The past two games for the Buffalo Sabres have been a couple of the more disappointing efforts from the team this season.
On Tuesday, coming off their 10-day break for the bye week and the NHL All-Star break, Buffalo took two periods to really get their feet going, but still ended up falling 3-2 to the Ottawa Senators.
Thursday saw the Sabres have a better start against the Montreal Canadiens, but the final two periods of play saw Buffalo getting outshot 22-10 in a 3-1 loss at KeyBank Center.
The Sabres currently sit with a 22-22-7 record and 51 points in the standings, and have lost the opening two games of their current five-game homestand. While Buffalo remains 10 points out of the playoff picture in both the Atlantic Division and the Eastern Conference Wild Card race, other teams are now starting to build up games in hand on the Sabres.
If the Sabres want to remain in contention, the team cannot afford any more slip ups in winnable games this season.
The constant message from Sabres head coach Ralph Krueger and company is to keep the picture small and take every game a day at a time. And while maintaining a grasp at the standings and what's going around the league may be enticing, the focus has to be improving as a group every single day.
"For us to move beyond the small picture at this time of year is a waste of energy," Krueger said on Friday following practice. "It's not that we're sticking our hands in the sand. Whatever noise that's out there is out there, but I really don't let it into my head or my space because I need to work with this group on a daily basis as constructively as possible. To grow them, to educate them, and to build a foundation that becomes a habit. We've spoken about it since Sep. 12, and we will not lose that course. The noise out there is deserved, if you're telling me it's out there, but it's not getting inside our room because we are very confident in the principles that we're bringing into play here, we're confident in the processes that we're laying out here. We feel a continued, complete buy-in by the players of what we're working on. Are the results the way we want them? No. Do fans deserve to boo us after games like Ottawa and Montreal? Yes. Do we need to take that? Yes, and it should fuel us to continue to work in the right direction."
Following Thursday's loss to the Canadiens, the one constant word that was brought up was "confidence" and the lack of confidence, especially in the second and third period. Buffalo played a very solid period to kick off the contest, outshooting the Canadiens 11-8, but then the team appeared to go into a shell and could not find a way to break out of that shell.
While the team struggles to find their game again coming out of the break and it continues to lose ground in the playoff race, Krueger is not feeling any desperation with the group.
"For me, it's what are the issues, what can we do about the issues, how do we work on these issues, and drive forward again and not get stuck on those," Krueger said. "I'm not frustrated because this group is trying, and they are attentive and they're involved in the process. We are not alone as coaches in this. We are doing this together, and that gives me optimism even after a painful night like yesterday. To spend a few hours with these guys is the best therapy, because they are working together with us on these solutions. We will do our best to give a reaction to the fans. We're expecting a full house here against Columbus, who's one of the hottest teams in the league right now. And coming off their break, they're going to be fresh and it'll be a big physical test for us. We're getting ready for that."
The Columbus Blue Jackets come to Buffalo for an afternoon matchup on Saturday at KeyBank Center as one of the hottest teams in the National Hockey League. Columbus had won six straight games heading into the All-Star break, and are 8-2-0 over the course of their last 10 games. The Blue Jackets currently sit as the top Wild Card team in the Eastern Conference with 62 points, and that comes after losing a number of their top players to free agency last year like forwards Artemi Panarin, Matt Duchene and Ryan Dzingel, as well as goalie Sergei Bobrovsky.
Krueger knows that if his group is to beat a red-hot team like the Blue Jackets, as well as to get back on track towards the playoffs moving forward, the team will have to become more of a consistent group and string together some wins.
"All [the inconsistencies] show that we have work to do. All that shows is that we have to continue to find our moments of teaching, whether it's in the short practice times we have, the video sessions we do, the 1-on-1 meetings or the board talks. Wherever and whatever, we need to continue to cement what are simple fundamentals that are still not habits. They're just not habits, and they don't grow overnight," Krueger said. "We've said that many times before, and sometimes it take pain like we're feeling right now to become normal for us, and they aren't yet. That's why we've been inconsistent. Are we striving towards those principles and those values in a focused way? Yes. Are they there 100% of the time? No. They will never be that, but we need to have a higher percentage than now. If we continue to work the way we are, we're going to improve, and I believe in that."
Forward Michael Frolik has been in Buffalo for nearly a full month after the Jan. 2 trade that saw him going from the Calgary Flames to the Sabres. In his eight games with the Sabres, Frolik has a goal and an assist while mainly skating on a line with Marcus Johansson.
The 31-year-old has been through some highs and some lows in his 12-year career in the NHL, including a Stanley Cup win in 2013 while with the Chicago Blackhawks. While his time has been brief with the Sabres, Frolik knows that any change that comes with the team has to come from within.
"I think it's just a matter of the belief," Frolik said. "We had a belief in the [Chicago] room that we can win every game, even if we're down 2-3 goals, I think you could see in the room that we could turn the game around. Obviously I think the issue here a little bit is to play a full 60 minutes. I think we've had a little trouble with the second periods. Seems like we have a pretty good first period, and then we kind of take our foot off the gas, but I think the mindset here needs to play a full 60 minutes. That's the challenge for the next game.
"We need to realize in this room that this is the time for us. Every game should be for us. We need to put the work in, and I think we were. It's just we took a couple minutes off and they make us pay. In this game, you have to be consistent the whole game and every single game. I think that's what we're looking for the next few games."
As for improving the team's confidence going forward, it may be as simple as just getting some more pucks to find the back of the net from top-to-bottom of the lineup.
"What helps is that you have to score some goals. It goes with confidence," Frolik said. "When you feel you score a few or when you get on the board, the confidence goes higher, and everyone around you feels better. If you want to be successful in this league, you need that kind of secondary scoring, and I think we've been missing that in the last few games. That's me included. If you're on the second line, you need to try and help the team. You need everybody to chip in, and not just from our first line with Eichs [Jack Eichel]. He's a high scoring guy, but we need to follow him. Hopefully when you score a few goals, the confidence goes higher, and hopefully we do that soon."
Frolik skated on a line with Johansson and Jeff Skinner once again at Friday's practice.
Sabres forward Kyle Okposo left the first period of Thursday's game with an upper-body injury and did not return. Following the game, Krueger said that Okposo did not have a concussion, but that he would go under more evaluation on Friday. The team announced on Friday that Okposo would not practice on Friday, nor would he play on Saturday afternoon against the Blue Jackets.
That prompted the call up of 25-year-old J.S. Dea from the Rochester Americans.
Dea was called up once earlier this season, but only got into one game before Thanksgiving and played in just 5:53 of ice time.
"In the game I played, I thought I played pretty good," Dea said. "Obviously there were a lot of bodies at that time, so hopefully I get another chance. But I think I've kept working down there, playing my game, and I'm glad to be back.
"I was only here for only a week, but I got to see a few games. I think the big part is that I usually have a lot more time that you think. Watching from up [in the press box], you can take that extra second to make that play. So I think that's going to help me over the next couple of games. If I can bring my A-game and bring some snarl to the room, that's all I can do."
The Buffalo forward has led the Amerks in scoring this season, netting 13 goals and picking up 17 assists for 30 points in 41 games played. With the lack of depth scoring that has tended to plague the Sabres as of late, Dea is hoping to bring some of his scoring ways to Buffalo while he is in the NHL.
"I'm just going to stay myself and try to bring as much positivity as I can," Dea said. "Obviously if I can help the team win, that's my main goal, but I'm just going to take things one day at a time and go from there."
At practice on Friday, the Sabres were missing a pair of defenseman as Brandon Montour was given a maintenance day and Zach Bogosian was out with an illness. Krueger said that it was "definitely a maintenance day" for Montour, which is likely a sign that he will be ready to play on Saturday. As for Bogosian, Krueger said that he was very ill and could be out of commission for a couple of days.
Here is how the lines looked at Harborcenter on Friday:
Vesey - Eichel - Reinhart
Skinner - Johansson - Frolik
Girgensons - Larsson - Sheary
Rodrigues - Lazar - Dea
Pilut - Ristolainen
Dahlin - Jokiharju
McCabe - Miller
Ristolainen
Eichel - Reinhart - Johansson
Dahlin
Skinner
Sheary - Vesey - Rodrigues
Miller
Be sure to tune in to the Paul William Beltz Pregame Show on Saturday starting at noon with Brian Koziol, where you will hear from Frolik, Dea and Krueger. In addition, you will hear from Lethbridge Hurricanes general manager Peter Anholt at some point in the broadcast, who joined Howard Simon and Sal Capaccio on Friday to talk about Sabres prospect Dylan Cozens