3 Takeaways From the Sabres’ 5-3 Win Over the Panthers

It has been a rough home stand for the Buffalo Sabres. Dropping games to the Dallas Stars and Utah Mammoth have many wondering if the Sabres are coming back to earth after such a magical 2025-26 season.

Hosting the Florida Panthers, the Sabres took control of the action early. Things were back-and-forth for a bit, but the Sabres found some success on the power play of all places, doing enough to hold on for the 5-3 victory on home ice.

The Power Play! It’s Real!

The power play, having gotten off the schneid against Utah, managed to score two (!!!) goals with the man advantage against the Panthers. The first was a nice bit of puck movement that ended in a bomb from a few feet into the zone while the second was a fantastic bit of work by Zach Benson and Noah Ostlund.

One of the biggest issues with the power play in recent seasons has been their zone entries. They have improved over the past few games, largely because the Sabres are leveraging their speed to keep penalty killers off balance.

On the second goal, especially, Benson started it by attacking with speed. He and Ostlund have worked well in tandem with one another, and the goal came because of some nifty passing and impressive vision by Benson. The power play is finally showing promise.

Goaltending is Becoming a Major Concern

Not to be too much of a downer, but the goaltending situation for the Sabres is starting to move into “deeply concerning” territory. Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen was simply not good against the Stars and Colten Ellis wasn’t much better against the Mammoth.

Ellis got the nod again yesterday and seemed to be fighting the puck all day. Rebound control turned out to be a big issue for him, leading to him being pulled after the third goal by the Panthers. Luukkonen stepped in and provided some huge saves, but it was far from comforting.

Alex Lyon coming back will help a bit, but it already feels like the luster has come off of the trio. It is still early and perhaps one or both of them can find a bit of a hot streak, but it has been troubling to watch so far.

The Ostlund-Benson-Quinn Line Was a Force

Without a doubt, the line that stood out the most was Benson, Ostlund, and Jack Quinn. The trio combined for four points (Quinn leading the way with two assists), and they seemed to generate chances galore, especially early on.

The Sabres’ forecheck was one of the things that made them so tough to deal with last season. They kept on the Panthers defensemen all game and utilized their speed through the neutral zone to keep the Panthers from pressing.

Tage Thompson continues to have a strong start but it was this trio that really stood out. It would be nice to see Benson get his first goal of the season because it feels like that would open the flood gates.

Not All Rosy

Despite the win, it wasn’t all good for the Sabres. Superstar defenseman Rasmus Dahlin left with an upper-body injury. The hope is that it is something minor that will leave him day-to-day. Owen Power is turning into something special, but depth on defense is already thin, and losing one of the game’s best defensemen would be a huge blow.

The Sabres have a critical week ahead of them. They head to Montreal to take on the Canadiens on Tuesday, Toronto to face a hot Maple Leafs outfit on Thursday and return home to host the Canadiens again on Saturday. Taking four points from that group would have to leave them feeling good going into next week.