Buffalo, N.Y. (WGR Sports Radio 550) - The Buffalo Sabres will miss the playoffs for a 14th-straight year, and now have just two more games left to wrap up the 2024-25 season. Both games will take place at home on Tuesday against the Toronto Maple Leafs and Thursday against the Philadelphia Flyers.
Sabres general manager Kevyn Adams isn’t shying away from taking blame for another missed postseason in Buffalo. He admits if he could go back, he would hit re-do on staying put during the team's 13 game winless streak that stretched from Thanksgiving to just before Christmas.
"For sure I would have done it differently," said Adams on Tuesday during an appearance with "Schopp and the Bulldog" on WGR. "Maybe I would have made a change, even if it was just calling up a player. Do something to change the dynamic of Buffalo."
One of the major disappointments from this season has been the play of goaltender Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, who saw a drastic dip in a number of statistics from last season.
During his 2023-24 season, he posted a save percentage of .910 and goals-against average of 2.57. This season saw those numbers at an .886 save percentage and a 3.20 goals-against average.
Despite the regression this season on paper, Adams is not ready to turn the page yet on Luukkonen.
"I still firmly believe Luukkonen can be a top-15 goalie, I have no doubt in my mind," Adams said with Mike Schopp and Chris "Bulldog" Parker. "Is there areas of his game to clean up a little bit and things to work on in the summer? Sure, but the other part is we have to be better in front of him."
Hear more of Adams' comments available in the player below: