The 2022-23 NHL campaign was a magical one for Buffalo Sabres star Tage Thompson, who registered a career-high 47 goals and 94 points in 78 regular-season games. A season like that brings on higher expectations, especially after the Sabres finished just one point shy of their first playoff berth since 2011. However, his season has not gone the way Thompson, the Sabres, and their fans had hoped. Buffalo currently sits 14 points behind the Detroit Red Wings for fourth in the Atlantic Division.
Why Is Thompson’s Production Down?
Injuries. Thompson has missed 10 of the Sabres’ 59 games this season, nine of them were due to upper and lower-body injuries suffered in mid-November, and it has taken him a while to get back into his normal rhythm. The same can be said about his linemate, Jeff Skinner. These two were dynamite together last season, but a year later, it hasn’t been the same. Skinner has missed eight games this season due to injury and has just two goals in his last 10 contests. However, those two tallies have come in his last four games, scored against his favorite opponent, the Montreal Canadiens (Skinner has 27 goals in 42 career games against the Habs), and his former team, the Carolina Hurricanes.
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The Sabres’ lack of production on the power play is another reason why Thompson’s production is down. Last season, it seemed that every time you turned on your television, you’d see a highlight of Thompson blasting home a one-timer on the man advantage. Last season, the blue and gold’s power play was operating at a 20.2% success rate, ranked 16th in the league. Now, it’s down to 15.2%, ranked 27th in the NHL. This is certainly difficult to comprehend, given that the two units, for the most part, consist of the same players. When it’s all said and done, and we’re wondering why the Sabres didn’t make the playoffs come April, the power play will be the answer.
“You gotta believe if he keeps playing the way he’s playing, then he is going to score. I think he’s still playing very good hockey for him. I think he has been now for a couple of weeks. And you would just think, some luck has to start going his way, eventually.”
– Sabres’ Reporter Paul Hamilton, WGR 550 – 2/25/24
Despite scoring a goal to bring his team within one late in the third period of Tuesday’s 3-2 loss to the Florida Panthers, it was Thompson’s first even-strength marker since the second week of January. He also has just five power-play goals this season. Last season, he had 20. The power forward is in the first year of a seven-year deal that carries an annual cap hit of $7.14 million.
Thompson’s Positive Signs for a Resurgence
First and foremost, Thompson finally scored. He now has two goals in his last five games, and 17 on the season. With 23 games remaining on the Sabres’ schedule, another eight to 10 goals is possible. Secondly, he’s getting shots on a nightly basis – he has 36 in his last seven outings. Lastly, his ability to carry the puck up ice and hang on to it, using his hands and size, appears to have returned. In Tuesday night’s game in Sunrise, he made a toe-drag move in his own zone to get around a Panthers player to take a few strides and start a breakout for his team.
We’ll see what he has in store on Thursday night (Feb. 29) against the Tampa Bay Lightning.
