Stop me if you’ve heard this one before: the 2024-25 season is make-or-break for the Buffalo Sabres. General Manager Kevyn Adams is on the hot seat. New/old head coach Lindy Ruff has more than a few things he must address if the Sabres are going to get back to the playoffs for the first time since 2011.
Related: Sabres’ Quiet 2024 Offseason Was the Right Move
While there is no playbook for getting over the hump and fully out of a rebuild, the Sabres have pivotal questions they must address. Finding the answers to the questions laid out below will likely play a big role in getting the team back into the playoffs.
1) Can the Core Rebound?
The 2022-23 season may have resulted in another missed opportunity at the playoffs, but at least it was fun. The Sabres were one of the most prolific and productive offensive teams in the league that season, led by Tage Thompson threatening to become the first 50-goal scorer for the franchise since Pat Lafontaine and Alexander Mogilny achieved the feat in 1992-93.
Nearly everyone took a step back last season and it hurt the team. The ability is there – with several guys who can light the lamp – and guys like Thompson, Alex Tuch, and Dylan Cozens will need to regain their form if the Sabres are finally going to get the 1,000-pound gorilla off their backs.
Thompson started to look more like himself down the stretch after finally recovering from a hand injury. A bounce back from him could get the offense rolling at a 2022-23 level once again. There is simply too much offensive talent in the Atlantic Division to hope that a repeat of last season’s performance can be enough.
2) Is Lindy Ruff the Right Fit?
A new head coach was priority when the offseason began, and Adams worked quickly to address the matter. Rather than going totally new, he went back to a proven commodity: Lindy Ruff. Arguably the most successful coach in franchise history, Ruff brings with him a pedigree that few other candidates can match.
Ruff has had tenures with the Dallas Stars and New Jersey Devils, earning a Jack Adams Award runner-up with the latter and a win in 2015-16 with the former. He is a no-BS kind of coach, pushes his players to work hard during practice as well as games, and will work to get the most out of the team. He led the Sabres to their last Stanley Cup Final appearance in 1999 and their last playoff appearance in 2011.
Ruff may not be the guy everyone wanted, but he is the guy for what they need most. Getting to the playoffs isn’t just something that is long overdue — it is something the franchise desperately needs. Failing to get over the hump could be disastrous and the last thing everyone needs is another rebuild. The ceiling may be lower for a guy like Ruff, but the floor is definitely higher.
3) Can Mattias Samuelsson Stay Healthy?
Mattias Samuelsson may quietly be the biggest X-factor for the Sabres in the season ahead. When healthy, he is as reliable a defender in his own end as the Sabres have. He uses his size – 6-foot-4, 231 pounds – well, clears the front of the net, and even adds a physical touch.
The problem is that he hasn’t been able to stay healthy. He played in 42 games as a 21-year-old in 2021-22. His best season, 2022-23, saw him appear in 55 games. Last season, injuries dogged him and held the defender to just 41 games played.
The Sabres defense is definitively better with Samuelsson in the lineup. The fact that his name has come up in trade discussions frequently shows that the team isn’t confident in his health. A return to health in 2024-25 would be a huge boon for the Sabres and their efforts to get back into the playoffs.
4) Can the Power Play Recover?
The Sabres were third in goals per game in 2022-23, a large part of that the 9th-ranked power-play unit. Clicking at 23.4%, few units could match the consistency of the Sabres. Thompson, en route to 47 goals, unleashed bomb after bomb in a position Alex Ovechkin made famous.
A step back may have been expected in 2023-24, but the power play did more than that — it cratered entirely. Zone entries suffered. Efficiency dropped and the Sabres finished with the fourth-worst power play in the NHL, with a paltry 16.6% success rate.
Matt Ellis is out the door, and the Sabres will be looking to fix the power play. With Thompson, Tuch, Cozens, Jack Quinn, Rasmus Dahlin, and J.J. Peterka likely to see ample time, there is no excuse for a repeat of last season’s performance. The power play has to improve and get back into the top half of the league.
It’s Time For Sabres to Get the Job Done
The Sabres have too much talent to still be missing the playoffs. Finding the answer in net with Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen is a good start. Getting a coach with familiarity and a record of success is definitely a move in the right direction.
It is imperative the Sabres get off to a good start. Failing to do so will only put the team further behind the eight ball, making it an even more daunting task to recover. At this point, there are no more excuses. It’s time for the Sabres to get the job done and get back into the playoffs.
