'Relentless' Sabres dispatch Bruins | 5 things we learned from Round 1

One word kept coming up when members of the Buffalo Sabres leadership group were asked to define the identity their team had forged late in the regular season.

“Sabres hockey is relentless,” Alex Tuch said.

“In your face, no time or space,” answered Tage Thompson. “Relentless.”

Was there ever a better image of Sabres hockey – of being relentless – than the scene that unfolded in Boston on Friday, as they captured their first playoff series win since 2007?

First, there was Josh Doan, the embodiment of relentless hockey, outhustling and outmuscling Bruins stars David Pastrnak and Charlie McAvoy for a loose puck in the offensive zone. Doan won the puck and set up a Zach Benson goal, a huge added cushion that – for all intents and purposes – won the game and the series.

And how about Benson? In the dying moments of the series, he was still antagonizing, drawing a two-handed swing from McAvoy and laughing all the way through it. (Remind you of anybody, Boston?)

Benson has drawn eight penalties in these playoffs, second in the NHL to Sidney Crosby’s nine.

That’s relentless. So is a team trailing 2-0 in the third period of Game 1 – the first playoff game for many on the roster – and storming back to win in regulation. So is going into Boston on the heels of a Game 5 loss and knowing you’re going to win.

“We said before this game,” Thompson said. “We knew we were gonna win this game regardless of what happened.”

Now, they're moving on. The Sabres will play the winner of the first-round series between the Canadiens and Lightning, who will play Game 7 at 6 p.m. on Sunday.

In the meantime, here's what we’ve learned about the Sabres in Round 1.

1. Forward matchups? No problem.

Lindy Ruff pointed to the Sabres’ ability to roll four lines as a hallmark of their identity early in the series.

“That identity was that any line could beat the other team,” Ruff said following a Game 2 loss. “And I think that still is our identity.”

It’s one thing to say that. It’s another to show it on the ice, as the Sabres did throughout this series.

Look no further than the matchups thrown at Pastrnak, the Bruins’ offensive star and a 100-point player during the regular season. His most frequent matchup was the Ryan McLeod line, but Pastrnak saw plenty of time against all four forward lines.

To illustrate how spread out the matchup was, here’s Pastrnak’s total ice times against one member from each Sabres line:

• Jason Zucker (2nd line) – 30:54
• Alex Tuch (1st line) – 25:16
• Zach Benson (3rd line) – 20:10
• Beck Malenstyn (4th line) – 18:22

The point being: Ruff does not hide any of his forward lines against star players. That’s particularly an advantage on the road, where opponents have the last change.

The Sabres did a good job with Pastrnak, too. Yes, he scored three goals and seven points – but this is a 100-point player. He was kept off the score sheet entirely in Games 3 and 4, only the fourth time that’s happened to him all season. He was nearly held off the board again in Game 5 before his overtime goal.

And the Sabres had a 25-10 advantage in shot attempts when Pastrnak was on the ice against the fourth line in this series, according to Natural Stat Trick.

“I think we trust different lines in different situations to do different roles and it’s been what’s made us successful as a group,” Malenstyn said. “Being able to trust different people on the ice to play defensively, score goals, all that kind of stuff. And this series has been no different.”

2. Strong minutes from the 3rd pair

Logan Stanley missed Game 6 with an illness. In his absence, the Sabres reverted to a strategy they used throughout the regular season: rotating defense pairs so that at least one of Rasmus Dahlin, Mattias Samuelsson, Bowen Byram or Owen Power was on the ice at all times.

It’s an effective strategy, but one the Sabres hadn’t used in the series prior to Game 6, because the third pair of Stanley and Conor Timmins had hit their stride at the perfect time.

The Sabres owned positive shares of shot attempts (50-46) and an even share of goals scored (1-1) with Stanley and Timmins sharing the ice. Both players were key cogs on the penalty kill as well, with Timmins blocking a team-high 12 shots in the series.

It’s the culmination of what has been an adjustment period for both players – for Stanley, adjusting to a new team following a trade at the deadline, and for Timmins, getting back up to speed after a broken leg cost him much of the season.

They’re giving the Sabres precisely what they need out of a third pair through one series.

“For the most part, keeping the game simple,” Ruff said after Game 2. “Understanding that, as the third pair, we don’t need any high risk. Just get the pucks out quickly, defend with a lot of passion. I think they both defended with a lot of passion. A predictable game.”

3. Highs and lows on special teams

Buffalo’s penalty kill has been a strength all season long and remained as such against Boston. The Sabres held the Bruins to two power-play goals on 16 opportunities. It was the usual recipe: Tuch and McLeod swarming up top, players selling out to block shots, strong goaltending as the last line of defense.

The Sabres' power play, meanwhile, started slowly but showed signs of progress as the series went on. The Sabres had gone 0-for-22 with the extra man in seven games to end the regular season, then went 0-for-14 in Games 1 through 3.

They effectively snapped the drought in Game 4, when Doan pushed a puck across the goal line seconds after a power play expired, then officially scored a power-play goal early in Game 5. They went 0-for-3 in Game 6 but had seven scoring chances.

4. Lyon embraces the moment

Alex Lyon wasted little time before making his presence felt upon entering Game 2 in relief of Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen. Broadcast cameras quickly caught Lyon barking at Bruins forward Tanner Jeannot during a post-whistle scrum: You wanna go?

Turns out, that would be a tone-setter for the remainder of the series. Viral clips continued to surface of Lyon, whether he was barking at Bruins fans or making game-changing saves.

“You don't ever want to back down from the moment,” Lyon said. “And the older I get, the more I really enjoy those moments and that's kind of what gets you stimulated, so I really enjoy that.”

Lyon has lived this moment before. He played four games for Florida on their run to the Stanley Cup Final in 2023. (His dominance to end that regular season was what got the Panthers to the playoffs in the first place – their next two Stanley Cup wins don’t happen if not for Lyon and that run, Matthew Tkachuk recently asserted on his podcast.)

He’s been a difference maker once again so far in these playoffs. Lyon allowed just five goals in the series – the fewest ever by a Sabres goaltender in a five-game playoff span. (This for a franchise that employed Dominik Hasek and Ryan Miller.)

Lyon’s .955 save percentage is the best among playoff goalies. He made more crucial saves in Game 6, including a breakaway stop (and ensuing put-back opportunity) on Casey Mittelstadt to maintain the Sabres’ early 1-0 lead.

“He’s one of those guys: He likes the big moments, and he’s not afraid of them,” Thompson said. “He stands on his head when we need him.”

5. Experience earned

One question surrounding the Sabres – perhaps the question – was how they would react to their first taste of playoff hockey and all of its highs and lows.

Well, they’re inexperienced no longer. The Sabres’ ability to respond, a strength all season, carried through into their series with the Bruins. They twice won games after falling behind early. Both times they lost, they responded with a win in the next game.

Having a coach who’s been there can’t hurt. Ruff – a finalist for his second Jack Adams Award – was a steady voice throughout the series. He intentionally downplayed any negative criticism following a Game 2 loss. He kept players away from the rink on the morning of Game 6, shielding them from potential questions about the possibility of surrendering a 3-1 series lead.

“I told them, ‘We are going to win the game,’” Ruff said.

They sure did. Now, we wait for Round 2.