line showed up in a big way and they should absolutely stay together. So they close out the game in the third period um as a team overall, you know, the shots and whatnot, all those numbers started to get a little bit more weighted towards the Hurricanes because Sabres did what they were supposed to do. You’re playing a great team. You have a two-goal lead. Third period, buckle down. Don’t allow grade A chances. Keep all of it to the outside. Don’t let them get within one. And they never let Carolina get within one. And there were a couple times where the Hurricanes came a little bit close, but for the most part, I thought they had a really strong third period. That’s the type of game they lose last year and the year before and the year before. And maybe they’ll lose games like this this year, too. But those third period games where you’ve got a multi-goal lead, even if you’re playing a top top team like Carolina, you got to close that game out every single time. And they did manage to do it here. Thompson eventually buries the empty netter. And the Sabres go to 99 and4 on the year. NHL 500, not real 500 because they have nine wins and 13 losses on the season. But uh nine and 99 and four is NHL 500. They are back to uh which is an 82 point pace. We’ll look at the standings in a little bit. The lineup though when we come back beyond the line that I just talked about the Mloud um Quinn and Zucker line what everything else is looking like as we enter a new week where I think the Sabres are about to get some pieces back that when we return here on the Locked Sabres podcast. Today’s episode of Locked on Sabres is presented by Game Time. 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That’s always a fun game, right? That first uh Friday night home game after Thanksgiving. They love being home on that night every year. This year it’s a four o’clock game against New Jersey and then uh Saturday night they are back on the road in Minnesota. So road games coming up this week. Listen, if the Sabres are going to be in a playoff race this year, they’re going to have to win some road games. They are right now one of only three teams in the entire NHL that only have one road win. the other two, Nashville, who’s in dead last in the Western Conference, and Toronto, who’s in dead last in the Eastern Conference. So, you got to have more than one win on the road. And they’re going to have a couple of chances here coming up against two teams that are okay, pretty good. Pittsburgh is off to a little bit of a better start this year than I would have anticipated. And um Minnesota is a is a good team as well. They’ve actually won five in a row at this point. So, not the easiest of opponents, but not the hardest opponents either. And you get that New Jersey game sandwiched in between. The lineup, though, is really what’s giving me more optimism because this week we might see the Buffalo Sabres at full health, almost full health, healthiest they’ve been all year this week. if you get Josh Norris back this week. And we’ll see what Lindy Ruff has to say about that tomorrow and whether or not he’ll be returning or practicing. It’s kind of been trending towards Norris would return at some point during this week. And if we look at really who’s been back here, Zack Benson returns to the lineup over the weekend. He gets another assist in his return. He looked awesome. He looked valuable playing with Noah Oslland and Tyson Kak mixing around a little bit though, too. Um Benson Benson looked great. You’ve got um obviously Zuckerback in the last two games and he’s been amazing in these two games. I think he’s arguably been the Sabres best player over the last two games since he returned. Um your blue line with Dene back from Europe. Your blue line is just missing Michael Kessler, but you were missing him at the beginning of the year and we don’t know what that timeline’s going to be. So he’s really your most important piece. It’s going to be out for a while still. Koulique is still out. You’re not a full health. You’re not a full health, but you get Norris back. That’s a real lineup. That’s about as close to your regular lineup as you can fairly expect to get. Nobody’s ever perfectly healthy 100%. You’re often most teams are missing one or two guys. Sabres missing five guys, six guys in different stretches of this season. So to get back to missing one or two guys, that puts you in a real level of expectation for the season. And when Norris comes back, they’ll have decisions to make on the lines because this is where the lineup gets interesting. I’ve liked tag at center and I just wouldn’t move it. Put him keep him with Alex Tuck and Josh Don. That line is working and that line is got a little bit of everything. It’s got the the gritty hardworking and Don. It’s got speed from all three of them. Tuck especially. It’s got shooting. All three of them actually are pretty good goal scorers. Tage obviously the best. That line works. Mloud, Quinn, Zucker, we talked about that. Keep riding that line until it starts underperforming. And then you’ve got Benson kind of on a third line with a couple of rookies. And to get him a veteran linemate that has scored 30 goals in the past, like Norris to me fits there because Benson can do a lot of the dirty work. He’s a skilled player. He’s a pass first guy. Norris can be less of a puck carrier, can be more of the shooter of that line. And hypothetically speaking, that’s your third line. you introduce Norris back to the lineup playing fewer minutes. Get manage his minutes a little bit because the guy’s gonna get injured a lot probably over his career and he’s not somebody that I’d expect you want to just throw into the lineup playing 20 25 minutes a night. Can you get him at 15 minutes a night until you can trust him a little bit more to stay healthy? That to me is the right combination. You put him on that third line with Zack Benson and suddenly your lineup looks pretty strong. Your lineup looks pretty strong if you’ve got Benson and Josh Norris on line three who began the season and line one, right? Game one of the year was Benson, Norris, and Taage. And if I got two of those three guys on my third line, that’s when you start looking like you’ve got a a deep lineup. and the way Samson’s been playing on the blue line and Dene being back in the fold. Um I’m starting to look at their lineup and go like all right there could be something here but they’ve obviously got to go win the games on top of it and this week you two road games that you got to win when we return what the standings look like at this point and kind of some of the the way I’m thinking about some of these other teams that are right around them that when we return here in the Lockdown Sabres podcast. Today’s episode is presented by FanDuel Sportsbook. NHL’s back, NBA’s back, football, no better place to get in on all the action than FanDuel, the official sports betting partner of the NBA. So, even if you do miss the start of a game, or maybe you want to just ride the hot hand, FanDuel’s live bets on everything from who’s going to score next to third period comebacks and plenty more. Plus, you can even combine your live bets into a same game parlay for a shot at a bigger payout. keeps every game more exciting, especially when your team’s making that late push. Right now, FanDuel’s giving new customers $300 in bonus bets when your first $5 bet wins. So, head to fan.com, sign up, play your game with FanDuel, the official sports betting partner of the NBA. Wrapping things up here on the Locked On Sabres podcast. Sabres 99 and4, how do the standings look at this point in time? Well, they are no longer in last place and there’ll be some games tonight, but uh they’re not in last place at this very moment. The Maple Leafs in last. And if you go back to my Atlantic Division preview from before the year, I projected that Toronto was going to take a step back this year, losing Mitch Mner, not really replacing him. And they were a top three team in the NHL in save percentage last year with a couple of goalies that aren’t really these Vasileleski, Shurken elite types that you would count on that year to year to year. thought it was very obvious we were going to get regression in net from Toronto. That has happened. I did not think they’d finish they’d be in last. So, their demise is a little bit more aggressive than I thought it was going to be. But this was right there. The writing on the wall was there. Toronto taking a step back. They have done that. One and six on the road so far this year. They’re having some of those same problems that Buffalo has had. Um they’re at 21 points in 22 games. So, it’s only a one-point difference. And reminder, they should not have 21 points. They should have 19 points because Ukapal Lucinan gifted them two points earlier in the season in Toronto. The Sabres absolutely should have won that game. So, they should be lucky to even be within one point of getting out of last place. They should be three back of anybody else. Um, so that’s the one that’s one of the two teams behind you. The other is the Rangers. And the Rangers, I don’t know what’s going on there. There’s talk that Chris Drury’s going to get fired here very soon. It’s kind of amazing it hasn’t happened yet because it’s about been about a year since rumors began that he was on the hot seat. The Rangers problem is one that most teams usually don’t deal with. Sabres are bad on the road. Toronto’s bad on the road. A lot of teams are bad on the road. Who’s really this bad at home? In fact, nobody else and just want to double check this. Nobody else in the Eastern Conference is below 500 at home. And yet here’s the Rangers. Like the next worst record at home this year in the East, Montreal, Washington, they’re both 65-1. Pittsburgh’s 53 and two. Those are your next worst home records. The Rangers are 17 and one. I have no idea what explains that, how they’re they are that bad. They’re actually 94 and one on the road. Um they’ve lost four in a row. They’re kind of on a cold streak here. So, you got two teams, you got a lot of teams around the Sabres that have been perennial playoff teams. The two teams below them, Rangers and Leafs, teams that you’ve seen in the playoffs a lot. The teams two right above them, Florida and Washington, playoff teams all the time. One of them is a growing dynasty here. So, kind of an odd point in the season where everybody around you might expect is eventually going to get it together. Some of those teams, I’m not sure the Rangers or Toronto do. Florida, you probably do. Um, but anyways, you’re at 22 points right now. Sabres are three back of Philly and Philly’s actually played two fewer games, so maybe not the best team to look at. Boston is the right team to look at. Boston is in a playoff spot. 26 points, 24 games played. The Sabres have two games in hand and they are four back of a Bruins team that is not that talented. Morgan Geeky leads the NHL in goals. That’s part of why they’re getting results here. I don’t think you should expect Geeky to continue at this pace where he’s going to score 50 or 60. So, Bruins come back down to earth a little bit. I think it’s very likely. That’s a team you could catch. That’s a team you could jump. Montreal struggling a lot. That’s another team you could jump. Really, the best news for the Sabres is they’re still hanging in there. And the division is bad. The division is just plain bad. There are now two of the eight teams have a positive goal differential. That’s it. Two out of eight. And right now, the Red Wings sit in first place at 138-1, 27 points. So, first in the division is only five above the Sabres. And the Red Wings just do not strike me as a team that is going to maintain this. They do this every year. They have a hot start. They get into a playoff spot. They have a middle they have a slump in the mid middle of the year and then they kind of fall apart. That’s Detroit. So, I think the Sabres could absolutely catch the Red Wings and make up a five-point gap. I think Tampa or Ottawa are more likely to win the division, of course, than I would the Sabres, but it’s getable. It’s right there for them. It’s not a good division. It’s the worst this division has been since it was created over a decade ago when they changed up the formats. It’s the worst it’s ever been. So, if there was ever a year where, you know, you went through a rough start and you had a lot of injuries and the season was kind of feeling like it was off the rails, but you were able to bounce back and hold it together. The year you’re able to do that and make it would be this year. Other years, you have a bad month, good night, the division is too good, everyone’s above 100 points, you can’t do it. This is the year where you might have you might be able to afford that. They can’t. The Sabres can’t afford doing it again. They’ve already done it once. They’ve already had the tough month. Um, November mostly. Um, but if they can be on a 95 to 100 point pace from here on out, which is a good team, it’s not the best team, it’s a good team, then I think they should be a playoff team. All right, that’s going to do it for us today here on the Locked On Sabres podcast. If you do want more round the league talk, be sure to check out Locked on NHL game night. They got you covered every night till we get to the playoffs and the Stanley Cup champion is crowned. That is available wherever you get your podcast and also on YouTube. We will talk to you tomorrow as we inch closer to Sabres and Penguins which is a Wednesday night game. We start to look at Pittsburgh a little bit. So stay tuned for that and we’ll talk to you tomorrow here on the Lockdown Sabres podcast part of the Lockdown Podcast Network. Your team every day.

The Buffalo Sabres have now won four of their last five games after a win over the top-seed Carolina Hurricanes, led by a tremendous performance from the line of Jason Zucker – Ryan McLeod – Jack Quinn. Plus, a strong performance from Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen was critical in the Sabres win. However, we’d be crazy to not gush over Beck Malenstyn’s highlight reel goal which gave the Sabres a 3-1 lead in the second period.

Also, a look at the standings shows the Sabres are right in the thick of it in a bad Atlantic Division.

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