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It's A Party In The U.S.A.

October 19, 2021, 9:35 PM ET [629 Comments]
Hank Balling
Buffalo Sabres Blogger • RSSArchiveCONTACT
The Sabres outshot (43-34), outscored (5-2) and outplayed the Vancouver Canucks on Tuesday night in front of another small, yet vocal crowd at KeyBank Center to improve to 3-0-0.

And oh yeah, Jeff Skinner now has 3 points in 3 games this season.



Patience was the name of the game as the Sabres came out in the first period. The Sabres have implemented a high-intensity offensive strategy that requires a solid outlet pass from the defensive zone to get the momentum working in their favor. The result of that strategy is a slow build from the defensive zone which requires the defensemen to survey the ice and take their time before pressing the puck up ice.

It looks as though the Sabres coaching staff is prioritizing a clean and controlled breakout, similar to the league-wide adjustment made with the NHL’s shift to a 3-on-3 overtime format where coaches learned to prioritize possession and a controlled outlet pass rather than waste chances by firing pucks up ice too quickly. The Sabres are willing to circle back numerous times and let their forwards reload on the breakout instead of firing passes willy nilly and wasting their breakouts.

Despite that strategy, the Sabres weren’t able to muster as many odd-man opportunities in the first period as they had in their previous two games. The lone Sabres goal came in transition as Rasmus Dahlin broke up a Canucks rush and Zemgus Girgensons chipped the puck up to a streaking Kyle Okposo who netted his 200th career goal – and second of the season – by firing a glove side wrister past Vancouver goalie Thatcher Demko. Okposo continues to look like a new man through the early part of the season, and that line in general with Girgensons and Cody Eakin continues to be a dominant force.

The first of the two goals against the Sabres in the first period was a bit of a defensive-zone breakdown as Vinnie Hinostroza lost contain on his man Bo Horvat who went top cheese on Craig Anderson. It was a bang-bang play from behind the net and Hinostraza was a step slow to close on his man. The second goal was a seeing-eye shot from the point by Justin Dowling who threaded the puck through a massive cloud of players. Not much Anderson could have done there. The Sabres managed an 11-8 shot advantage through the first but there weren’t many grade-A scoring chances generated within that margin.

Okposo’s tenacious activity got him in a spot of trouble during the second period as he took a hooking call in the second which gave the Canucks to add to their lead. The Sabres entered the game a perfect 6/6 on the penalty kill and exited that opportunity with another successful kill. Special teams will be a crucial component to the Sabres this season if they have any hope of remaining competitive through the 82-game grind.

The Tage Thompson, Rasmus Asplund and Victor Olofsson line continued their zone-time dominance in the second although they weren’t able to capitalize on any of the sustained pressure. It’s to be expected that the Sabres will have a difficult time finishing opportunities this season as they really don’t have any premier goalscorers to count on when the chips are down. The Sabres simply need to grind as hard as they can for as long as they can to generate chances and/or draw penalties.

The Sabres finally did draw a penalty late in the second as Jacob Bryson received a pass for a partial breakaway before receiving a high stick to the face that ended the chance but granted the Sabres a man advantage. The Sabres were awarded a 4:00 penalty as Bryson got a busted lip on the play. The Sabres didn’t score on the powerplay proper but they cashed in shortly after the conclusion of the man advantage as Dylan Cozens left a drop pass for Okposo who put the puck on net for a Girgensons tip goal.

Granato’s team largely outplayed the Canucks through two periods as they enjoyed a 27-18 shot advantage through 40 minutes. The Sabres really only found themselves in trouble in that time when they were chasing the puck behind their own net. In general, throughout the NHL, it seems like defensemen place too much of a premium on chasing opposing forwards behind the net to strip the puck. While it’s true that if the defensman wins a battle, they can exit the zone more easily, it also leads to players being left alone in front of the net as the blue and gold saw on the first goal against. Opposing forwards can’t score from behind the net (lacrosse goal aside). It seems like allowing the opposition to set up a little bit is more preferable than getting burned by leaving someone alone in the slot.

Fans in the building were finally treated to Jeff Skinner’s hilarious goal song choice of “Party In the USA” by Miley Cyrus when the much-maligned forward potted his first goal of the season. Skinner managed to go top shelf on Demko to grab the lead despite the fact that he was on his knees. Fans will need to hear much more of that goal song if Skinner is to approach anything resembling a $9m forward. Tage Thompson then continued the party as he netted his second of the year on a scramble play in front of clearly exhausted Thatcher Demko. Rasmus Asplund ended the festivities with an empty net tally.

“The kids are alright and the veterans are helping lead the way,” play-by-play man Dan Dunleavy said as the whistle ended the game.

He couldn't be more right. Okposo and Girgensons are taking charge of a young club that is finding its way to wins despite lacking high-end talent on paper. This is a team that Buffalo will get behind.

It would be one thing if the Sabres were winning games despite being outchanced and outplayed, but this team is playing solid hockey at both ends of the rink and genuinely looking good in the process. This team will almost certainly not keep this pace up. If they keep playing with this level of intensity, though, they will have a puncher’s chance on any given night.

Enjoy this ride for what it is, Sabres fans. You deserve it.
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