Tage Thompson’s big night, Jack Eichel’s reception and a ‘playoff atmosphere’ in Buffalo
The Sabres honored Thompson and fellow Team USA gold medalists Jack Eichel and Noah Hanifin before Tuesday's game, which Buffalo won 3-2.
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Tage Thompson scored the eventual game-winner in his first Sabres home game since the Olympics. Timothy T.
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It’s been a little over a week since Tage Thompson and Team USA won the gold medal at the Milan Cortina Olympics. The days-long celebration ended and players have all returned to their respective NHL teams to get back to their day jobs. But Thompson got one more night to revel in the win when the Buffalo Sabres had their first home game since the Olympic break on Tuesday night.
The KeyBank Center was sold out for the sixth straight game. Fans in attendance all had rally towels with Thompson’s initials and a gold medal. And before the game, the Sabres put together a ceremony celebrating Thompson, along with Vegas Golden Knights’ Jack Eichel and Noah Hanifin, Thompson’s teammates from Team USA. Thompson’s mother, wife and two sons surprised Thompson by joining them on the ice for the celebration. With the towels waving and the “USA!” chants filling the arena, the atmosphere was one that most of the Sabres haven’t experienced in Buffalo.
It doesn’t hurt that the Sabres fans in attendance had more to cheer for than just Thompson. This was the first time the Sabres have played a home game since Feb. 5. Buffalo came into this game having won three straight games coming out of the Olympic break. No team in the NHL has more points in the standings since Dec. 9, and the Sabres are currently in sole possession of second place in the Atlantic Division.
This is a team worth the buzz it has created in Buffalo. The Sabres capitalized on that energy early in the game, jumping out to a 3-0 lead before surviving a surge from Vegas to win 3-2. And, of course, Thompson ended up with the game-winning goal, an overpowering wrist shot off the rush.
“Such an awesome reception from the crowd, and it meant so much to me, and I’m sure it meant a lot to everyone in here,” Thompson said. “And to score and hear the crowd, that was probably the loudest I’ve heard it. Really cool.”
It will get louder if the Sabres do what now looks inevitable and make the playoffs. This team was last in the Eastern Conference in December and now leads the conference in regulation wins. The Sabres are only two points behind the Tampa Bay Lightning for first place in the division.
“Obviously, from where we were at the start of the year to now, I think there’s, as we started to get hot, talks about maybe making playoffs,” Thompson said this week. “And now, I think we’ve proven that not only can we make (the) playoffs, but we can be a real team. We have that self-belief that we can do something real special this year.”
This all had to be a bit disorienting for Eichel, the former Sabres captain who left Buffalo in a messy divorce in 2021. The home crowd gave him a healthy cheer when he was part of the pre-game celebration with Thompson, but it went right back to booing him every time he touched the puck once the game started. The Golden Knights have been slumping since the Olympics, while the Sabres legitimately look like one of the best teams in the NHL.
“It was only a matter of time, right?” Eichel said before the game. “There are so many great players in the organization. You go through some hard years and it can make you better as a group. You see some of the guys that have been here for a while and the two people that come to mind to me are Tage and Ras (Dahlin) and what they’ve meant to the organization. They continue to get better every year. It’s really good to see for those guys.”
This game was also punctuated by a few plays from players who were part of the Eichel trade. Alex Tuch made a perfect no-look pass to Thompson on the third goal. And then, with the Sabres clinging to a late lead, Peyton Krebs made a play to buy some time in the neutral zone and get the puck down the ice to kill off the last few seconds of the game. For good measure, Noah Östlund, whom the Sabres took with the first-round pick they acquired in that trade, picked up a primary assist on Buffalo’s second goal.
Buffalo wasn’t perfect in this game by any stretch, but this team keeps finding different ways to win. Thompson is up to 33 goals and leading the way, but the Sabres got another goal from a defenseman. Owen Power’s goal was the 42nd by a Buffalo defenseman this season, making this the highest-scoring season from a Sabres blue line since 1989-90. And the team is riding the sixth-best team save percentage in the league. The Sabres are starting games fast and have the game to protect late leads. They look like a team that can hold up in the playoffs. And Tuesday was a reminder that they have a fan base that is ready to meet that moment, too.
“Whether it’s everybody dressed in the same color or waving towels or — just the whole atmosphere felt like a playoff atmosphere,” Sabres coach Lindy Ruff said. “I think it’s something that is welcome around here.”
Injury notes: Jiri Kulich got some testing done this week to determine whether he will be able to start ramping up his conditioning as he tries to return to play. He’s been out since November with a blood clot issue. Ruff expects to have more information on Wednesday. Meanwhile, Jordan Greenway received treatment for his core muscle injury and is back with the team but hasn’t started practicing again. Justin Danforth is skating on and off as he’s still managing pain from an early-season broken kneecap. Conor Timmins is still skating on his own while recovering from a broken leg.