What's Going Wrong In Buffalo?
Is it time for Sabres fans to be worried? After six games the team is sat at the bottom of the league, division and conference. Their one solitary point came from an overtime loss hosting Tampa Bay. The New Jersey Devils are currently the only other team without a win under their belts but they've forced three games to overtime.
Let's have a look at some numbers:
There's some worrying stuff there, the biggest concern has to be the number of goals be scored (or not scored). Thomas Vanek is the team's leading goalscorer and he has two from six games. Compare that with Tomas Hertl who has seven from five games.
The powerplay stat is also a worry. This season; teams are living and dying by how they take advantage of the extra man offered by the powerplay. To be converting less than 10% of those opportunities is not a recipe for success.
The stats aren't all bad though, here's some of the better numbers.
Although the team isn't scoring many, it isn't conceding many either, the blueliners are performing well enough. The PK unit is performing exceptionally well, far outperforming other teams, including current cup holders Chicago. Putting the whole Kaleta issue to one side, the team's disciplinary record is pretty good.
It's also not unfair to say that the Sabres have faced tough opposition so far, with games against Detroit, Pittsburgh and Chicago.
If Buffalo wants to snap out of this slump, the goalscorers need to step up to the plate and convert more of those shots. The team hosts Minnesota tonight and will visit the Islanders tomorrow. Two teams who've been inconsistent of late.
I'm going to revisit this post in a few days to see how the team has performed after the above games.
Let's have a look at some numbers:
| Buffalo Sabres | League Leader | |
| Goals Per Game (Avg) | 1 | 4.80 (SJS) |
| Powerplay | 9.5% | 37.5% (STL) |
| Faceoff | 44.5% | 58.4% (MIN) |
There's some worrying stuff there, the biggest concern has to be the number of goals be scored (or not scored). Thomas Vanek is the team's leading goalscorer and he has two from six games. Compare that with Tomas Hertl who has seven from five games.
The powerplay stat is also a worry. This season; teams are living and dying by how they take advantage of the extra man offered by the powerplay. To be converting less than 10% of those opportunities is not a recipe for success.
The stats aren't all bad though, here's some of the better numbers.
| Buffalo Sabres | League Loser | |
| Goals Against (Avg) | 2.67 | 5 (NYR/EDM) |
| Penalty Kill | 90% | 64.3% (CHI/ANA) |
| Penalty Minutes (Avg) | 12 | 22.5 (STL) |
It's also not unfair to say that the Sabres have faced tough opposition so far, with games against Detroit, Pittsburgh and Chicago.
If Buffalo wants to snap out of this slump, the goalscorers need to step up to the plate and convert more of those shots. The team hosts Minnesota tonight and will visit the Islanders tomorrow. Two teams who've been inconsistent of late.
I'm going to revisit this post in a few days to see how the team has performed after the above games.
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