Batman and Robin, Backstrom and Ovi, Quinn and Peterka
Good morning,
Given the Sabres dropped two games this weekend, let’s start with the good news: the Toronto Maple Leafs.. appear to stink.
We’ll get to the rest of the Atlantic, but the spotlight is going directly on the team that loves it the most. The Leafs have lost their last three games and appear to be in a bit of disarray.
They’re 27th in the league in goal differential, while Jason Spezza, Wayne Simmonds and Michael Bunting each have more points than Mitch Marner and Auston Matthews.
Fans up north are getting impatient and GM Kyle Dubas is facing some heat.
Anyways, in today’s issue:
Peterka/Quinn set fire to Rochester
Atlantic Division update
Tweets of the Week
Sabres - Lightning preview
Sabres this season
Record: 3-1-1 | Division: t-2nd | League: t-4th
(xGF%) Expected Goals-For Percentage: 57.25% (2nd in the NHL)
(5v5 GF%) 5v5 Goals-For Percentage: 53.85% (13th in the NHL)
Peterka and Quinn
“Anytime there's chemistry on a line, you pretty much become 2X the player with 2X the opportunities.” — Jack Quinn (@SuzKewl)
The Sabres’ top two draft picks from 2020 are off to a blazing hot start.
Through the first three games in Rochester:
Jack Quinn (2020 first round): 4 goals, 2 assists, 6 points
JJ Peterka (2020 second round): 1 goal, 4 assists, 5 points
We’ll save the debate over which player is better for another day.
For now, the Sabres appear to have done things right: they have not one, but two, high-end NHL prospects developing properly. And it’s going really well so far.
Not only is the duo racking up points, but they’re doing it together. It almost felt repetitive posting that Quinn has scored from Peterka once again — but they simply wouldn’t stop.
Peterka registered all five of his points in two games this weekend, often with Quinn at the other end.
On the other hand, Quinn has already doubled his goal production (2) from his 15-game AHL stint last season.
The duo’s contrasting skillset is magical in unison. Quinn’s knack for finding space and snapping off a quick shot is exactly what you need on the other end of Peterka’s high-end IQ and playmaking ability.
The AHL is a tough, demanding league, and we’re only a few games in. It’d be surprising if these two continued at this pace — but there’s a lot to be encouraged by.
While some were disappointed to see these two in Rochester, we’re already getting a glimpse as to why it makes sense.
In a best-case scenario, they develop chemistry and gain confidence dominating the AHL, then translate that to the Sabres lineup. Well. That seems to be on track, and there will be plenty of opportunity for them to play in the NHL.
It’d be shocking if both of these guys didn’t get NHL games at some point this year. For now, enjoy tracking their progress and watching this duo light up the scoreboard.
Tweets of the Week
You the man, Matt.
For our chel players.
Around the Atlantic
The Sabres aren’t the only team off to an impressive start in the Atlantic Division.
After a top-3 finish last season, Florida sitting at the top spot is no shocker.
But how about the Wings? Tied with the Sabres in 2nd place, Detroit has actually been a fun team to watch to start this season.
Tyler Bertuzzi has nine points (6G, 3A) in five games while rookies Lucas Raymond and Moritz Seider have been a revelation. Something seemed off about their 6-5 OT thriller in their opener against Tampa, but the young Wings squad have kept up their production through the first six games. Aforementioned rookie and early Calder favorite Lucas Raymond netted his first NHL hat-trick last night in a lumping over the Blackhawks.
Montreal doesn’t seem like anything to worry about this season and the Leafs are apparently broken.
Despite the Sabres actually playing well in the loss, we got a look at Boston and know what they are. Their top line is arguably the best in the league and the rest of the lineup plays well within their structure.
Tonight, we get a look at the Lightning.
Sabres vs Lightning Game Preview
After starting the season 3-0, the Sabres will look to avoid dropping three straight when they face the back-to-back champs on Monday.
Tampa Bay
Record: 2-2-1 | Division: 4th | League: 17th
(xGF%) Expected Goals-For Percentage: 33.33% (29th in the NHL)
(5v5 GF%) 5v5 Goals-For Percentage: 52.16% (14th in the NHL)
Scouting the Bolts:
Something to watch will be Tampa’s power play, a disappointment so far this season scoring at just a 16.67% rate (22nd in the league).
Nikita Kucherov and Zach Bogosian are both on long-term IR for Tampa Bay.
Steven Stamkos is off to a hot start with 9 points (4G, 5A) in 5 games.
The Sabres (6th) and Lightning (9th) each rank in the top-10 in shot attempts per game.
Tampa (0-2-1) has yet to win at home this season.
Players to Watch:
Dylan Cozens (BUF) — Cozens has been the Sabres’ best forward the past few games and notched his first goal of the season on Saturday. Cozens should be a key factor if Buffalo wants to keep up with Tampa Bay.
Brayden Point (TBL) — Coming off a dominant performance in the Lightning’s 2021 cup run, Point is off to an pedestrian start this year with 3 points in 5 games. With Kucherov out, Point’s role in the offense becomes that much more important, and it’s hard to imagine he’ll stay under a point-per-game for much longer this year.
Sabres expected lines:
Skinner-Cozens-Hinostroza
Asplund-Thompson-Olofsson
Caggiula-Girgensons-Okposo
Bjork-Ruotsalainen-Hayden
Dahlin-Butcher
Bryson-Miller
Hagg-Pysyk
Week Ahead
Thursday, October 28th vs Anaheim | 10 PM
Sunday, October 31st vs LA | 4 PM