@boosbuzzsabres
It may not be the prettiest five-game winning streak hockey has ever known, but the record states that the Buffalo Sabres haven't lost since they dropped a 3-1 decision to the NY Rangers on November 4 and that as of now they have the longest current winning streak in the NHL.
Yes the Sabres have struggled at times within each individual game, sometimes so much that they ended up stealing a win, but at the end of the day Buffalo has snagged 10 out of a possible 10 points the past two weeks. It should also be noted that they've done so playing against some of the best teams in the league with three of the five games being won on the road.
The "weakest" team Buffalo faced during this stretch was the Montreal Canadiens, who were 8-5-2 at the time and were two points ahead of the Sabres in the Atlantic Division. The Sabres defeated the Habs 6-5 in overtime and followed up that road win with a 4-3 shootout victory at home over the 10-6-1 Vancouver Canucks, who were atop the Pacific Division at the time.
Next would be a matchup against the Eastern conference-leading Tampa Bay Lightning (12-4-1) before embarking on three-game road trip. Unlike the prior two come-from-behind wins, the Sabres took a 2-0 lead, allowed one goal to Tampa and held off a relentless Lighting push to tie the score late in the game. With the help of two goal-posts rung by Tampa with less than :30 seconds to play, Buffalo came away with the 2-1 win.
After that it was off to the middle of the continent for a back-to-back against the Winnipeg Jets and the Minnesota Wild.
The 10-5-1 Jets were third in the Central Division at the time and whipsawed the Sabres over the first 30 minutes but were only up 1-0. Buffalo tied the score early in the third period, wiggled out of an egregious turnover with less than :05 seconds left and won the game in the shootout before heading a bit south to take on the 12-5-2 Minnesota Wild who were second in the Central division. Minnesota dominated the game early in the first period and went up by two goals but the Sabres cut the lead to one heading into the first intermission. Buffalo would score two more and leave Xcel Energy Center with a 3-2 win.
For those counting that's four come-from-behind wins and the entire stretch hasn't come against the creampuffs of the NHL either. The combined record of all five teams Buffalo beat during this winning streak was 52-25-7.
There's a giddiness in Sabreland right now the likes of which we haven't seen in a long time, possibly dating 10+ years to Buffalo's back-to-back Eastern Conference Finals appearances, and there should be as this is a team with a lot of skill with growing confidence right now.
No less than five Sabres first round picks are forming a nucleus that's on the rise and none of them were taken lower than eighth-overall. The eldest of this group is 24 year old Rasmus Ristolainen, selected with the eighth pick in the 2013 NHL Draft. Forward Sam Reinhart is 23 yrs. old and was the second-overall pick in 2014 while 22 yr. old team captain Jack Eichel was taken second-overall in 2015. Nineteen year old center Casey Mittelstadt was an eighth-overall pick in 2017 and the Sabres used the top pick in the 2018 NHL Draft to select defenseman Rasmus Dahlin.
Although he isn't considered a core player, the "elder statesman" of Sabres first rounders is 25 yr. old forward Zemgus Girgensons who was taken 14th-overall in 2012.
In addition to those homegrown first round picks, the Sabres have added six more to this year's roster, all via trade save for Kyle Okposo (2006, seventh-overall, STL) who was signed as a free agent in 2016. Former GM Tim Murray traded for defenseman Zach Bogosian (2008, 3rd, ATL) while present GM Jason Botterill dealt for four more first-rounders--D, Nathan Beaulieu (2011, 17th, MTL,) C, Patrick Berglund (2006, 25th, STL,) RW, Tage Thompson (2016, 26th, STL) and Buffalo's leading goal scorer LW, Jeff Skinner (2010, 7th, CAR.)
With that amount of skill about the only things lacking were chemistry and confidence. Although the chemistry thing is a work in progress up-front save for Eichel/Skinner on the top line and Girgensons/Johan Larsson anchoring the fourth line, their confidence is growing with each game and one of the big reasons for that is their starting goalie, Carter Hutton.
Hutton's overall numbers are decent (2.52 goals-against average, .919 save-percentage) but the 32 yr. old undrafted free agent who signed a three-year free agent deal with Buffalo this summer has managed to come up with clutch saves to keep the game within reach. In each of the games on this five-game winning streak, Hutton has held firm when needed and with the help of a little luck, never let things get out of hand. Backup Linus Ullmark did the same thing last night against the Wild as he recovered from getting pulled in the Montreal game to post his fourth win of the season. Ullmark's stat-line is very similar to Hutton's (2.65 GAA, .922 SV%) but he's yet to lose in regulation (thx to Hutton and the Sabres comeback-win in Montreal) and has the team's only shutout this year.
Although no one should be planning a Stanley Cup parade at this juncture, Buffalo's 12-6-2 start should be savored as should their present five-game winning streak, something that hasn't been seen in these parts since March, 2012. The Sabres at the time were in the midst of a desperate run towards the playoffs in Terry Pegula's first full year as owner of the team while coach Lindy Ruff and company were trying to overcome a brutal 3-12-2 stretch from December 16, 2011 to January 21, 2012. That gruesome stretch included losing streaks of three, four and five games, the latter of which consisted of five regulation losses.
The Sabres finished strong that season (20-8-6) but ended three points out of a playoff spot which started a playoff drought that has stretched to seven years, second longest streak in the NHL.
There are young fans in Saberland that have known nothing but mediocrity at best and failure at worst over those seven seasons and who've yet to taste success on this level. For those of us who go back to the 2005-07 ECF years and even farther back to the '99 Cup Finals, the LaFontaine/Mogilny, early-90's era and even before as us old-farts hearken back to Buffalo's first SCF berth in 1975, it's hard to fathom that there are some Sabres fans who haven't seen this level of quality hockey from their team. But it's here right now and there's a lot to be excited about.
As we hit the quarter pole, it's best to keep in mind that this Sabres team does have flaws and despite being third in the Atlantic Division and tied for fourth overall in the league, there are still 62 games to play and a lot can happen. They've been lucky so far with injuries as this group has remained largely intact for most of the season and in a game of inches, the posts that have saved them a couple times during their five, one-goal wins in this streak could turn on them.
However, for now there's joy in Sabreland. Their team is buttah, ’cause they're on a roll. (Thx to the late Stuart Scott for that catchphrase)
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