The Buffalo Sabres ended a fourteen-year playoff drought this spring — and now? They’re not done.
After eliminating the Boston Bruins four games to two in the first round, the Sabres open the Eastern Conference Semifinals tomorrow night against the Montreal Canadiens — Game One drops at seven o’clock at KeyBank Center in Buffalo.
The Sabres enter as the Atlantic Division’s number-two seed with home ice advantage. Tage Thompson was a force against Boston — two goals and seven points in the series. Defenseman Rasmus Dahlin anchors the blue line. And goaltender Alex Lyon — who took over in relief during Game Two — went three-and-one with a jaw-dropping nine-fifty-five save percentage the rest of the way.
Montreal punched their ticket the hard way — a seven-game war against Tampa Bay. Canadiens captain Nick Suzuki and scorer Cole Caufield lead the charge for the Habs.
The key storyline? Buffalo’s power play was ice cold against Boston — they’ll need to get that clicking against Montreal’s structured defense. And Lyon has to keep that magic going in net.
The Sabres haven’t been to the Conference Finals since two-thousand-seven. Western New York is ready to believe again.
Game One — tomorrow night, seven o’clock — KeyBank Center.
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