Why the Buffalo Sabres Are Scoring Like Crazy

Good morning and happy Thursday, December 29th.

With a score of 4-1, congrats to our readers who predicted the Montreal Canadiens vs. Tampa Bay Lightning game to have the largest margin of victory in yesterday's poll!

Not since the days of the French Connection Line has the NHL raved about the Buffalo Sabres offensive might like they are today.

The Sabres go into tonight’s home game against the Detroit Red Wings leading the league with a 3.94 goals-per-game scoring average. 

What’s remarkable about the production is that last season the Sabres ranked 22nd in the NHL with a 2.79 average. The other interesting fact is that the Sabres have an average power play, ranking just 16th (21.2%). They are getting it done offensively at even-strength.

Buffalo doesn’t have a line with the same panache as Rick Martin, Gilbert Perreault and Rene Robert had in the 1970s, but they have a talented group of forwards. Here’s why the Sabres are lighting the lamp on a regular basis:

1. Rising Star: Tage Thompson has blossomed into one of the NHL’s most dominant performers. He is fourth in the NHL scoring race with 26 goals and 24 assists for 50 points. The 6-foot-7 center is an elusive, slick, productive force. Thompson’s average of 4.56 shots on goal per game is among the league’s best. The Arizona native has registered 8 or 9 shots seven times this season. Thompson uncorked a five-goal game against Columbus earlier this month.

2. Coming of Age: Defenseman Rasmus Dahlin, 22, is fully exploring the depth of his immense cache of talent. He’s third in NHL defensemen scoring with 10 goals and 27 assists for 37 points. Erik Karlsson (13 goals) is the only defenseman who has found the net more.

3. Noteworthy depth: The Sabres  have six players with 10 or more goals and boast five players averaging near a point per game or better. They also boast skillful youngsters such as Jack Quinn (17 points) and John Paterka (15 points).

4. Breakthrough season?: Center Dylan Cozens, 21, is realizing his potential with 31 points in 32 games.

5. Born to be a Sabre:  Alex Tuch is from upstate New York and was thrilled to come to his hometown team through the Jack Eichel trade. With 15 goals and 35 points in 32 games, he’s showing how happy he is to be in Buffalo.

💸 The Toronto Maple Leafs have been fined $100k for violating the CBA. The Leafs traveled to St. Louis on December 26th, although the NHL's Collective Bargaining Agreement stipulates that December 23-26 are supposed to be free of team activities. Not to be outdone, Maple Leafs' head coach Sheldon Keefe was fined $25k for "demeaning conduct directed at the officials" during their game against the Blues. The fine money goes to the NHL Foundation.

☎️ You could say Andrei Vasilevskiy has the Canadiens' number. The 6'4" Russian-born goaltender made 25 saves last night to earn his 11th consecutive win over Montreal — the third goalie in NHL history to hold an 11-game winning streak against the Habs and the first since Toronto's Turk Broda in 1941. Overall, Vasilevskiy is 14-1-2 in regular season games against the Canadiens. 

TRIVIA: What NHL franchise owns the longest winning streak of all time against one team? Bonus: name their opponent. 

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TRIVIA ANSWER:

The Montreal Canadiens beat the Washington Capitals 23 consecutive times from 10/31/1974 until 3/25/1978 🤯