What is different this year so far, through 4 games...

[mjd1001]

What is different? Mostly Dahlin.

Some other very early observations:

-Dahlin.  I'm not going to declare him the Norris trophy winner now, but he is playing like a superstar. 4 goals, but it goes beyond that.  Very few giveways (none of consequence I can remember).  On odd man rushes, he is often times the first person back despite often times going deep into the offensive zone.  When the Sabres have the puck in the offensive zone, he's always in control....rush him and he'll casually flip the puck to an open man, give him time and he'll take time and let someone come open.  In the D-zone he is getting to loose pucks and getting them out of the zone.  And he is playing chippy too. Through 4 games, he has been a controlling force on the ice.

-Goaltending. Very good so far.  In one game you got what you hope for out of Anderson this year, and its early, but MAYBE you are going to get your average-to-above-average goaltender in Comrie. Its early, but at least we know he has that in him.

-Hinostoza needs to be in this lineup.  I get it, he's not going to continue on the point pace he is on through 2 games and he does make some mistakes. But, he is fast, really fast and he uses that speed. he has pretty good offensive ability.  He might be the rare example of a guy you do not want on your first line, but when on the 3rd or 4th line he makes the OTHER 3rd or 4th liners better when they play with him.  He is not a star player, but he is one of my favorite players on the team to watch.

-Tuch.  He is a streaky scorer.  I always get concerned he may have a really bad run in the course of a year and it will lead him to only having a 15 goal season. Doesn't look like that so far. Plus, its really, really fun to have a player on your team that is from the area, who is a fan of things in the area (Bills) and someone that is just really fun to root for.

-Mittelstadt.  I think he needs to be a 50 point player for this team, but the coaching staff seems to trust him with ice time, he is on the PP, penalty kill, and gets regular even strenght time. I'm nervous about his production but so far so good.

-Skinner and Olofsson. Please score (other than empty netters)

-Krebs. I know from some discussions on this board people disagre with me, but he has not played good this year so far.  His ice time is way down.  2 times he lost a battle on the board or couldn't control the puck on the boards and it led to 1 goal and one great scoring chance.  One time toward the start of a shift the Sabres had a goal scored against them and if he had more speed he would have been able to backcheck and bother the guy who scored but he just didn't have the speed or he was too far deep in the offensive zone.  Now, he was back in the lineup last night and the coaches gave him more ice time, so hopefully that is a good sign.

-Samuelsson.  I think he is a good player, and I'm happy with the deal he signed. But he does have limitations. After the 3rd time he got the puck in his own zone the last 2 games (that I saw) he got the puck out from behind the net but it was obvious skating speed and acceleration is an issue he needs to work on if possible.  I noted this in the gameday forum and a few people disagreed. I'm not sure what game you are watching but there are numerous times where he can't pull away from forecheckers, and often times they are catching him from behind. It happens and its right there to see.  Again, I like him, and he did not give the puck up in any of those cases, but the reason he was a 2nd round pick and not a 1st rounder, and the reason he got a $4m deal and not more is he does have limitations.

-D depth and Jokiharju.  Jokiharju is not Dahlin...he is not a great 1st pair guy.  He has gotten caught out of position in the games he has played, and he doesn't take over games.  With that said, he is good overall.  As much as I like Fitzgerald and Bryson and young guys, it was noticable after he went out of the game that the extra ice time the bottom pairing guys got, there was a little less 'calmness' from them in the D-zone. Jokiharju, despite some mistakes, makes his D-unit better when he is on the ice.

-Power. He looked really good last year. This year he is a tad bit more shaky.  The last 2 games he has been better though.  I think opposing teams may be pressuring him a lot, as soon as he gets near the puck they are running at him. Once he adjusts to the speed of the game, he'll adjust to that a lot more and make some plays out of it. It looks like he is already getting better. Hopefully he'll be in the running for Rookie of the year. But I think he'll be a lot better next year (or even the 2nd half of this year) than he is now.

 

Edited October 21, 2022 by mjd1001

[Zamboni]

What is the difference? It’s called player development. For some patience is a virtue. For some patience pays off. I am personally not surprised that a young player, over the course of four or five or six years gets better and better and better with the proper development. And development is an all encompassing word.

[Indabuff]

Word on the street is he switched from ranch to Bleu cheese.

[Doohickie]

7 minutes ago, mjd1001 said:

What is different? Mostly Dahlin.

Some other very early observations:

Surprised no mention of Cozens.  He's really become a play driver and is tough for other teams to slow down.

I'll also mention Girgs.  He is so good at filling in the empty spots on the ice.  All the Sabres forwards recognize when a Dman has jumped up in the play and cover for him, but Girgs seems especially good at that.  He simply starts playing defense and I noticed on a few rushes last night that he wasn't just covering for the D, he was actually playing in the style of a defenseman to stop the rush.  In the offensive zone he's good at keeping possession and keeping the puck moving.  He and Okie have some great chemistry.

[RochesterExpat]

4 minutes ago, Doohickie said:

Surprised no mention of Cozens.  He's really become a play driver and is tough for other teams to slow down.

 

 Good example: his goal last night is because he willed it. He literally stood next to a defenseman and buried his own rebound that was sitting behind the goalie. The dman couldn't move him.

18 minutes ago, mjd1001 said:

Krebs. I know from some discussions on this board people disagre with me, but he has not played good this year so far.  His ice time is way down.  2 times he lost a battle on the board or couldn't control the puck on the boards and it led to 1 goal and one great scoring chance.  One time toward the start of a shift the Sabres had a goal scored against them and if he had more speed he would have been able to backcheck and bother the guy who scored but he just didn't have the speed or he was too far deep in the offensive zone.  Now, he was back in the lineup last night and the coaches gave him more ice time, so hopefully that is a good sign.

 He hasn't been playing as a complete player and that's the problem. He's also only in his second real season in the NHL and this might be the proverbial sophomore slump. We need to be patient with him. I think he might do well to go down to Rochester for a bit to restore his confidence. He dominated in the Amerks playoff run last year. I'm not worried about him. He is still very young.

[mjd1001]

17 minutes ago, Doohickie said:

Surprised no mention of Cozens.  He's really become a play driver and is tough for other teams to slow down.

I'll also mention Girgs.  He is so good at filling in the empty spots on the ice.  All the Sabres forwards recognize when a Dman has jumped up in the play and cover for him, but Girgs seems especially good at that.  He simply starts playing defense and I noticed on a few rushes last night that he wasn't just covering for the D, he was actually playing in the style of a defenseman to stop the rush.  In the offensive zone he's good at keeping possession and keeping the puck moving.  He and Okie have some great chemistry.

I think Cozens is also playing better. I just didn't mention him because I didn't want my original post to be longer than it was. As for Girgensons, I think he has been and still is a big part of the team.  Some are looking forward to when he won't be here, I am not.  He can put the puck in the net occasionally, he is a huge effort buy, a pretty good skater, and a great penalty killer.  He is very valuable in his role to this team.

[Sabres Fan in NS]

Confidence and maturity.

The players really believe in themselves as a team.  It really shows.  They were told all along that they could do it and that they would be given every opportunity to learn and grow.  They don't need to be told that now.

[Flashsabre]

Starting the season with:

-Comrie in net

-Tuch and Krebs in the lineup to start season

-Power,Samuelsson in lineup to start season, Boosh here

-Mitts healthy (knock on wood) and in the lineup

-JJ and Quinn on the team.

Each is a big upgrade to the players they are replacing in the lineup.

Add that to the steps Dahlin, Tage and Cozens have taken and there is a huge difference in the team so far.

[mphs mike]

53 minutes ago, Zamboni said:

What is the difference? It’s called player development. For some patience is a virtue. For some patience pays off. I am personally not surprised that a young player, over the course of four or five or six years gets better and better and better with the proper development. And development is an all encompassing word.

An example was last night - the two goals they gave up at end 2d, start 3d would have led to an avalanche and loss in prior years. Here, they bucked up, steadied themselves and won against a good team on the road.  

[LGR4GM]

Too early yet and they have things to fix. It is only different if they sustain success and are consistently improving. 

[bob_sauve28]

Talent, lots of talent now, a full training camp with all the pieces in place, another year of maturity for key players, a goaltender that stops the shots he is supposed to stop and more solid depth on D than I figured we had. 

[Doohickie]

40 minutes ago, mjd1001 said:

He can put the puck in the net occasionally, he is a huge effort buy, a pretty good skater, and a great penalty killer.  He is very valuable in his role to this team.

Girgensons has become the Sabres version of David Legwand.

[Crusader1969]

The guy at the athletic who predicted Sabres in bottom 4 is still not ready to buy in

 

“What Doesn’t Matter: Their record.

Sorry, not buying it. Buffalo has 65 percent of the goals but just 47 percent of the expected goals. The latter number is a middling team which would be a nice step for the Sabres – and it’s close to where we’ve ranked them – but the former isn’t indicative of much just yet.”

IMHO they’ve played 3 of their 4 against cup contenders and the 4th against most everyone’s pick for most improved (Ottawa) 

The numbers, should, look a lot better after the next 2 vs Vancouver and Seattle.   
Vancouver could be a tough one, they will come out hard in their home opener after such a horrible start for them.  

[French Collection]

Comrie or should I say Calmrie. He plays well positionaly, like Giguere did for the Ducks.

Dahlin has found another gear and is much better at both ends. The A has gotten him out of his shell.
No JAGS means less sheltering, better matchups and not getting caved in for entire shifts.

Mitts is gaining confidence, playing a 200’ game and on both special teams.

Tuch is a force and he opens things up for TT.

Vinnie is the ideal energy guy.

Peterka is good.

Imagine if Quinn, Power, Krebs and KO get scoring.

[GASabresIUFAN]

Dahlin and Comrie.  Call me after game 10 and we’ll see if what we are currently seeing is sustainable.  

[matter2003]

-I love Hinostroza...he is like a gnat that is all over the place annoying the other team with his speed. He also has some scoring touch and is probably good for 10-15 goals a year.

-Comrie was 2nd in the NHL last year at goals saved above expected/60 behind only Shesterkin. And Winnipeg actually gave up more shots per game than the Sabres did playing a similar style of D...it's not like they were some stone wall he was benefitting from. There is a good chance he becomes an above average goalie for us with the extra time.  At worst, he might be league average which is still a huge upgrade over where we were.

-D seems to have WAY better defensive zone positioning than I can remember over the past decade.  Very rarely do you see a player chasing a guy behind the net leaving wide open players in the slot or on the side of the goalie. They pick up trailers pretty well and force tough passes to players near the net who are covered. They also pass off players exceptionally well to the next guy.  It's pretty impressive considering how young they are. Lots of contested plays on passes in their own end...way more than I ever remember.

-Need to do better at stopping silly turnovers in their own end trying to do "cute" plays like drop passes to teammates with the other team nearby.  I expect they will get this cleaned up as the year goes on.

-PP has been brutal which is surprising considering how good it was last year most of the season.

-Peterka looks like he isn't going anywhere.  He looks like he belongs here...surprisingly more than Quinn does, who likely will be headed back to Rochester at some point if he continues doing not much of anything.

-Samuelsson looks really good most times in his own end. Very calm, very under control.

-Lyubushkin has brought a very much needed physical/nasty presence to the D corp. He seems to enjoy hitting people, physical play and isn't afraid to get his gloves dirty in the corner and in front of the net.

-This team is FAST. Really FAST. Constantly getting odd man opportunities seemingly out of nowhere due to their speed.

 

Edited October 21, 2022 by matter2003

[Weave]

Early part of the season is always a little more lucy-goosey.  Teams will be tightening up over the next few weeks.  What they look like now won’t be sustainable come Thanksgiving.  Lets see how well they tighten things up in November.

[LGR4GM]

Good news, Comrie is playing well. Bad news, we need to be lower in xGA if we want sustained success this season. That's not good enough. 

[matter2003]

1 minute ago, LGR4GM said:

Good news, Comrie is playing well. Bad news, we need to be lower in xGA if we want sustained success this season. That's not good enough. 

So he is basically in the same spot he was last year in this ranking.

[inkman]

1 hour ago, French Collection said:

Comrie or should I say Calmrie. 

Nicely done 

[matter2003]

6 minutes ago, inkman said:

Nicely done 

Comrie making saves like...

 

[Thorny]

1 hour ago, Weave said:

Early part of the season is always a little more lucy-goosey.  Teams will be tightening up over the next few weeks.  What they look like now won’t be sustainable come Thanksgiving.  Lets see how well they tighten things up in November.

This is usually me. 

For whatever reason, I don't get that vibe this time around. I think a lot of it comes down to the fact we seemed to be running circles around teams early in the season other recent years, out there with something to prove where the other teams were just getting ready to shake off the rust. It looked like we were winning based on will power alone, until other teams started trying. 

This season, we haven't even played that well, for 60 minutes, in any of the games yet. Yesterday was closest. *But we are finding ways to win based on pure talent.*

I think that's it - I think we are just a good team now. I'll go ahead and say it.

We have had better players even in recent memory, we didn't get here by bringing in the best guy possible, there's just an overall level of talent that hasn't been here since probably 2012 when we drastically underachieved. 

No more Marcus Johansson at 2C. No more Messy Balls as a D pair. A deep roster w/talent. 

We've simply, finally, built a team with around the same amount of good players as other teams. 

It's excellent.

Edited October 21, 2022 by Thorny

[dudacek]

Some highly skilled goals being scored this year.

I’m thinking of Tuch’s 2nd, Casey’s breakaway and Tage’s versus Edmonton in particular, but virtually every goal this year has been rushes or snipes, very few that you’d call greasy, or deflections or lucky bounces.

Team has averaged over 4 a game so far.

They’ve certainly looked the part of a “highly-skilled team”, which isn’t the same thing as, say Edmonton, with a handful of elite players.

It will be interesting to see whether that continues over the long-term. It certainly reflects what Don has been preaching and building toward.

 

[SwampD]

1 hour ago, LGR4GM said:

Good news, Comrie is playing well. Bad news, we need to be lower in xGA if we want sustained success this season. That's not good enough. 

I love all the xG stats. I really do, but even they are lacking in that they are league averages. I agree that we need to lower it, but, three of the four teams we have played so far have names at the top of shooting lists. Our xGA were from guys with names like Draisaitl, McDavid, Barkov, Tkachuk(x2), Kadri, Huberdeau, etc.

I think it's sustainable.

[LGR4GM]

2 minutes ago, SwampD said:

I love all the xG stats. I really do, but even they are lacking in that they are league averages. I agree that we need to lower it, but, three of the four teams we have played so far have names at the top of shooting lists. Our xGA were from guys with names like Draisaitl, McDavid, Barkov, Tkachuk(x2), Kadri, Huberdeau, etc.

I think it's sustainable.

Excellent reason to be cautious of xGF. It is based on league averages so if your goalie is good they are above average and if your shooters are good they are above average and that means you end up higher up in in actual saves and gf than the expected because you are better than average. We will see if it is sustainable but I really hope it is to some degree.