Sabres’ ugly home loss to Penguins puts trade-deadline needs on full display
Buffalo's game has slipped a bit over the past four games, with potential areas for reinforcement clearly visible.
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The Sabres' top-four defensemen are carrying a heavy load of minutes. Timothy T. Ludwig / Imagn Images
The Buffalo Sabres played their worst game in months on Thursday night, losing 5-2 to the Pittsburgh Penguins at home. And in the process, they gave general manager Jarmo Kekäläinen a crystal-clear picture of the team’s glaring needs heading into the NHL trade deadline.
Kekäläinen, who will head to Milan as Finland’s assistant general manager for the Olympics, can’t make any moves until the NHL trade freeze lifts on Feb. 23. Between then and March 6, the Sabres are going to need to add another defenseman. That was already a clear need heading into Thursday, but the way the game unfolded made it more apparent.
Buffalo got a 1-0 lead in this game when Jason Zucker scored less than two minutes into the game. That was where the good news stopped for the Sabres. Midway through the first period, Jacob Bryson made his first of two egregious blunders in this game. The Sabres had an offensive zone faceoff. The Penguins won the draw and flipped the puck out of the zone toward the neutral zone. The puck landed near Bryson, but he was flat-footed and let it squirt by him. Avery Hayes grabbed the loose puck and scored his first NHL goal.
In the second period, with the Sabres trailing 2-1, the Sabres had another offensive zone faceoff and won it back to Bryson. He skated the puck along the offensive blue line and then tried to turn away from a Penguins player. He fell and lost the puck, sending Ben Kindel on a two-on-one the other way. Kindel converted to give the Penguins a 3-1 lead.
As a result, Bryson only played only 4:19 in this game. His defensive partner, Michael Kesselring, only got 7:56. He was on the ice for Pittsburgh’s first three goals against.
“That pair had a tough night,” Ruff said.
Bryson’s performance on Thursday was his worst of the season, and his ice time reflected it. Bryson is also averaging just 10:02 per game and has played under 10 minutes in five of his last six games. That’s a clear indication that Ruff’s trust level in him has its limits. The same is true of Zach Metsa, who was scratched on Thursday but has averaged 9:43 in the 26 games he’s played this year. Buffalo’s top-four defensemen have been carrying a disproportionate amount of the workload, and it’s not a sustainable formula with such a demanding schedule. The Sabres need another defenseman capable of playing more reliable third-pair minutes.
Kesselring is a separate issue. He hasn’t been great since returning from his high-ankle sprain. But he’s also still playing through that injury, one that has sidelined him twice this season after he got over an early-season knee injury. He hasn’t been healthy all season. Not only have the injuries affected his play, but he’s also never had a chance to get into a rhythm with all the missed time. Maybe the Olympic break will help him get back to 100 percent, but the particular injury he’s dealing with is the type that can linger.
Conor Timmins should be returning at some point after the break, but he’s still on crutches while recovering from a broken leg. Ruff is hopeful he can resume skating at some point between now and when the Sabres resume games on Feb. 25.
Regardless, though, the Sabres need more depth. Ruff needs more lineup options. They can’t be one injury away from turning to Byrson or Metsa to play important minutes in big games down the stretch.
And while we’re on the topic of the deadline, it wouldn’t hurt for the Sabres to pursue another forward capable of playing in the top nine. Yes, Josh Norris is expected to return after the break, and Zach Benson should be back, too. But this lineup needs another forward, preferably one who has played in the playoffs and can play the type of heavy game the postseason requires. It would be a bonus if that forward could contribute to Buffalo’s power play, which was once again underwhelming on Thursday night. Jack Quinn hasn’t done much with his opportunity on the top unit.
That should be top of mind for Kekäläinen when the trade freeze lifts. And while Bryson’s blunders hurt the Sabres badly in this game, the rest of the group should have plenty to chew on heading into an extended break. The Sabres have played at a torrid pace since mid-December. But they are 1-2-1 in their last four games, with this loss being one of the team’s sloppiest in a while.
Alex Lyon has seen firsthand how a season can spiral even after a stellar stretch.Timothy T. Ludwig / Imagn Images
Goalie Alex Lyon, 33, has been one of the team’s voices of reason this season. He’s talked repeatedly about the need to have a healthy paranoia about the possibility of your game slipping. He saw it happen in Detroit last season when the Red Wings were in a playoff spot before a six-game losing streak sank their season in March.
“Honestly, I think tonight was the best blessing in disguise that could’ve happened,” Lyon said. “It’s going to put a bitter taste in my mouth, and I hope it puts a bitter taste in everybody’s mouths, because the last 25 games is going to be a dogfight all the way down to the wire. It’s not even just the teams right behind us. It’s the teams top to bottom in our division. Obviously, the Atlantic is so strong, and so we have to be prepared and use the break the right way and come back at the top of our game, otherwise … we’re not in trouble, but it’s going to be a grind. If we do it the right way, I think that’ll be advantageous to us, but this is a cruel and humbling league, and you always have to have a little bit of that fear.”
With 25 games left, the Sabres are in the first wild-card spot. A win would have put them in second in the Atlantic Division. Instead, they are two points behind the Canadiens and Red Wings, who are in second and third place in the Atlantic. And the Columbus Blue Jackets and Washington Capitals, who are the two closest competitors for the wild-card spots, are just five points behind.
“It’s just another test, really, how you use this time and realizing the division we’re in, the conference we’re in is incredibly tight, so you can’t take one step of the way for granted,” Ruff said. “And I think they understand that. That’s what we talk about all the time, is a single point might make the difference at the very end.”
The Sabres know that better than anyone after how the 2022-23 season ended. And it’s all the more reason that this team needs reinforcements for the stretch run. They’ve earned that with the way they’ve played since the middle of December.