Buffalo Sabres Week in Review (Dec. 8 - Dec. 14)

Photo Credit: Andy Devlin

The Buffalo Sabres have made plenty of noise over the past few days, beginning with the decision to relieve long‑time GM Kevyn Adams of his duties and appoint senior advisor Jarmo Kekäläinen as his replacement. Then, it later emerged that Buffalo was among the teams pursuing defenseman Quinn Hughes from the Vancouver Canucks. On the ice, the Sabres finally secured a regulation win on the road, collected six of eight points during their Western swing, and are now riding a three‑game win streak – their first of the season – after opening the trip with three straight losses.

Notable Player Performances:

• Tage Thompson – 4GP, 4G, 3A

• Rasmus Dahlin – 4GP, 2G, 5A

• Josh Doan – 4GP, 2G, 2A

• Alex Tuch – 3GP, 2G, 2A

• Josh Norris – 2GP, 3A

Even with the much‑needed points, Buffalo still sits at the bottom of the Atlantic Division, though they remain only seven points out of the third wild‑card spot. Their schedule resumes later this week, with their first game not coming until Thursday as they return home to KeyBank Center.

Upcoming Schedule:

• Thursday vs. Philadelphia Flyers (17-9-6)

• Saturday vs. New York Islanders (19-12-3)

• Sunday vs. New Jersey Devils (18-14-1)

One storyline to watch: the status of head coach Lindy Ruff. Kekäläinen has made it clear he intends to evaluate every aspect of the organization closely, and that naturally includes the coaching staff.

Here is a more detailed breakdown of the four games last week:

Buffalo Sabres vs. Calgary Flames – Dec. 8th, 2025

Final: 7 (CGY) - 4 (BUF)

Continuing their road trip, the Buffalo Sabres fell in a high‑scoring matchup against the Calgary Flames on Monday.

Yegor Sharangovich opened the scoring in the first period when a point shot deflected off his arm and slipped past Ukko‑Pekka Luukkonen. Minutes later, Rasmus Andersson doubled the lead to 2-0, scoring with just one second left on a 5‑on‑3 advantage.

Tage Thompson cut the deficit early in the second period with a power‑play goal, but Jonathan Huberdeau restored Calgary’s two‑goal cushion shortly after, also on the man advantage.

Owen Power brought Buffalo back within one with a wrist shot through traffic, only for the Flames to answer again 31 seconds later when Nazem Kadri tapped in a pass.

In a moment of déjà vu, Rasmus Dahlin made it 4-3 later in the period, but Yan Kuznetsov responded just 55 seconds afterward. Alex Lyon entered the game for Buffalo to start the third period.

With Lyon pulled for an extra attacker late in regulation, Alex Tuch redirected Dahlin’s point shot to bring the Sabres within 5-4 – the third time they clawed back to within a goal.

However, Mikael Backlund (18:12) and Sharangovich (19:53) each hit the empty net to seal Calgary’s 7-4 win.

Three Stars:

#1. Nazem Kadri (CGY) – 1G, 2A

#2. Yegor Sharangovich (CGY) – 2G, 1A

#3. Rasmus Dahlin (BUF) – 1G, 1A

Buffalo Sabres vs. Edmonton Oilers – Dec. 9th, 2025

Final/OT: 4 (BUF) - 3 (EDM)

The Sabres survived a furious Edmonton comeback and earned a 4-3 overtime win on Tuesday.

Late in the first period, goaltender Colten Ellis was removed by a concussion spotter after colliding with David Tomasek, who was penalized for goaltender interference. Alex Lyon entered in relief for the remainder of the game as Ellis entered concussion protocol.

On the ensuing power play, Josh Doan tipped a point shot under Stuart Skinner’s glove to give Buffalo a 1-0 lead.

Tage Thompson appeared to make it 2-0 in the second period, but the Oilers successfully challenged for a missed hand pass by Alex Tuch. Thompson later officially doubled the lead after stripping the puck in the offensive zone and beating Skinner in tight.

Doan added his second power‑play goal just 56 seconds later, sending Buffalo into the intermission up 3-0.

However, Edmonton was not going down without a fight. Connor McDavid made it 3-1 after an apparent icing was waved off, and Vasily Podkolzin cut it to 3-2 moments later during a crease scramble. Quickly making it a one-goal game. 

Buffalo held on until McDavid struck again with just two seconds left, tying the game and completing Edmonton’s three‑goal rally.

But, Tuch would play hero for the Sabres, scoring just 33 seconds into overtime after Ryan McLeod found him all alone in front of the net – securing the victory and snapping Buffalo’s three-game skid. 

Three Stars:

#1. Josh Doan (BUF) – 2G

#2. Connor McDavid (BUF) – 2G

#3. Alex Tuch (BUF) – 1G

Buffalo Sabres vs. Vancouver Canucks – Dec. 11th, 2025

Final: 3 (BUF) - 2 (VAN)

The Sabres earned their first regulation road win since April 1 and their second straight victory, defeating Vancouver 3-2 on Thursday. They did so despite missing Josh Norris for a second game due to injury and losing Alex Tuch to illness during warmups.

Rasmus Dahlin opened the scoring in the first period, but Kiefer Sherwood tied it in the final seconds on a power play.

Max Sasson gave the Canucks a 2-1 lead in the second, breaking in on a solo rush, splitting the defense, and beating Alex Lyon five‑hole. Tage Thompson responded shortly after to tie the game at two.

Zach Benson scored on the power play later in the period – his first goal since March 12th – to put Buffalo ahead 3-2.

Despite surrendering a last‑second tying goal in Edmonton two nights earlier, the Sabres locked things down this time. They blocked 26 shots overall, including key late blocks from Jordan Greenway and Tyson Kozak as Vancouver had the extra attacker. 

Thatcher Demko, returning from a 12‑game absence, made 12 saves in the loss. Lyon stopped 30 for the win.

Three Stars:

#1. Rasmus Dahlin (BUF) – 1G, 1A

#2. Tage Thompson (BUF) – 1G, 1A

#3. Max Sasson (VAN) – 1G

Buffalo Sabres vs. Seattle Kraken – Dec. 14th, 2025

Final: 3 (BUF) - 1 (SEA)

The Sabres capped their Western road trip with their third straight win, defeating the Seattle Kraken 3-1 on Sunday.

Noah Östlund opened the scoring late in the first period, finishing a 2‑on‑1 with Josh Norris.

Tage Thompson extended the lead to 2-0 midway through the second period on another odd‑man rush, marking his fourth straight game with a goal.

Chandler Stephenson brought Seattle within one on a power play minutes later.

For the third consecutive game, Buffalo entered the final minutes protecting a one‑goal lead. This time, they added insurance as Zach Benson hit the empty net to secure the 3-1 final and record his second goal in as many games.

Three Stars:

#1. Tage Thompson (BUF) – 1G

#2. Alex Tuch (BUF) – 2A

#3. Chandler Stephenson (SEA) – 1G

Notable Injuries:

• Peyton Krebs (F): Day-to-day (Illness)

• Colten Ellis (G): Day-to-day (Concussion)

• Jason Zucker (F): Week-to-week (Lower Body)

• Justin Danforth (D): Week-to-week (Lower Body)

• Jiri Kulich (F): LTIR (Ear)

Notable Transactions:

• Isak Rosen (F): Sent to Rochester (AHL) – Dec. 16

• Noah Östlund (F): Recalled from Rochester (AHL) – Dec. 13

• Trevor Kuntar (F): Signed & Sent to Rochester (AHL) – Dec. 13

• Zachary Metsa (D): Recalled from Rochester (AHL) – Dec. 7