Welcome to Puck Drop Preview 2015-16, where our hockey department gives you a detailed look at each team from around the NHL leading to the start of this hockey season and offers our insight and analysis. Makes sure to stick around until the end of the series, where we’ll offer our full predictions for the standings in each division, and eventually our collective LWOS 2015-16 Stanley Cup pick. You can check out all our articles on our Puck Drop Page. Today we continue with the Buffalo Sabres.
Puck Drop Preview: 2015-16 Buffalo Sabres
Last Season
General Manager Tim Murray wanted to avoid the disaster that was the 2013-14 season where the Buffalo Sabres finished dead last in the league. Making every attempt to do so, he made a few acquisitions in the off-season, including former Montreal Canadiens captain Brian Gionta, defensemen Josh Gorges and Andrej Meszaros and goal-scoring forward Matt Moulson. Unfortunately everything that could go wrong did, and the Sabres finished in the same spot.
Dropping a league-worst 51 games and finishing with just 54 points on the season, the Sabres suffered through injuries as well and were forced to rely on their youth to pick up the pieces and find some chemistry. Tyler Ennis led the team in goals and points, and was the only player on the team to reach the 20-goal plateau. Young sensation Zemgus Girgensons improved on his totals, scoring 15 goals and 30 points, but his puck possession numbers took a big hit as a result of his defensive-zone deployment.
By the time the trade deadline rolled around, it was time to unload some contracts and Murray did not disappoint in that department. Both Brian Flynn and Torrey Mitchell were shipped to Montreal, Chris Stewart was sent packing to Minnesota and Jhonas Enroth was swapped for Anders Lindback and a conditional 2016 3rd-round pick just before the deadline. No move was more noteworthy than the blockbuster deal to acquire disgruntled winger Evander Kane and defenseman Zach Bogosian from Winnipeg.
Finishing last place ensured a promising prospect in a draft that featured Connor McDavid and Jack Eichel, however with the Edmonton Oilers winning the draft lottery in hilarious fashion, the Sabres were forced to settle for the second overall pick.
Offseason
Picking a generational talent in the soon to be 19-year old just wasn’t enough for Murray. He sent the 21st overall pick to the Ottawa Senators in exchange for goaltender Robin Lehner and veteran center David Legwand. After the team had parted ways with Ryan Miller a few seasons ago, they had trouble identifying a replacement in goal and hope Lehner can live up to his potential. Murray also packaged his 31st overall pick in a bundle that included prospects Nikita Zadorov, Mikhail Grigorenko and JT Compher, sending them all over to Colorado for centre Ryan O’Reilly and forward Jamie McGinn.
Two weeks later, O’Reilly was involved in an incident which included driving under the influence, crashing his vehicle into a Tim Horton’s and fleeing on foot. The centreman is due in court in early September. Meanwhile, Murray was busy with the remainder of his team, signing Mark Pysyk to a two-year extension. Eichel was signed to his three-year entry-level contract, as expected, and the Sabres added to their blueline by bringing in veteran Carlo Colaiacovo on a cheap, one-year deal.
Possibly the biggest upgrade to the team, in terms of experience, is one that took place behind the bench. Former Pittsburgh Penguins head coach and Stanley Cup-winner Dan Bylsma was introduced as Buffalo’s new bench boss. He’ll hope to provide new insight and a system that is better accustomed to a young, highly-skilled team.
As it was learned earlier in the week, Murray is also in on the Cody Franson situation. Reportedly offering him a two-year deal, his team could use some offensive firepower on their blue-line and some stability in their three pairings. Franson, 28, spent last season with the Toronto Maple Leafs and Nashville Predators. In the last five seasons, the Surrey-native has accumulated a mass of points but his struggled to be consistent on the defensive-side of the game.
2015-16 Opening Day Lineup
Forwards
Evander Kane – Ryan O’Reilly – Sam Reinhart
Matt Moulson – Jack Eichel – Tyler Ennis
Johan Larsson – Zemgus Girgensons – Jamie McGinn
Marcus Foligno – David Legwand – Brian Gionta
Cody McCormick – Nicolas Deslauriers
Defensemen
Zach Bogosian – Rasmus Ristolainen
Mike Weber – Mark Pysyk
Josh Gorges – Chad Ruhwedel
Carlo Colaiacovo
Goaltenders
Robin Lehner
Chad Johnson
Andrey Makarov
Players to Watch
Jack Eichel and Sam Reinhart
Two of Buffalo’s finest young players that could be spending the majority of their time in the NHL next season. Both are currently under the age of 20, but possess an undeniable talent that will heighten Buffalo’s chances of improving from the train-wreck of last year’s horrific conclusion. Reinhart is a little less known at this stage, but provided he gets top-six minutes and is stapled to a defensively-reliable centre like O’Reilly, there’s potential for success.
Robin Lehner
Signed for two more years, it’s now Lehner’s time to prove he can live up to his potential. Drafted in 2009, the 24-year-old has appeared in 86 games with the Ottawa Senators but was never able to put all the tools together to secure a starting position. Last year saw him suffer through injury and eventually lose his place to a surprising story in Andrew Hammond. With both Hammond and Craig Anderson under contract, Lehner became expendable. He’s still a question mark at this point and with a questionable defense in front of him, he’ll have to be at his best every night.
On the Rise
Chad Ruhwedel
Brought in as a college player signing back in 2012, Ruhwedel managed to round-out the the Sabres’ AHL affiliate nicely, scoring 10 goals and 36 points in 72 games. His impressive puck possession game and confidence led to a four-game stint with the Sabres. Registering one assist and a plus-3 rating, Ruhwedel didn’t look out of place and served well. The 25-year-old could start the season in Rochester, as the Sabres are quite cramped at defense, but his contract is dirt-cheap and his presence on the blueline is underrated.
On the Decline
Josh Gorges
One of the let-down stories of last season was the lack of impact defenseman Gorges had on the team. He went from a positive puck possession player three seasons ago, to traded the next year and following it up the next season? The worst campaign of his career. It’s easy to attribute this all to playing on a poor team, unfortunately Gorges had a rough time in his defensive zone and often lost battles in corners. His outlet pass was often picked off and he was physically out-matched. He also spent some time on the injury list, which could have a negative impact on this upcoming season.
2015-16 Predictions
Are the Buffalo Sabres better compared to last season? Absolutely. Murray has done a superb job at building his offense up on good trades and a few key draft picks. The aforementioned Eichel and Reinhart combination could be lethal for the Sabres next season and O’Reilly improves the depth down the middle. Kane adds another element to the team’s scoring and players like Girgensons, Larsson and Foligno all spend time below the top-six, getting the chance to log easier minutes and given greater opportunity to succeed.
The problem remains on the blueline and between the pipes, where the pairings are still anyone’s guess and Lehner’s contribution as a starting goaltender is still one big question mark. During the off-season, Bylsma had chatted with Bogosian about possibly playing the left side on a top-pairing with Rasmus Ristolainen, however he played on the left side in Winnipeg and was often exposed.
The Sabres are likely not a playoff team but also not as bad as they were in the last two seasons. Probably somewhere in the middle but still on the outside looking in. This season, it’s a safe bet they won’t be finishing in the basement of the Eastern Conference, however they’ll still be battling alongside teams like the Toronto Maple Leafs and Boston Bruins.
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