The Buffalo Sabres are making their first playoff appearance since 2011 and are looking to advance past the second round for the first time since 2007. On May 6, they will face off against their rivals, the Montreal Canadiens, in a highly anticipated matchup.
Just before this pivotal moment, Sam Carrick managed to practice on May 5 after recovering from a left arm injury. Head coach Lindy Ruff expressed optimism about Carrick’s progress, saying, “(He’s) going to see our doctors today and thinks he’s further along than maybe I portrayed yesterday.” However, the team will still be without Carrick and Noah Östlund for the series.
The stakes are high as the Sabres look to break a long-standing playoff drought. They last made it to the Conference Finals in 2007, and fans have been eager for a deep run ever since. This season, they split their series with Montreal 2-2, each team scoring a total of 13 goals against one another.
Key statistics:
- The Sabres have a goals against average of 2.0 per game compared to Montreal’s 2.1.
- Buffalo scored just one power-play goal against Boston in the first round.
- The Canadiens netted three power-play goals during their series against Tampa Bay.
- In four games with Alex Lyon as goaltender, Buffalo won three times.
Rasmus Dahlin addressed the fan turnout at recent games, stating, “I really, really appreciate the fans that came out, but I don’t want to see that many red in the future,” referring to Montreal supporters who filled seats at KeyBank Center. The atmosphere is crucial as both teams aim to establish dominance in this rivalry.
As anticipation builds for this playoff matchup, analysts believe that if Buffalo continues to receive solid goaltending, they should have enough of an edge elsewhere to handle what could be a memorable series. The young players like Tage Thompson and Rasmus Dahlin will need to step up if they hope to make history this postseason.
