The goal from this point forward regarding the Buffalo Sabres season is to find optimism. They make it very difficult more often than not, putting in ugly efforts in losses to the Pittsburgh Penguins and Seattle Kraken, both multi-goal losses. The West Coast swing didn’t start well, but there was hope that a win in Vancouver could spark something, anything.
For once, the Sabres were on the right side of a comeback. They overcame a late 2-1 deficit to grab two points from a struggling Vancouver Canucks. Let’s look at the takeaways from what was an overall encouraging win by the Sabres on the road.
Jiri Kulich Has a Bright Future
One of the bright spots for the Sabres moving past this season and beyond is Jiri Kulich. His stats – eight goals, 12 points in 33 games played – might not jump off the page, but he has put a lot of good things on film. That’s why it’s so nice to see him have games like this one.
Kulich got an assist on Tage Thompson’s first-period goal to get things started. More impressive was his work in front of the net midway through the third period, the Sabres trailing 2-1. J.J. Peterka did the heavy lifting but Kulich parked himself in front for the easy tip-in.
Finally, Kulich picked up a secondary assist on Peterka’s 11th of the season, the eventual game-winner. It was an impressive performance from a talented young player who can and should be around for the Sabres for a long time.
The Offensive Talent Is There
Of all the frustrations surrounding the Sabres, the lack of offense is right up there. After all, with a litany of first-round picks in their recent history, we shouldn’t be at the point where trade talks involve landing the top-six forward that was supposed to be brought in back in the summer.
Related: Sabres Trade Target: Casey Mittelstadt
Thompson is on pace for 40 goals. We’ve seen Alex Tuch be a nearly point-per-game player and the hot start from Peterka indicates that he hasn’t hit his full potential yet. The talent offensively is there, and the Sabres have shown from time to time the capability of piling pucks into the back of the net.
That said, they need to find a bit more jam in their game and make life difficult in front of goaltenders. Then, and only then, will they have the kind of offense that threatens every night. Having the kind of forward talent the Sabres do is nice and all, but it is only so effective if limited to the edges of the offensive zone.
Luukkonen Finding a Groove Again?
Goaltending has been a journey this season. The backup position has been a sore spot, incapable of producing anything resembling reliability. It’s nice to see Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen taking on the lion’s share of games, but even his consistency wanes from time to time.
That said, this is the third good start Luukkonen has had in his last five starts. He shut out Ottawa with 35 saves on Jan. 9, had an excellent outing against the Carolina Hurricanes six days later, and last night turned aside 32 of 34 shots to help the Sabres take the victory.
Luukkonen hasn’t been perfect, but the numbers don’t illustrate the overall performance. Just look at this game, as a matter of fact. Both goals came because the Sabres net-front defense remains among the worst in the league. If he can locate the puck, UPL is going to stop it far more often than not.
Finish the Trip Strong
The Sabres have a pair of games left on this West Coast swing. They’ll battle Calgary on Thursday night and finish up with the Edmonton Oilers on Saturday night. At this point in the season, the goal should be to string together as many positive games as possible and not even worry about winning.
There are a ton of pieces that will be on the roster next season. Finding a way to build momentum is going to be absolutely critical. Games like this are encouraging even if they are often short-lived.
