Uncertainty was in the air as the Buffalo Sabres headed into the first game of a three-game road West Coast swing. The Sabres left home ice disappointed the last time they played the Los Angeles Kings, though a lot of things are different since then. Injuries to key players led the way to a significantly different lineup on Wednesday night.
What followed was perhaps one of the most encouraging wins for the Sabres so far this season. It may not have been the prettiest offensive spectacle ever, but good teams find a way to win. There are three takeaways worth noting from the team’s 1-0 win over the Kings on the road.
UPL Is Back
The most noteworthy thing about Wednesday’s game was the return to the lineup of goaltender Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen. He missed the past two games with an undisclosed injury, giving way to his return to the lineup and reclamation of the starting job. With Devon Levi sent down to the Rochester Americans of the American Hockey League (AHL), the team was counting on Luukkonen in more ways than one.
Luukkonen did not disappoint in his return. He turned aside all 23 shots from the Kings on the night, picking up his sixth career shutout in the process. More importantly, Luukkonen is starting to find a groove. Aside from a bad outing against the Montreal Canadiens, he hasn’t allowed more than two goals in his last six starts.
UPL is going to be one of the biggest keys to the Sabres reaching the playoffs. They were counting on him when they signed him to a new extension in the offseason and that investment is beginning to pay off. He’ll be handling the bulk of the duties from here on out. If his most recent play is an indicator, the Sabres may finally have stability at the position.
The Offense Is Feeling the Toll of Injuries
Offensively, the Sabres are beginning to feel the toll of so many missing pieces. Tage Thompson sounds like he is on the verge of returning from a lower-body injury, though there has been no official date for his return. Jordan Greenway is likewise dealing with an injury, though he has been labeled “week-to-week.”
The Sabres still have plenty of offensive talent and no doubt got a boost from Alex Tuch being in the lineup given he was rumored also to be out. Jason Zucker scored the lone goal on the night and has proven himself an excellent signing by general manager Kevyn Adams.
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It is hard to ask much more of the key contributors. Getting Thompson and Greenway back would be helpful, but the Sabres simply need more out of certain players. Dylan Cozens and Jack Quinn, in particular, have the capacity to do so much more offensively but it just hasn’t turned out the way we all hoped. Getting them to wake up would do wonders for the Sabres, especially in the face of the injuries.
The Penalty Kill Was the Second Star
As impressive as Luukkonen was on the night, the Sabres would not be walking out of Los Angeles with a critical two points if not for the efforts of the penalty kill. The Sabres still take far too many penalties – averaging nearly five per game – and did nothing to change that on Wednesday.
The penalty kill came to the rescue, killing all five chances for the Kings. Even more impressively, the Sabres held the Kings to just five total shots on the power play, thanks in large part to several key blocks from Connor Clifton, Zach Benson, and others.
The penalty kill as a whole is simply inconsistent. They are 18th in the NHL right now but have flashes like this where they look like a solid unit. There are then other times where they give up one or more goals with the man advantage and it correlates with losing stretches. Taking fewer penalties would definitely help, but the team needs more efforts like this out of its special teams.
A Win to Be Proud Of
The Sabres are currently tied with the New York Islanders for the final wild card spot with 19 points. If they are going to keep up and even challenge for the third spot in the Atlantic Division, they need to win ugly games like this. The good teams find a way to win even when they aren’t getting contributions across the board.
The next two games are very important. They have road games against the Anaheim Ducks and San Jose Sharks before a stretch against the Minnesota Wild, Vancouver Canucks, and the Islanders to close out the month. Taking three of those five will be important if the Sabres want to hang around the wild card at the very least.
