The Buffalo Sabres have been amongst the most exciting teams in the NHL this season. They are right there as a bubble team in the Eastern Conference trying to fight their way into a Wild Card berth.
They are not catching the Boston Bruins, Toronto Maple Leafs, or Tampa Bay Lightning for a division spot, but they can grab a Wild Card spot with a bit of luck.
What makes them so exciting? They score a lot of goals and in bunches. When they are rolling, few teams can outscore them. With young studs like Tage Thompson, Dylan Cozens, Rasmus Dahlin, and Owen Power, amongst others, leading the way, it has been so fun to watch.
On the flip side of things, if they score all of these goals and are so exciting, why aren’t they solidified into a playoff berth? Well for one, the young forwards are still developing. The defensive side of the game is less fun and always takes more time to get better at for these kids.
The Buffalo Sabres need to make sure that their goaltending improves too.
It also has to do with goaltending. They have had okay moments from Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, Craig Anderson, and Eric Comrie but not nearly what they needed to be a legit threat. There might be someone there now ready to help them.
Devon Levi was selected in the 7th round of the 2020 NHL Draft by the Florida Panthers. Since then, he was traded (as a prospect) to the Sabres in the Sam Reinhart deal. Of course, he played college hockey at Northeastern where he was magnificent.
Right when Northeastern’s season ended, the Sabres inked Levi to his entry-level deal. On Friday, he made his NHL debut against the New York Rangers. That is quite a matchup to throw him into for his first game.
Things started off well for Buffalo as JJ Peterka and Jordan Greenway both scored to give them a 2-0 lead. Later in the game, Kaapo Kakko and Adam Fox both scored to get the game tied. Clearly, Levi was playing well, but this became a good game quickly.
Nothing was settled in regulation, as Jeff Skinner scored in overtime to give Buffalo the win. As he scored it and celebrated, he pointed down the ice to Levi as he earned his first career NHL victory in his NHL debut. It was a great sign.
The Sabres still have a lot of work to do, but getting some good goaltending with all of that offense could help them go on a run. They have the longest playoff drought in the league, so it would be nice to see them end that sometime soon.