The Sabres are off for a week and the All Star Game is here. We have a slightly longer episode this week that tackles the Sabres’ results from their west coast trip, Devon Levi’s return to Rochester during the team’s time off and we spitball about David Jiricek who has openly complained about his situation in Columbus.
A Better Situation is Needed for Devon Levi
Buffalo’s goaltending situation is a problem of their own making.
Kevyn Adams was gambling when he left his goaltending stable untouched in the offseason. After 46 games, there isn’t much that’s improved.
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen has stabilized the position thus far, taking over the starting job with a string of quality play that dates back to the end of December. He’s currently the best chance the team has to salvage anything from this season as his current form makes him Buffalo’s best, and only reliable goaltender. A pessimist may look at his larger body of work and worry that this is just a blip, but Luukkonen has exhibited much more control over his game during this stretch, has done a better job playing bigger in his net and has held the fort even as the team in front of him continues their up-and-down season.
Beyond Luukkonen is where things get cloudy. There have been rumors of promises made to Devon Levi in the time leading up to his signing and his seven game cameo appeared to justify the franchise’s faith in him as an NHL regular. So far, that faith hasn’t been fully rewarded.
Continue readingThe Instigator Podcast 12.22 – Hockey Canada Investigation Takes a Step Forward
After a lengthy period of investigation, the sexual assault case related to the 2018 Canadian World Junior Championship team has progressed as five players were instructed to surrender to the authorities in London, Ontario. With four NHLers taking leaves from their respective teams, speculation has run rampant online. We discuss the latest developments in the case and the players thought to be involved in the ongoing proceedings.
Also on the show is a conversation about the differences in standards and situations between the Sabres and Islanders after the latter replaced their head coach with Patrick Roy. We talk about Don Granato’s outlook and whether or not he has the ability to survive as Buffalo’s head coach given the struggles the Sabres continue to suffer through.
What Gear to Put In a Hockey Toiletry Bag
Not many hockey players have an equipment staff or an NHL-style stick prep station at their disposal. But that doesn’t mean you need to be empty handed at the rink when you need to make a minor repair or other adjustment to your gear.
Toiletry bags (also referred to as tape bags, shower bags or shave kits) have become popular items in locker rooms over the last few years as the preferred option for keeping your hockey bag organized. Virtually every hockey company makes some version of one of these bags, meaning you can find great deals on hockey toiletry bags online.
What you choose to keep in the bags is up to the sort of player you are. Maybe you’re the type who is always borrowing clear tape. Or you’re always making some tweak to your stick or other equipment and you need more accessories and tools at your disposal. If you’re thinking of picking up a toiletry bag or if you got one at Christmas and aren’t sure what to put in it, here is a list of the five best items to keep in your hockey bag.
Continue readingDigging in to Buffalo’s Power Play Woes
It’s been hard to find many silver linings in the Sabres season thus far. A seemingly unending drip of injuries has kept the team’s lineup in flux for virtually the entire season and their inability to sting wins together has been fueled by a maddening pattern of inconsistent play.
It feels like another season is circling the drain and while goaltending was one of the primary reasons the 2022-23 season ended without a playoff berth, special teams is making a strong push as the chief antagonist of the 23-24 edition of the Buffalo Sabres.
Buffalo’s penalty kill had some flashes early in the season and had the look of a unit that was galvanized by personnel changes and tweaks to their strategy. But time has not been kind to the penalty kill unit (nor have injuries) and the Sabres have slid to the bottom half of the league in penalty kill percentage with a 78.5% success rate at the time of this posting.
But it’s been the power play that’s been especially ineffective. The Sabres’ 14.2% power play is better than only five other teams and only three teams have scored fewer than Buffalo’s 17 power play goals this year. Buffalo’s extra man unit isn’t immune to any ailment either. Their zone entries are erratic, they regularly turn the puck over in-zone due to sloppy passing and their lack of in-zone movement makes life exceptionally easy for the opposing penalty kill. Though, these issues aren’t unique to this season. In fact, it’s an issue that chased Buffalo’s power play for much of last season as well, they were just lucky enough to have such an impressive finishing rate.
Lance Lysowski recently pointed out that the Sabres power play was 29th in the NHL dating back to the 22-23 season, so any notion that the team’s extra man unit only tailed off at the very end of last year is misguided.
Just looking at the raw goal scoring paints a pretty ominous picture for the Sabres. Of their 63 power play goals scored last season, they scored 33 before December 13. The Sabres scored three goals against the Kings that evening, bringing their power play goal total to 33 in just 29 games. They only went more than one game without a power play goal on three occasions during that stretch, each time enduring a two-game drought. Over the following 53 games? The Sabres scored 30 more power play goals with eight separate stretches of two or more games without scoring on the man advantage.
Continue readingThe Instigator Podcast 12.21 – Skinner Injury Should Create Lineup Opportunities
Buffalo’s ongoing injury bug bit again, this time sidelining Jeff Skinner and Mattias Samuelsson. We talk in detail about Skinner’s absence and what options the Sabres have to fill his spot in the lineup. Also on the show is a conversation over Rasmus Dahlin’s recent quotes regarding his committment to defense and just what that means for the team and the player.
Also on the show is a discussion over the retirement of Tyler Ennis and Cody Hodgson’s return to hockey.
The Instigator Podcast 12.20 – Some Thoughts on Buffalo’s Direction in Goal
The Sabres aren’t in a great place when it comes to goaltending. It may not be their biggest issue, but it’s a problem that could have the most long term impact on the club. I string together some rambling thoughts on the performances of Devon Levi and Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, how the Sabres are handling Levi and what they can do to ensure Levi’s ongoing growth. Perhaps it’s time to make a sizeable investment in a goaltender outside the organization. Is the risk worth the reward and if a new face allows Levi to grow in the AHL, does that increase the return for the Sabres?
The Instigator Podcast 12.19 – New Year’s Resolutions for the Sabres
The Sabres have plenty of issues to work on and we thought there would be no better way to fix them than by suggesting some New Year’s resolutions for the club. We each run through a pair of resolutions for the Sabres, focusing on special teams, Dylan Cozens, goaltending and the front office. And we wrap up with one last brief suggestion for good measure. Whether or not these resolutions can be kept is an entirely different question for a Sabres team desperately in need of a winning streak.
Warpath #1: The Founding
The founding of the Buffalo Sabres is an interesting tale of dogged hard work by the Knox brothers mixed with a bit of vintage NHL chicanery. Follow the path the Knoxes took from prospective NHL owners, through their dalliance with the Oakland Seals and, finally, to the succwssful end of their pursuit of bringing NHL hockey to Buffalo.
Let James Cook with FOCO’s New Front Flip Bobblehead
James Cook has been at the center of the Bills offense these last few weeks and his front flips into the end zone are becoming something of a signature for the back. Now, FOCO has chosen to immortalize his touchdown celebration with a unique Gamebreaker Bobblehead which will be launching soon.
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Two in the Box 