Benson-Östlund-Quinn line a constant for Sabres

Early on, the Buffalo Sabres’ forward lines haven’t had much stability. Coach Lindy Ruff has regularly tried new combos, before and during games, and he’s been quick to scrap the ones that aren’t producing.

Three of their lines, that is, because the trio of Zach Benson, Noah Östlund and Jack Quinn have been a steady force through nine games. They’ve played together for 95 minutes at 5-on-5 – here’s where they rank leaguewide among lines with 70-plus minutes, per Stathletes:

• 4th in goal differential (6-1)
• 3rd in both shot differential (43-19) and scoring chance differential (26-14)
• 5th in expected goal share (63.91%)

“It’s been fun. Obviously, we’ve been going pretty good as a line,” Benson said after Monday’s practice at KeyBank Center. “Just competing and making plays. I think just all using our hockey IQ to our advantage and trying to make the next play.”

Östlund’s off to a solid start up the middle with six points (2+4), but it’s been Quinn doing the heavy lifting with five goals, tied for the team lead, and four assists.

Quinn, 25, is pulling pucks off the wall and carrying them into dangerous areas of the ice. He’s possessed the puck for 12:32, most among Sabres forwards. He’s outmuscling defenders and winning more battles than ever, and he even dropped the gloves for a (brief) fight with Toronto’s Troy Stecher on Thursday.​

He’s “an elite elite player,” Benson said, and a major reason behind Buffalo’s 4-3-2 record. And with how Quinn’s creating scoring chances out of nothing, he has the typically net-front Benson on high alert.

“A little less hunting the puck (for me) and being ready for him to fire it,” Benson said. “A little bit of screen and get out of the way, because he can definitely rip the pill.”

Benson has six assists and is riding a four-game point streak. The winger is still looking for his first goal, but not for lack of chances – 22 of them, per Stathletes, second most on the team behind Tage Thompson. And it’s not totally uncharted territory for Benson, who didn’t get on the board until Dec. 11 last season, his 18th game.

“You don’t ever want to not score a goal,” he said, “but when you’re contributing and making plays and your line’s going… I feel like my game’s in a good spot right now, and our whole line, so it’s keep playing your game, and you’ll hopefully get one soon.”

“Just stick with the process,” echoed Ruff. “You look at the effort he had on the shorthanded goal by Quinn the other night. Great effort. That line has had a lot of success. Mainly, the success has been going to Quinn in the goal department, but if a line is producing, usually you’re a big part of it. And I think he has been.”

Monday’s practice lines

Of note:

• Thompson, Jiri Kulich and Josh Doan, who teamed up mid-game Saturday in Montreal and combined for the tying goal, stuck together on the top line.
• Jason Zucker (sports hernia) is on track to make his season debut Wednesday versus the Flyers. Remember, he and Konsta Helenius had great chemistry in the playoffs.
• Rasmus Dahlin (upper body) slotted back into the top pair – he’s missed the last three-plus games – and expects to play against Philadelphia.
• Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen manned the home net, so he’s expected to make a fourth straight start.
• Tyson Kozak (upper body) returned to practice; Justin Danforth (upper body) was absent.

Looking ahead

While the Sabres did well to collect six of eight points from last week’s Atlantic Division gauntlet, they know they haven’t played their best hockey yet. Monday’s practice had high spirits and plenty of laughs, but also some blunt coaching points from a vocal Ruff.

“The vibe’s good. We’re a confident bunch. Maybe our starts have to be a little better, but I like where our game’s at,” Benson said. “… We’ve got a lot better (in us); Lindy’s gonna push that in practice. We have all the confidence in the world in this room.”

Before another lengthy road trip, the Sabres host the Flyers on Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. – a national broadcast on TNT, truTV and HBO Max. Get your tickets today.

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