Coming into Monday night’s matchup with the defending Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers, the Buffalo Sabres had been riding high. A decisive win over the Detroit Red Wings marked three straight victories for the blue and gold, something they hadn’t done in ages.
More importantly, it meant carrying momentum into the matchup with the Panthers. Unfortunately, the winning streak ended with a thud. The Sabres fought back and kept it close until late, but ultimately dropped a 5-2 decision to the Panthers. Here’s what we came away with from a disappointing night.
This Was an Entirely Different Panthers Team
One look at the lineups will tell you that this wasn’t the same Panthers team that the Sabres beat 5-2 back on Oct. 12. Aleksander Barkov, Sergei Bobrovsky, and Matthew Tkachuk were all absent in that game but were definitely present when the Panthers visited again on Monday night.
The difference was very evident. Barkov picked up two points. Tkachuk and the top line for the Panthers were frequently buzzing, creating chances throughout the game. The Sabres couldn’t find a consistent answer for them, and it wound up playing a role in the final score.
That’s not an excuse. The Sabres are past the point of moral victories and need to beat good teams if they are going to make it to the playoffs. They fought back valiantly in the second period, but it ultimately wasn’t enough to overcome what is a very deep and talented team that won it all just a few months ago.
Team Defense Wasn’t Great
The last five minutes aside – when Barkov and Sam Bennett scored to slam the door shut on the Sabres – Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen was solid. He stopped 26 of 31 shots on the night but that doesn’t tell the whole story. In reality, team defense was lacking trying to keep up with the skill and speed of the Panthers.
On Sam Reinhart’s second goal for the Panthers and Carter Verhaeghe’s third goal, Luukkonen would have had to make a superhuman effort to keep the puck from reaching the back of the net. Both times, the goal scorer was left uncontested in front of the net, free to bury it without harassment.
Defensive breakdowns happen, but when they happen against good teams, those teams tend to take advantage. Having it happen multiple times throughout the game is a fast way to find yourself on the losing end of things. Goaltending can only do so much if there’s no one there to help.
2 Straight for the Power Play
On the bright side of things, Jason Zucker seems to be the power play savant. For the second game in a row, he tallied a power play goal after what seemed like a stretch that would never end. Even better, he swatted the puck out of mid-air in an impressive display of hand-eye coordination.
Related: 3 Observations from Sabres’ Up & Down Start to 2024-25
The power play couldn’t remain as bad as it was and was no doubt a key contributor to an up-and-down start for the Sabres. Seeing it get on the board again is encouraging, even if the unit still doesn’t quite look like the world-beaters they were during the 2022-23 season.
The injury to Rasmus Dahlin will bear watching. After taking a high-sticking penalty, he went to the dressing room while shaking his hand. It’s unclear what the issue is at the moment, but losing him for any period of time would very obviously be a bad thing for the entire team.
Sabres Need to Rebound Against Islanders, Red Wings
Given how the season has gone so far, a loss here isn’t necessarily an excuse but it is important to remember that not every game is going to be won. It was nice to see the Sabres respond by coming back from being down 2-0, even if they did fall short.
The key now is to rebound against the New York Islanders and Red Wings in the coming games. If you really want to be a good team, you have to start beating good teams. The excuses go out the window and the Sabres need to respond like a winning team.
