Buffalo N.Y. (WGR 550) - The Buffalo Sabres were back in action on Saturday afternoon, welcoming the league-leading Colorado Avalanche to town for their second and final meeting of the year. The Avalanche took the first game against the Sabres in Colorado by a score of 4-1.
Coming into the game, the Avalanche had won 13 of their last 15 games, putting their record at a staggering 35-9-4. That puts Colorado first in the league, one point ahead of the Florida Panthers.
The first period was an eventful one with the teams combining for five goals, which resulted in an Avalanche lead when it was all said and done. The two Sabres goals were scored by Tage Thompson, who added his third of the day in the second period knotting things up at 3-3. This was also Thompson's first NHL hat-trick.
Things got tense in the third period when after a questionable no penalty call, the Avalanche skated down the ice and scored, making it 4-3. Mikko Rantanen iced the game for Colorado with an empty netter with about 30 seconds remaining in the game.
The Sabres were able to hang tough with the league leaders in Saturday's matinee action. This seems to be, yet, another building point for the team to learn from despite the loss.
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Here are three observations from this game:
1.) Setting the pace
The Avalanche is one of the fastest teams in the league, with the Sabres being one of the slower teams in most games. However, the Sabres were matching the speed of the Avalanche throughout the majority of this game.
Buffalo set the game's pace, at times, when they were able to score the first goal of the game, or when they controlled the puck for the majority of the third period. When Colorado was in control, though, the Sabres hung with them, and even matched their goals with quick responses of their own.
This was a welcoming sight to see after Thursday’s performance against the Ottawa Senators. It will be interesting to see if they can bring the same tempo in Sunday’s matchup against the Columbus Blue Jackets.
2.) Newfound vision
The entire team must have gone to the eye doctor during the All-Star break, because since then, the Sabres have had incredible vision when passing the puck.
One of the first players to show this trait was Peyton Krebs. In his 15 games with the Sabres, the rookie has eight points, five of which being assists.
It appears he may be rubbing off on some of his teammates after players like Rasmus Dahlin, Thompson, and Jeff Skinner have all shown their own moments of passing prowess. One thing, besides goals, that this leads to is the minimization of turnovers. The Sabres had stretches of being turnover machines at different stretches of this season, but have gotten that under control as of late.
With the scoring talents of JJ Peterka and Jack Quinn on the horizon, they could bet to find themselves on the end of some of these amazing passes coming from current Sabres players.
3.) Taming the beast
Colorado is the best all-around team in the NHL, plain and simple. They have rolled over teams all year long, including the Sabres once before, but this game seemed different.
The Sabres skated with the Avalanche, scored when they needed to score, didn’t back down from physicality, and overall played a great game.
Sure, the afternoon was ruined on one questionable call that led to a goal at the other end, but the Sabres didn’t hang their heads and lay down. They immediately got up, got physical, and started shooting the puck like there was no tomorrow.
Buffalo had 21 attempted shots in the third period alone. This is a massive improvement, considering the third has been a struggle for them all year.
While it was a loss, this game did seem to prove valuable for the team by showing them with a little determination and fire; they could compete with almost anyone. Something the Sabres have not believed in a long time.
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The Sabres find themselves on a five-game road trip starting Sunday in Columbus against the Blue Jackets. The Blue Jackets have won both games this season series so far, and this game is the final meeting between the two teams this year.
Pregame coverage on WGR starts at 5 p.m. EST with Pat Malacaro and Paul Hamilton. Puck drop is set for 6 p.m. EST on the radio home of the Sabres - WGR Sports Radio 550.
