The Sabres hit the ice for their first practice of the postseason Thursday, as they prepare for their first playoff series in 15 years when they take on the Bruins.

BUFFALO, N.Y. — There’s new décor up inside of KeyBank Center.

A “2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs” banner is the latest sign that playoff hockey is back in Buffalo.

“I wouldn’t trade it for anything,” Sabres forward Tage Thompson said about this run.

Thompson is one of the key figures in helping the Sabres return to the postseason for the first time in 15 years, and is making sure to soak up every part of this journey.

“You only get to play this game for so long and then one day, you’re done,” Thompson said. “I think sometimes when you’re in it, it’s hard to remember that it’s been a long, long journey to get here and those opportunities don’t come around too often and you never know when you’re going to get another one like it. So we just want to make sure we’re making the most of it and enjoying it.”

The NHL announced Thursday afternoon that the Sabres would open playoff action on Sunday, but did not announce a time.

Head coach Lindy Ruff says that’s not the worst problem to have this time of year.

“The schedule is going to be what it is,” Ruff said. “You’ve got no control, not going to spend any time saying, ‘Well, I wish we would have played here. I wish the time was earlier.’ It is what it is. I look at it that you’re one of those teams that has to worry about that this time of year, which is a good thing.”

The Sabres’ first opponent in their march toward Lord Stanley’s Cup is the Boston Bruins, with the preparations starting Thursday with Buffalo’s first practice of the postseason at Harborcenter. The playoff matchup with Boston is the next step in what’s been a magical ride for this Sabres team.

“We’ve had a real happy go lucky group of late, winning a lot of games, having fun with each other,” defenseman Bowen Byram said. “A lot of smiles every day at the rink, so I think it’s just refreshing and I’ve only been here for a couple of years, but I know this is the most fun I’ve had, and I’m sure the other guys are echoing the same thing.”

The preparations for the Bruins are underway#Sabres @WGRZ pic.twitter.com/UskTVOyJkg

— Jonathan Acosta (@JAcostaTV) April 16, 2026

It’ll be the first playoff ride for many members of this Sabres team. It won’t be for Byram, who was part of a Stanley Cup winning team in Colorado. Despite the lack of playoff experience some of his teammates may have, he has confidence that what the Sabres have gone through this season will have them ready for the postseason.

“It’s such a fun time of year and every game means so much that you’re just preparing intensely for every game,” Byram said. “We’ve all gained valuable experience this year throughout the regular season playing in really tough games. So I still think that we’re an experienced team. We’ve been through a lot of adversity, so I’m not too worried about it.”

And as for the four previous matchups with Boston in which Buffalo went 1-1-2, they don’t mean all that much anymore because this a new season, and maybe above all else, the physicality is set to go up just a few notches.

“This is always the time of the year where everything gets elevated, some of the guys that maybe aren’t quite as tenacious become tenacious,” Ruff said. “That’s why there’s a lot of different things that can happen. Stuff we’re going to do, they may react to, stuff they do, we may react to. That’s the fun part about the playoffs.”

The Sabres say they will be ready for the physicality. After waiting so long just for this opportunity, they’re ready to make the most of it for a city that’s been craving a return to this stage.

“I’ve had eight years here with no playoffs, so now finally getting in the playoffs, it just means the world,” captain Rasmus Dahlin said. “This is what I’ve been working for since I got here. It took a little bit too long, but now we’re here finally, so I’m stoked and I’m just so happy for the city. They’ve been here even longer than I have, so they have really deserved this.

Dahlin added on what he expects the environment to be like come Game 1: “I think it’s going to be insane. I’ve seen the Bills in the playoffs and I’m sort of expecting the same thing, so it’s going to be nuts.”