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Rasmus Dahlin, Buffalo Sabres (Bill Wippert/NHLI via Getty Images)

Sabres Need to Hit Rock Bottom One Last Time

Originally posted on The Hockey Writers
By Jacob D. Strozyk | Last updated Mar 15, 2025 9:45 AM ET

So many years the Buffalo Sabres have been trying to make their way into the playoff race, and still, time after time, they find themselves on the outside looking in. Yet again, here they are in 2025, sitting at the bottom of the Eastern Conference, and they have a general manager who refused to make a single adjustment to his roster until it was far too late. The one he did make was for a similar player, with slightly better metrics, and a more expensive contract. The years have not been kind to this team as they have been worn down over their 13, going on 14 years of failure, and as they continue to trend lower in the standings due to their poor performances, it is time to say it: they have to try and hit the bottom, one last time.

The Sabres’ Problems

From the first real collapse this season, when they went on their 13-game losing streak, the issues started to really pile up for the Sabres. The players’ heads were hanging low during games, the leaders were not performing in any real way, and the glaring lack of hockey sense, along with star power, was especially prominent. Sure, names like Rasmus Dahlin and Tage Thompson can be thrown into the mix when talking about star power, but neither of them was anywhere to be seen when this team really needed that boost. Neither one of them was dominating or taking over games to put the team on their back, or creating momentum and driving energy to bring their teammates with them. Meanwhile, the rest of the team was out there, looking like a group of junior-level hockey players who forgot that they made it to the NHL. Even on nights where it looked like they may have it together, at the slightest sign of adversity, they fell apart and could not pick up the pieces.

Combining all of these issues, along with the terrible special teams choices made by the coaching staff, there are a number of reasons the Sabres continue to fail. The power play is the chief suspect among them. It has been one of the saddest things to watch them try to do all season long. Even when they have had some semi-successful stretches, the overall look of how the man advantage is run is pathetic. There is little to no movement whatsoever from the players as the primary unit does nothing but feed Thompson one-timers, or force a pass to the bumper spot in the slot that misses and goes out of the zone. That is, even if they can get into the zone in the first place. Their zone entry is even worse, as they butcher the slingshot method of dropping the puck back and trying to skate past the opposing blue line, and then ultimately get stuffed, or turn it over and have the puck back outside of the zone. Getting new player personnel will not fix this issue. It needs to be rooted out at the source, where the coaching staff is.

Sabres Bottoming Out Gets Them a Potential Star

With the upcoming 2025 NHL Draft looking like it has some very solid future stars at the very top, the Sabres really need to consider their options, as they could potentially add the star player they desperately need. Outside of Dahlin and potentially Thompson, they do not have any real star power to carry their roster, and picking up any one of the top forwards with a top-three pick would make a massive difference for them in a very short time. Having a Michael Misa or a Porter Martone to lead their top six group and be a regular offensive threat, while they have developing talents like Jiri Kulich and Konsta Helenius to also be a part of that near future and round out their forward group, would make a turnaround faster than they anticipate.

Star power goes a long way, and while it can sometimes take a little extra seasoning for prospects to develop, there are still cases of top-end talents producing well right out of the gate. Take, for instance, San Jose Sharks forward Macklin Celebrini, who is performing very much up to his first-overall pick expectations this season. The Sabres do not need to make it all the way to the bottom of the standings to get one of these players, but they can still pick one of them if they bottom out and are in the top three selections. With their position being at the bottom of the standings already, they are primed to take a shot at this, unless they plan on bottoming out next season for the Gavin McKenna sweepstakes.

Sabres Have to Accept Their Failure

Accepting their failure is really just the first step. They have to recognize that they are the problem and that the franchise will not turn around and succeed until they realize that and change the way they do things fundamentally. It is not some outside force weighing down on them, despite the fans constantly booing their poor performances, and it is not some curse that has them sitting outside the playoff race every season; it is them. What they are doing just is not good enough, and accepting that failure and being willing to bottom out this season will let them notice how much growth they still have left to do.

They tried something, and it failed horribly; it got them stuck in almost last place again. Take the lessons learned and do not repeat them. One of this team’s biggest issues is a failure to adapt, so taking the time to see their flaws from a distance and make changes will do them some good. They cannot be stuck in the basement forever. They need to find a way to dig in a little bit and find their way up, but it starts by going all the way down first. Start at the bottom, build a new foundation, and take the hard lessons learned along the way to make something stronger, something better. Then maybe, just maybe, this drought won’t go on past 15 years.