The Buffalo Sabres hit the ice on Monday night at KeyBank Center hoping for a change of fortune to snap a 10-game losing streak against the Washington Capitals.
That hope resulted in their 11th-straight loss, a 6-0 thumping at the hands of their opponent.
There seem to be no answers for this team in the middle of their mid-season tailspin. Let's take a look at three observations from the game:
1.) Hutton follows up strong performance with a dud
Sabres goaltender Carter Hutton performed admirably against the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday night, and he was rewarded with his second-straight start against Washington two nights later.
Hutton turned aside eight of the nine shots he faced in the first period, allowing an ugly goal from a bad angle outside the circle close to the boards. Hutton had made three huge stops prior to allowing the goal, but he struggled with the angle the shot was taken.
In the second period, Hutton got blitzed. The Capitals attempted 16 shots in the period, with 11 of them registering a shot on goal and three of them going in.
The third period was not any kinder for Hutton, as he faced just six shots on goal, but allowed another two goals.
2.) Power play has frozen over
How many more games will the lack of power play goals end up being one of the observations?
Until the Sabres score with the man advantage, it will continue to be one of the more noticeable things from each game. Buffalo's lack of power play has totally taken them out of many games along this 11-game skid.
The Sabres' power play conversion rate has fallen to 26.8%, still a rather high amount that speaks to how well the power play was performing in the beginning of the season. Over the last 10 games, the Sabres have had 16 opportunities to score with the man advantage.
3.) Skinner noticeable for all the wrong reasons
Sabres forward Jeff Skinner was involved on three separate plays where the Sabres should have had a threatening chance to score.
The first play found Skinner on a 3-on-1 with Casey Mittelstadt and Curtis Lazar. Mittelstadt carried the puck in the zone and found Skinner in the slot. Skinner had the lane, but he decided to pass it back to Mittelstadt, who mishandled it and foiled the play.
Later in the game, Skinner found himself on a breakaway early in the third period. Sabres forward Casey Mittelstadt knocked the puck free in the neutral zone, which sprung Skinner in alone on Capitals goaltender Vitek Vanecek. The rookie netminder barely got a piece of the shot, which likely would have missed the net.
Even later in the third, Skinner, Mittelstadt and Lazar generated a 3-on-0 chance. This time, Skinner fired the puck, but he missed the net on the play.
Skinner continues to create opportunities for himself, but like many on this team, he simply can not figure out how to get one of his shots to just go in the net.
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The Sabres will get another chance to get the monkey off their back, as they travel to Newark, New Jersey to play the Devils at the Prudential Center on Tuesday night.
We'll get things started at 6 p.m. ET with the Paul William Beltz Pregame Show hosted by Schopp and the Bulldog. Puck drop is schedule to take place just after 7 p.m. ET on the radio flagship of the Sabres - WGR Sports Radio 550.
Sabres lose their 11th-straight game, as the power play goes scoreless through 10 games