2020–21_Buffalo_Sabres_season
2020–21 Buffalo Sabres season
Professional ice hockey team season
The 2020–21 Buffalo Sabres season was the 51st season for the National Hockey League franchise that was established on May 22, 1970.[1]
Quick Facts Buffalo Sabres, Division ...
| 2020–21 Buffalo Sabres | |
|---|---|
| Division | 8th East |
| 2020–21 record | 15–34–7 |
| Home record | 8–16–4 |
| Road record | 7–18–3 |
| Goals for | 138 |
| Goals against | 199 |
| Team information | |
| General manager | Kevyn Adams |
| Coach | Ralph Krueger (Jan. 14 – Mar. 17) Don Granato (interim, Mar. 17 – May 8) |
| Captain | Jack Eichel |
| Alternate captains | Jake McCabe Kyle Okposo |
| Arena | KeyBank Center |
| Minor league affiliate(s) | Rochester Americans (AHL) Cincinnati Cyclones (ECHL) |
| Team leaders | |
| Goals | Sam Reinhart (25) |
| Assists | Victor Olofsson (19) |
| Points | Sam Reinhart (40) |
| Penalty minutes | Rasmus Ristolainen (36) |
| Plus/minus | Steven Fogarty Jake McCabe (+2) |
| Wins | Linus Ullmark (9) |
| Goals against average | Linus Ullmark (2.63) |
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On December 20, 2020, the league temporarily realigned into four divisions with no conferences due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the ongoing closure of the Canada–United States border. As a result of this realignment the Sabres played this season in the East Division and only played games against the other teams in their new division during the regular season.
With an 18th consecutive loss on March 29, 2021, the Sabres equalled the NHL record for the longest losing streak in a season, tied with the 2003–04 Pittsburgh Penguins.[2] In that game, the Sabres blew a 3–0 lead and lost 4–3 in overtime.
On April 17, the Sabres were eliminated from playoff contention after a 3–2 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins, extending their playoff drought to ten seasons, tying an NHL record.[3]
In the Sabres' 18-game losing streak, they were 0–15–3 (two overtime losses and one shootout loss). In the first 34 games, they were 6–23–5 for 17 points. In their final 22 games, they were 9–11–2, ultimately finishing with a 15–34–7 record for 37 points. For the fourth time in eight seasons, the Sabres finished with the worst record in the whole NHL.
The Sabres introduced three new jerseys for the season. On August 11, 2020, the Sabres revealed their new uniforms, which was an updated version of the team's original jerseys. The team reintroduced their original royal blue, gold, and white colors, which was worn by the team from 1970 to 1996.[4] On November 16, 2020, the NHL introduced Adidas "Reverse Retro" jerseys for all 31 teams, which feature throwback uniforms with a modern twist.[5] The Sabres' Reverse Retro jersey is a modern update to the team's first third jersey worn in 2000, with the exception being that it was done in the team's current colors on a white template.
Divisional standings
More information Pos, GP ...
| Pos | Team | GP | W | L | OTL | RW | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | y – Pittsburgh Penguins | 56 | 37 | 16 | 3 | 29 | 196 | 156 | +40 | 77 |
| 2 | x – Washington Capitals | 56 | 36 | 15 | 5 | 29 | 191 | 163 | +28 | 77 |
| 3 | x – Boston Bruins | 56 | 33 | 16 | 7 | 25 | 168 | 136 | +32 | 73 |
| 4 | x – New York Islanders | 56 | 32 | 17 | 7 | 24 | 156 | 128 | +28 | 71 |
| 5 | e – New York Rangers | 56 | 27 | 23 | 6 | 24 | 177 | 157 | +20 | 60 |
| 6 | e – Philadelphia Flyers | 56 | 25 | 23 | 8 | 17 | 163 | 201 | −38 | 58 |
| 7 | e – New Jersey Devils | 56 | 19 | 30 | 7 | 15 | 145 | 194 | −49 | 45 |
| 8 | e – Buffalo Sabres | 56 | 15 | 34 | 7 | 11 | 138 | 199 | −61 | 37 |
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Source: National Hockey League[6]
Rules for classification: 1) Fewer number of games played (GP, only during regular season); 2) Greater number of regulation wins (RW); 3) Greater number of wins in regulation and overtime, excluding shootout wins (ROW); 4) Greater number of total wins, including shootouts (W); 5) Greater number of points earned in head-to-head play; if teams played an uneven number of head-to-head games, the result of the first game on the home ice of the team with the extra home game is discarded; 6) Greater goal differential (GD); 7) Greater number of goals scored (GF)
e – Eliminated from playoff contention; x – Clinched playoff spot; y – Clinched division
Rules for classification: 1) Fewer number of games played (GP, only during regular season); 2) Greater number of regulation wins (RW); 3) Greater number of wins in regulation and overtime, excluding shootout wins (ROW); 4) Greater number of total wins, including shootouts (W); 5) Greater number of points earned in head-to-head play; if teams played an uneven number of head-to-head games, the result of the first game on the home ice of the team with the extra home game is discarded; 6) Greater goal differential (GD); 7) Greater number of goals scored (GF)
e – Eliminated from playoff contention; x – Clinched playoff spot; y – Clinched division
Regular season
The regular season schedule was published on December 23, 2020.[7]
More information January: 4–4–2 (Home: 2–3–1 ; Road: 2–1–1), # ...
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Skaters
More information Player, GP ...
| Player | GP | G | A | Pts | +/− | PIM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sam Reinhart | 54 | 25 | 15 | 40 | −28 | 10 |
| Victor Olofsson | 56 | 13 | 19 | 32 | −23 | 6 |
| Rasmus Dahlin | 56 | 5 | 18 | 23 | −36 | 26 |
| Casey Mittelstadt | 41 | 10 | 12 | 22 | −10 | 10 |
| Taylor Hall‡ | 37 | 2 | 17 | 19 | −21 | 24 |
| Rasmus Ristolainen | 49 | 4 | 14 | 18 | −18 | 36 |
| Jack Eichel | 21 | 2 | 16 | 18 | −9 | 6 |
| Tage Thompson | 38 | 8 | 6 | 14 | −6 | 17 |
| Jeff Skinner | 53 | 7 | 7 | 14 | −11 | 14 |
| Brandon Montour‡ | 38 | 5 | 9 | 14 | −13 | 24 |
| Riley Sheahan | 53 | 4 | 9 | 13 | −8 | 8 |
| Dylan Cozens | 41 | 4 | 9 | 13 | −15 | 16 |
| Kyle Okposo | 35 | 2 | 11 | 13 | −1 | 0 |
| Colin Miller | 48 | 4 | 8 | 12 | −20 | 27 |
| Rasmus Asplund | 28 | 7 | 4 | 11 | +1 | 0 |
| Eric Staal‡ | 32 | 3 | 7 | 10 | −20 | 8 |
| Curtis Lazar‡ | 33 | 5 | 4 | 9 | −4 | 0 |
| Jacob Bryson | 38 | 1 | 8 | 9 | −1 | 12 |
| Henri Jokiharju | 46 | 3 | 5 | 8 | −11 | 4 |
| Tobias Rieder | 44 | 5 | 2 | 7 | −9 | 2 |
| Cody Eakin | 46 | 3 | 4 | 7 | −9 | 14 |
| Arttu Ruotsalainen | 17 | 5 | 1 | 6 | −9 | 8 |
| Anders Bjork† | 15 | 3 | 3 | 6 | −5 | 4 |
| Drake Caggiula† | 11 | 2 | 1 | 3 | −5 | 4 |
| Jake McCabe | 13 | 1 | 2 | 3 | +2 | 9 |
| Steven Fogarty | 9 | 1 | 2 | 3 | +2 | 8 |
| Mattias Samuelsson | 12 | 0 | 2 | 2 | −8 | 4 |
| Matt Irwin | 24 | 0 | 2 | 2 | −10 | 19 |
| Will Borgen | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −4 | 4 |
| Brandon Davidson | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −4 | 4 |
| C. J. Smith | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jean-Sebastien Dea | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −1 | 2 |
| Brett Murray | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | +1 | 0 |
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Goaltenders
More information Player, GP ...
| Player | GP | GS | TOI | W | L | OT | GA | GAA | SA | SV% | SO | G | A | PIM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Linus Ullmark | 20 | 20 | 1,117:05 | 9 | 6 | 3 | 49 | 2.63 | 591 | .917 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Dustin Tokarski | 13 | 10 | 729:26 | 2 | 8 | 2 | 43 | 3.54 | 447 | .904 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Michael Houser | 4 | 4 | 243:02 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 14 | 3.46 | 141 | .901 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen | 4 | 4 | 216:42 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 14 | 3.88 | 149 | .906 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Carter Hutton | 13 | 12 | 674:43 | 1 | 10 | 1 | 39 | 3.47 | 341 | .886 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jonas Johansson‡ | 7 | 6 | 379:53 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 24 | 3.79 | 207 | .884 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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†Denotes player spent time with another team before joining the Sabres. Stats reflect time with the Sabres only.
‡Denotes player was traded mid-season. Stats reflect time with the Sabres only.
Bold/italics denotes franchise record.
Trades
More information Date, Details ...
| Date | Details | Ref | |
|---|---|---|---|
| September 16, 2020 (2020-09-16) | To Minnesota Wild Marcus Johansson |
To Buffalo Sabres Eric Staal |
[73] |
| October 7, 2020 (2020-10-07) | To San Jose Sharks 2nd-round pick in 2020 4th-round pick in 2020 |
To Buffalo Sabres 2nd-round pick in 2020 |
[74] |
| March 20, 2021 (2021-03-20) | To Colorado Avalanche Jonas Johansson |
To Buffalo Sabres 6th-round pick in 2021 |
[75] |
| March 26, 2021 (2021-03-26) | To Montreal Canadiens Eric Staal |
To Buffalo Sabres 3rd-round pick in 2021 5th-round pick in 2021 |
[76] |
| April 10, 2021 (2021-04-10) | To Florida Panthers Brandon Montour |
To Buffalo Sabres 3rd-round pick in 2021 |
[77] |
| April 12, 2021 (2021-04-12) | To Boston Bruins Taylor Hall Curtis Lazar |
To Buffalo Sabres Anders Bjork 2nd-round pick in 2021 |
[78] |
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Waivers
More information Date, Player ...
| Date | Player | Team | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|
| April 9, 2021 (2021-04-09) | Drake Caggiula | from Arizona Coyotes | [79] |
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More information Round, # ...
Free agentsSigningsDraft picksSee also: List of Buffalo Sabres draft picks
Below are the Buffalo Sabres' selections at the 2020 NHL Entry Draft, which was originally scheduled for June 26–27, 2020 at the Bell Center in Montreal, but was postponed on March 25, 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It was held October 6–7, 2020 virtually via Video conference call from the NHL Network studio in Secaucus, New Jersey.
Notes:
References
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