2018–19 Buffalo Sabres season

The 2018–19 Buffalo Sabres season was the 49th season for the National Hockey League franchise that was established on May 22, 1970.[1]

2018–19 Buffalo Sabres
Division6th Atlantic
Conference13th Eastern
2018–19 record33–39–10
Home record21–15–5
Road record12–24–5
Goals for226
Goals against271
Team information
General managerJason Botterill
CoachPhil Housley
CaptainJack Eichel
Alternate captainsZach Bogosian
Kyle Okposo
ArenaKeyBank Center
Minor league affiliate(s)Rochester Americans (AHL)
Cincinnati Cyclones (ECHL)
Team leaders
GoalsJeff Skinner (40)
AssistsJack Eichel (54)
PointsJack Eichel (82)
Penalty minutesZach Bogosian (52)
Plus/minus4 tied (+1)
WinsCarter Hutton (18)
Goals against averageCarter Hutton (3.00)

After experiencing a ten-game winning streak in November that put them atop the NHL standings, the Sabres regressed sharply the rest of the season and were officially eliminated from playoff contention on March 23, 2019, after suffering a 7–4 loss to the Montreal Canadiens,[2] joining the 2016–17 Philadelphia Flyers as the only teams in NHL history to win 10 consecutive games and be eliminated from playoff contention.

With the Carolina Hurricanes clinching a playoff berth in the 2019 Stanley Cup playoffs, the Sabres became the team with the longest active postseason appearance drought in the NHL at eight consecutive seasons,[3] about 1.5 years after their football counterparts, the Buffalo Bills, ended what was the longest active postseason appearance drought in the NFL at 17 consecutive seasons.[4][5] On April 7, 2019, the Sabres fired Phil Housley,[6] who became the fifth head coach to be fired since the Pegulas bought the team from Tom Golisano in February 2011.[7][8]

Standings

Atlantic Division
Pos Team GP W L OTL ROW GF GA GD Pts
1 p Tampa Bay Lightning 82 62 16 4 56 325 222 +103 128
2 x Boston Bruins 82 49 24 9 47 259 215 +44 107
3 x Toronto Maple Leafs 82 46 28 8 46 286 251 +35 100
4 Montreal Canadiens 82 44 30 8 41 249 236 +13 96
5 Florida Panthers 82 36 32 14 33 267 280 13 86
6 Buffalo Sabres 82 33 39 10 28 226 271 45 76
7 Detroit Red Wings 82 32 40 10 29 227 277 50 74
8 Ottawa Senators 82 29 47 6 29 242 302 60 64
Source: National Hockey League
p Clinched Presidents' Trophy; x Clinched playoff spot.
Eastern Conference Wild Card
Pos Div Team GP W L OTL ROW GF GA GD Pts
1 ME x Carolina Hurricanes 82 46 29 7 44 245 223 +22 99
2 ME x Columbus Blue Jackets 82 47 31 4 45 258 232 +26 98
3 AT Montreal Canadiens 82 44 30 8 41 249 236 +13 96
4 AT Florida Panthers 82 36 32 14 33 267 280 13 86
5 ME Philadelphia Flyers 82 37 37 8 34 244 281 37 82
6 ME New York Rangers 82 32 36 14 26 227 272 45 78
7 AT Buffalo Sabres 82 33 39 10 28 226 271 45 76
8 AT Detroit Red Wings 82 32 40 10 29 227 277 50 74
9 ME New Jersey Devils 82 31 41 10 28 222 275 53 72
10 AT Ottawa Senators 82 29 47 6 29 242 302 60 64
Source: National Hockey League
x Clinched playoff spot.

Schedule and results

Preseason

The preseason schedule was published on June 15, 2018.[9]

Regular season

The regular season schedule was released on June 21, 2018.[10]

2018–19 game log

Legend:   Win (2 points)   Loss (0 points)   Overtime/shootout loss (1 point)

Player statistics

As of April 6, 2019[11]

Skaters

Regular season
Player GP G A Pts +/− PIM
Jack Eichel77285482−1126
Sam Reinhart82224365−1016
Jeff Skinner82402363036
Rasmus Dahlin8293544−1334
Rasmus Ristolainen7853843−4138
Conor Sheary78142034−1812
Jason Pominville73161531−44
Kyle Okposo78141529−941
Evan Rodrigues7492029−725
Casey Mittelstadt77121325−1910
Zach Bogosian6531619−552
Zemgus Girgensons7251318−1117
Johan Larsson736814−837
Jake McCabe5941014−435
Marco Scandella636713−1326
Vladimir Sobotka695813−2026
Tage Thompson657512−2220
Brandon Montour203710−416
Nathan Beaulieu30347+132
Lawrence Pilut33156−820
Casey Nelson38156+113
Victor Olofsson6224+12
Alexander Nylander12224−44
Patrik Berglund23224−56
Scott Wilson15033−84
C. J. Smith1120200
Matt Hunwick14022−74
Remi Elie16011−32
Danny O'Regan100000
Brendan Guhle2000+12
William Borgen4000−50
Matt Tennyson4000−40

Goaltenders

Regular season
Player GP GS TOI W L OT GA GAA SA SV% SO G A PIM
Carter Hutton50482,839182551423.001541.9080012
Linus Ullmark37342,102151451093.111146.9052010

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.

Transactions

The Sabres have been involved in the following transactions during the 2018–19 season.

Trades

DateDetailsRef
June 23, 2018 (2018-06-23) To Toronto Maple Leafs
6th-round pick in 2018
To Buffalo Sabres
6th-round pick in 2019
[12]
June 27, 2018 (2018-06-27) To Pittsburgh Penguins
Conditional 4th-round pick in 2019
To Buffalo Sabres
Conor Sheary
Matt Hunwick
[13]
July 1, 2018 (2018-07-01) To St. Louis Blues
Ryan O'Reilly
To Buffalo Sabres
Patrik Berglund
Vladimir Sobotka
Tage Thompson
1st-round pick in 2019
2nd-round pick in 2021
[14]
August 2, 2018 (2018-08-02) To Carolina Hurricanes
Cliff Pu
2nd-round pick in 2019
3rd-round pick in 2020
6th-round pick in 2020
To Buffalo Sabres
Jeff Skinner
[15]
October 1, 2018 (2018-10-01) To Nashville Predators
Nicholas Baptiste
To Buffalo Sabres
Jack Dougherty
[16]
November 10, 2018 (2018-11-10) To Dallas Stars
Taylor Fedun
To Buffalo Sabres
Conditional 7th-round pick in 2020
[17]
January 17, 2019 (2019-01-17) To Philadelphia Flyers
Justin Bailey
To Buffalo Sabres
Taylor Leier
[18]
February 24, 2019 (2019-02-24) To Anaheim Ducks
Brendan Guhle
Conditional 1st-round pick in 2019
To Buffalo Sabres
Brandon Montour
[19]
February 25, 2019 (2019-02-25) To Winnipeg Jets
Nathan Beaulieu
To Buffalo Sabres
6th-round pick in 2019
[20]

Free agents

DatePlayerTeamContract termRef
June 26, 2018 (2018-06-26)Adam Wilcoxto Rochester Americans (AHL)1-year[21]
July 1, 2018 (2018-07-01)Seth Griffithto Winnipeg Jets1-year[22]
July 1, 2018 (2018-07-01)Carter Huttonfrom St. Louis Blues3-year[23]
July 1, 2018 (2018-07-01)Chad Johnsonto St. Louis Blues1-year[24]
July 1, 2018 (2018-07-01)Scott Wedgewoodfrom Los Angeles Kings1-year[25]
July 2, 2018 (2018-07-02)Viktor Antipinto Metallurg Magnitogorsk (KHL)3-year[26]
July 2, 2018 (2018-07-02)Mike Sisloto New York Islanders1-year[27]
July 5, 2018 (2018-07-05)Jordan Nolanto St. Louis Blues1-year[28]
February 24, 2019 (2019-02-24)Adam Wilcoxfrom Rochester Americans (AHL)1-year[29]
May 8, 2019 (2019-05-08)Arttu Ruotsalainenfrom Ilves (Liiga)3-year[30]

Waivers

DatePlayerTeamRef
October 2, 2018 (2018-10-02)Remi Eliefrom Dallas Stars[31]

Signings

DatePlayerContract termRef
July 1, 2018 (2018-07-01)Brandon Hickey2-year[35]
July 1, 2018 (2018-07-01)Scott Wilson2-year[36]
July 9, 2018 (2018-07-09)Rasmus Dahlin3-year[37]
July 12, 2018 (2018-07-12)Sean Malone1-year[38]
July 15, 2018 (2018-07-15)Justin Bailey1-year[39]
July 15, 2018 (2018-07-15)Nicholas Baptiste1-year[40]
July 15, 2018 (2018-07-15)Danny O'Regan1-year[40]
July 16, 2018 (2018-07-16)C. J. Smith1-year[41]
September 19, 2018 (2018-09-19)Sam Reinhart2-year[42]
October 17, 2018 (2018-10-17)Matej Pekar3-year[43]
March 26, 2019 (2019-03-26)Casey Fitzgerald2-year[44]
April 15, 2019 (2019-04-15)Jacob Bryson3-year[45]
June 7, 2019 (2019-06-07)Jeff Skinner8-year[46]

Draft picks

Below are the Buffalo Sabres' selections at the 2018 NHL Entry Draft, which was held on June 22 and 23, 2018, at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas.

Round # Player Pos Nationality College/Junior/Club Team (League)
1 1 Rasmus Dahlin D Sweden Frolunda HC (SHL)
2 32 Mattias Samuelsson D  United States U.S. NTDP (USHL)
4 94 Matej Pekar C  Czech Republic Muskegon Lumberjacks (USHL)
4 1171 Linus Lindstrand Cronholm D  Sweden Malmo Redhawks J20 (SuperElit)
5 125 Miska Kukkonen D  Finland Ilves U20 (Nuorten SM-liiga)
7 187 William Worge Kreu D  Sweden Linkopings HC J20 (SuperElit)

Notes:

  1. The Minnesota Wild's fourth-round pick went to the Buffalo Sabres as the result of a trade on June 30, 2017 that sent Tyler Ennis, Marcus Foligno and a third-round pick to Minnesota in exchange for Jason Pominville, Marco Scandella and this pick.[47]

References

  1. National Hockey League (2010). The National Hockey League Official Guide & Record Book/2011. Triumph Books. p. 27. ISBN 978-1-60078-422-4.
  2. Farrell, Sean (March 23, 2019). "Canadiens defeat Sabres, pad lead for second wild card in East". NHL.com. Retrieved March 27, 2019. Sam Reinhart, Alexander Nylander, Marco Scandella and Jack Eichel scored for Buffalo (31-34-9), which was eliminated from playoff contention.
  3. Kaplan, Emily (April 5, 2019). "Canes clinch playoff berth, snap 10-year drought". ESPN.com. Retrieved April 9, 2019. The Buffalo Sabres now hold the NHL's longest postseason drought. The Sabres have not made the playoffs since the 2010-11 season.
  4. Wine, Steven (December 31, 2017). "Buffalo Bills' 17-year playoff drought ends in dramatic fashion". The Denver Post. Retrieved April 9, 2019.
  5. "With NFL's longest playoff drought over, rest is gravy for Bills". ESPN.com. December 31, 2017. Retrieved April 9, 2019.
  6. Blackburn, Pete (April 7, 2019). "Buffalo Sabres fire coach Phil Housley one day after he said he expected to be back with team". CBSSports.com. Retrieved April 9, 2019.
  7. Filipowski, Nick (April 7, 2019). "Four Coaches To Replace Phil Housley". WIVB. Archived from the original on April 9, 2019. Retrieved April 9, 2019.
  8. Fink, James (February 21, 2011). "Pegula set to take ownership of Sabres". www.bizjournals.com. Retrieved April 9, 2019.
  9. "Sabres announce 2018 preseason schedule". NHL.com. June 15, 2018. Retrieved June 21, 2018.
  10. "Sabres announce 2018-19 regular-season schedule". NHL.com. June 21, 2018. Retrieved October 1, 2018.
  11. "Buffalo Sabres Stats - 2018-2019". NHL.com. Retrieved December 23, 2018.
  12. "2018 NHL Draft Notes". NHL.com. June 23, 2018. Retrieved June 25, 2018.
  13. "Sabres acquire Sheary, Hunwick from Penguins". NHL.com. June 27, 2018. Retrieved June 29, 2018.
  14. "Sabres acquire Thompson, Berglund, Sobotka, 2 picks from Blues". NHL.com. July 1, 2018. Retrieved July 2, 2018.
  15. "Skinner traded to Sabres by Hurricanes". NHL.com. August 2, 2018. Retrieved August 2, 2018.
  16. "Sabres acquire Dougherty from Predators". NHL.com. October 1, 2018. Retrieved October 2, 2018.
  17. "Sabres acquire draft pick from Stars". NHL.com. November 10, 2018. Retrieved November 12, 2018.
  18. "Sabres acquire forward Leier". NHL.com. January 17, 2019. Retrieved January 22, 2019.
  19. "Sabres acquire Montour from Ducks". NHL.com. February 24, 2019. Retrieved February 24, 2019.
  20. "Sabres acquire pick from Jets". NHL.com. February 25, 2019. Retrieved February 26, 2019.
  21. "AMERKS AGREE TO TERMS WITH WILCOX". amerks.com. Retrieved June 26, 2018.
  22. "Jets sign three players". nhl.com. Retrieved July 1, 2018.
  23. "Sabres, Hutton agree to 3-year deal". nhl.com. Retrieved July 1, 2018.
  24. "Blues sign goalie Chad Johnson to one-year deal". nhl.com. Retrieved July 1, 2018.
  25. "Sabres agree to terms with Wedgewood". nhl.com. Retrieved July 1, 2018.
  26. "«Металлург» подписал контракт с Виктором Антипиным". NHL.com (in Russian). July 2, 2018. Retrieved July 4, 2018.
  27. "Sislo Agrees to Terms on a One-Year Contract". NHL.com. July 2, 2018. Retrieved July 3, 2018.
  28. "Blues sign Nolan to one-year, two-way deal". nhl.com. Retrieved July 5, 2018.
  29. "Sabres sign Wilcox to 1-year contract". NHL.com. February 24, 2019. Retrieved February 24, 2019.
  30. "Sabres agree to entry-level deal with Ruotsalainen". NHL.com. May 8, 2019. Retrieved May 9, 2019.
  31. Harrington, Mike (October 2, 2018). "Sabres claim forward Remi Elie on waivers from Dallas". buffalonews.com. Retrieved October 2, 2018.
  32. "Vaclav Karabacek: Waived by Sabres". CBSSports.com. September 20, 2018. Retrieved October 25, 2018.
  33. Wawrow, John (September 20, 2018). "Reinhart eagerly rejoins Sabres with new contract signed". AP News. Retrieved October 2, 2018.
  34. "Patrik Berglund placed on waivers". NHL.com. December 19, 2018. Retrieved December 20, 2018.
  35. "Sabres ink Hickey to entry-level contract". nhl.com. Retrieved July 2, 2018.
  36. "Sabres, Wilson agree to 2-year contract". nhl.com. Retrieved July 2, 2018.
  37. "Sabres sign Dahlin to entry-level contract". nhl.com. Retrieved July 10, 2018.
  38. "Sabres sign Malone to 1-year contract". nhl.com. Retrieved July 14, 2018.
  39. "Sabres ink Bailey to 1-year deal". nhl.com. Retrieved July 15, 2018.
  40. "O'Regan, Baptiste sign 1-year deals". nhl.com. Retrieved July 15, 2018.
  41. "Sabres sign Smith to 1-year contract". nhl.com. Retrieved July 16, 2018.
  42. "Sabres sign Reinhart to 2-year deal". NHL.com. September 19, 2018. Retrieved September 20, 2018.
  43. "Sabres ink Pekar to entry-level contract". NHL.com. October 17, 2018. Retrieved October 23, 2018.
  44. "Sabres sign Fitzgerald to entry-level contract". NHL.com. March 26, 2019. Retrieved March 27, 2019.
  45. "Sabres, Bryson agree to entry-level deal". NHL.com. April 15, 2019. Retrieved April 17, 2019.
  46. "Sabres sign Skinner to 8-year contract". NHL.com. June 7, 2019. Retrieved June 11, 2019.
  47. Myers, Dan (June 30, 2017). "Wild Continues Re-Shuffle in Trade with Sabres". NHL.com. Retrieved June 7, 2018.
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