Carolina Hurricanes: Three Keys to Victory Against the Buffalo Sabres

The Carolina Hurricanes head north to Buffalo tonight to take on the Sabres; here is what they need to do to ensure the beginning of a winning streak.

The Buffalo Sabres are having yet another rocky start to their season, but if we are to learn anything from the Ottawa Senators, they are not to be taken lightly (especially at home).

The Buffalo Sabres’ record currently stands at 9-6-2, giving them 20 points in the standings; just one point and three spots behind the Carolina Hurricanes. The Buffalo Sabres have lost six of their last seven games, but they still should not be underestimated.

The Sabres are a sneakily good team, and sport solid offensive threats such as Jack Eichel, Sam Reinhart, Victor Olofsson, and former Carolina Hurricane Jeff Skinner.

Speaking of Jeff Skinner, he is currently on a bit of a cold streak; after scoring six goals in his first 10 games, Skinner has now slid back to one goal and a -7 +/- rating in his last seven games.

The Canes’ record is currently 10-7-1, giving them 21 points in the standings, securing their spot at 16th in the league. This was a significant drop from Top 5 in the standings after their hot start, but the Canes can start putting together a winning streak tonight that could pull them back to at least the Top 10 if they acquire enough points over the next week or so.

The Carolina Hurricanes have it in them to pull out a win tonight, especially while riding the momentum of their recent 8-2 victory over the Ottawa Senators. The last road trip the Canes’ embarked on wasn’t so great. The three things they need to do to make this one better are score early, convert on the powerplay, and they absolutely need consistency from our goaltenders (as well as play Haydn Fleury; more on that later).

1. Score Early

The Carolina Hurricanes are 8-1-0 this season when scoring first. This speaks volumes as to how well the Canes can hold a lead once they have it, to eventually pull out a win.

Unfortunately, this also speaks volumes on how the Canes have been responding to going down early on in the game, to eventually lose. If the Carolina Hurricanes can score early, keep the lead, and respond in turn if they don’t score first, they should be just fine.

This is where offensive juggernauts Dougie Hamilton, Andrei Svechnikov, and Sebastian Aho come in. The three of these players have all but carried the Canes’ scoring this year, and have been supplemented by players like Martin Necas and Teuvo Teravainen.

Everything seemed to be clicking on both sides of the ice for the Carolina Hurricanes against the Ottawa Senators earlier this week. The Canes need that exact same consistency and puck luck tonight if they want to pull out another massive victory along those lines. Now, for the only thing more important than scoring early: scoring on the powerplay.

3. Consistent Goaltending

This is a big one. Petr Mrazek has been relatively solid in goal this season. The 2nd-year Carolina Hurricane netminder has turned in a .907% save percentage with a 2.51 goals-against average. This has led Mrazek to an 8-3-1 record, which isn’t terrible by any means.

James Reimer, on the other hand, has been a roller coaster. Flashes of brilliance here and there, but overall the newest Hurricanes’ netminder has turned in very middling numbers. A .901% save percentage isn’t ‘bad’, but a goals-against average of 3.09 is approaching the realm of ‘bad’.

Reimer has turned in a record of 2-4-0, with most of his games being played on the road, given Mrazek’s hot streak at home. If James Reimer slots into the starter’s crease tonight, the Carolina Hurricanes absolutely need him to be on point. Anything less, and the Canes might be playing catch up all night.

To be fair, the Carolina Hurricanes play an entirely different game in front of Reimer, so his numbers are not entirely his fault; they are, however, enough to be a cause for concern, especially this early on in the season. James Reimer is, by no stretch of the word, a ‘bad’ goaltender, but he needs to get his game together as soon as possible if the Canes want to string together wins both at home and on the road.

A bit of a bonus ‘key to victory’ would be to play a full 12-forward, 6-defensemen roster, and to have Haydn Fleury in the lineup. The Carolina Hurricanes have won more games with him than without him, and he is far too good a defensemen to be sitting in the press box.

All this being said, tonight’s matchup should be an exciting one; I, for one, am incredibly excited (albeit a bit nervous) to see how the momentum from the Canes’ last game carries over to Buffalo.

If the Carolina Hurricanes can get some quality, consistent goaltending, score early, and convert on the powerplay tonight, they should have no problem walking away with another tally in the ‘win’ column.

Question for CC Readers: What do you think the Canes need to do to pull out a win tonight?