Sabres confident their roster and playstyle will translate to playoffs

Tage Thompson is no stranger to high-stakes hockey; in the last year alone, the star American forward has played leading roles in gold-medal runs at the IIHF World Championship and The Winter Olympics. But through nine NHL seasons with 529 games, 216 goals, 406 points, etc., the 28-year-old has never gotten a taste of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

That’s about to change. Thompson will make his playoff debut when the Buffalo Sabres begin Round 1 against the Boston Bruins on Sunday at 7:30 p.m., and he feels his international experience will come in handy when he takes the ice at KeyBank Center.

• Sabres-Bruins Round 1 schedule and broadcast info

“It’s a lot of intensity and pressure,” he said. “I think those are the games you live for, and you want to play more of those, and now we have an opportunity to do that in the playoffs, which is exciting.”

Many of Thompson’s Sabres teammates are in the same boat, with Rasmus Dahlin, Mattias Samuelsson, Josh Doan, Josh Norris, Zach Benson, Jack Quinn, Owen Power, Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen – the list goes on – also taking their first steps onto the postseason stage.

Absent a wealth of playoff experience, Buffalo’s mostly homegrown core feels it’s been battle-hardened by the journey of this regular season; in last place in early December, the Sabres played near-must-win games for the last four months and dominated with a 39-9-5 record. The tight, nasty, division-deciding games versus Tampa Bay come to mind.

“It’s not an easy task, finding yourself in the bottom of the league and trying to dig yourself out of that,” Thompson said. “A lot of adversity, a lot of challenges, and you don’t get to where we are without having a good character group in here. … Definitely, I think, experiences that will help prepare us for the playoffs.”

• Feature | An oral history of Buffalo’s epic turnaround

Added Lindy Ruff, who’s coached 101 playoff games after playing 52: “Some of them are younger, some of them have a little bit of experience, but they handled all the pressure situations. When we needed to win games, the group came up.”

The playoffs aren’t uncharted territory for all the 2025-26 Sabres – top-of-the-lineup pieces Alex Tuch (66 career games), Ryan McLeod (56), Jason Zucker (52) and Bowen Byram (27) highlight the list. Byram won the Stanley Cup in 2022 with Colorado; Tuch and McLeod have both played in the Stanley Cup Final.

Further, depth trade pickups Luke Schenn (58 games, two Stanley Cups) and Tanner Pearson (59 games, one Cup) have seen it all. Fellow deadline acquisition Logan Stanley, who’ll likely start the playoffs on Buffalo’s third pair, played 17 playoff games with Winnipeg. As Thompson described those three: “Guys that have been in playoffs, have won and know what it takes to go the distance.”

‘Just a presence thing’

Beck Malenstyn made his playoff debut in 2024 with Washington after his first full regular season. The then-25-year-old shared a bench with the likes of Alex Ovechkin, John Carlson and Tom Wilson, longtime Capitals and staples from the 2018 championship roster.

For a high-energy winger looking to ram guys through the boards year-round, such seasoned teammates had a settling effect entering the postseason.

“Calmness comes with that experience, right?” Malenstyn said. “And those guys had been through it. They knew the right things to say at the right moments.

“… I think we have just enough guys in this room (in Buffalo) that have gone through those deep experiences that we can lean on their advice. It’s really just being able to soak in those moments, not let the pressure get to you, not let a moment get too big, and just realize how lucky we are to be in that position and just thrive in it.”

Byram was only 20 when the 2022 playoffs began, and he witnessed the value of veteran teammates like Gabriel Landeskog, Nazem Kadri, Darren Helm and Erik Johnson. Their composure, more than any verbal message, helped the young defenseman acclimate.

“Just a presence thing from the guys in that room,” said Byram, who had nine assists and a league-leading plus-15 rating as he earned a ring that spring. “They had all played a lot of playoff hockey and knew what it was all about, so I just tried to learn from them and soak up any knowledge they were able to share.”

Questions surrounding playoff experience – or lack thereof – are unavoidable in the leadup to Game 1, but once the puck drops, it’s still hockey.

“I don’t think, necessarily, when you’re in it, you’re thinking, ‘Oh, this is really hard’ or ‘Oh, this is really different,’” Byram continued. “You’re just staying focused and ready to play.”

‘Keep that same freedom’

As reported by Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman last month, an opposing player described the Sabres’ playstyle as “river hockey.” The suggestion, seemingly, was that Buffalo plays a loose, chaotic game that won’t work in a fast, physical, pressure-packed playoff setting.

It’s true, the defensemen aren’t anchored to the blue line, but a key to the Sabres’ growth has been a responsible five-man cycle in the offensive zone.

“It’s calculated risk,” Ruff said, pushing back on the “river hockey” notion. “We’ve gotten really good, our forwards, making sure we cover for our D. They’re probably referencing goals where one D is shooting and the other D is tipping at the net front, but if you look on the other side, there’s a forward standing at the point in his place.”

• Feature | How Lindy brought playoff hockey back to Buffalo

“When I won in Colorado,” added Byram, “our D were really active and up in the play, being the fourth guy or sometimes leading the rush, whatever it might be. … I think playoff hockey’s a little different to begin with – it’s tighter, there’s not as much space – so we’ve all just got to be smart and cognizant of what’s going on.”

That's the question: When things get tough in a playoff game or series, will the Sabres stick to the identity that’s gotten them here – the last 53 games aren’t a small sample size – or will they feel pressured to play “playoff hockey” and deviate from their strengths?

With the frequency and variety of Buffalo’s wins since early December, plus the ample experience on its roster, there’s reason to believe the Sabres can get the job done and go on a run.

“You want them to play free and keep that same freedom that gave them success in their career – not only this year, but before,” said general manager Jarmo Kekäläinen. “But at the same time, they also have to learn when's the right time, what's the right play at this time, and what do I need to do right now to win the game?

“Not score the next goal; what do I need to do to win the game?”