Is Buffalo Finally Ready for the Cup?
Last season the Buffalo Sabres surprised everyone. Hockey experts were placing them at the bottom of the Eastern Conference, stating that they did not have enough skill to compete in the difficult Northeast Division. However, the Sabres stormed out of the gate and did not stop for the duration of the regular season. The Sabres proved all the experts wrong, finishing first in the division and third in the conference. However, once again they had problems in the play-offs, and were bounced in the first round by the Boston Bruins.
The questions plaguing the Sabres this year are whether or not they can get out of the first round, and if they are deep enough to challenge for the Cup.
When going through the Buffalo line-up it is quickly apparent that they do not have the same skill as the Pittsburgh Penguins or the Washington Capitals. Nevertheless, they do have arguably the best goaltender in the league.
Forwards
The Sabres have quietly put together a very strong forward-core through draft picks and free agent acquisitions. Never able to spend all the way to the cap, Buffalo has to be very careful about who they give large contracts to.
Their first line is strong with sniper Thomas Vanek and Derek Roy leading the charge. Their second line is not as impressive but is still able to score when necessary. The second unit houses Tim Connolly, Drew Stafford and possibly rookie Tyler Ennis. However, scoring is not their strength, instead it is defence. Their third line is a quality checking unit, containing Rob Niedermayer, Mike Grier and Jochen Hecht.
Buffalo’s strength next season must once again be their willingness to give up personal accolades for defence and team victories.
Defence
With the departure of a number of defencemen the back-end was a major question for the organization heading into the off-season. General manager Darcy Regier did a fantastic job addressing the problem, bringing in Jordan Leopold, and Shaone Morrisonn. These two defenders will join Craig Rivet, Tyler Myers, Steve Montador, and Andrej Sekera to form the unit for 2010-11.
The Sabres will be counting on Myers to improve on his stellar rookie season, which saw him win the Calder Trophy.
The defence is not flashy but they are able to limit the amount of shots enough for goaltender Ryan Miller to steal victories.
You cannot count on the defence to put a great deal of points on the board, and so like the forwards they have to continue to work as a unit, and not focus on individual statistics.
Goaltending
The Sabres have one of the best goaltenders in the league. Miller was given the Vezina Trophy as the league's best goaltender for his play last season. In addition, he was named the best goaltender in the 2010 Olympic hockey tournament leading the United States to a second place, silver medal.
Miller is the key to Buffalo’s success. With a healthy Miller there is no telling how well Buffalo is able to do in the regular season. Miller was third in saves, second in save-percentage, and second in goals-against-average, while managing five shut-outs, easily making him the team’s most valuable player.
There is no question that with healthy goaltending and strong defence that the Sabres will be able to clinch a play-off spot. Nevertheless, the question is their ability to compete in the play-offs. One of the most frequent criticisms of the team in past years is that they simply don't have the size and strength to wear down opponents over a seven-game series. By bolstering their forwards, and bringing in two new defencemen, Regier hopes that he has made the necessary changes to address those concerns.
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