In sports, as in life, you have to hit bottom before you can start moving up again. The team that finishes with the worst record overall gets the chance to rebuild with one of the top picks in the draft. The Buffalo Sabres did that last season, acquiring top prospect Jack Eichel, and the smart money is on the Toronto Maple Leafs to be among the contenders for worst this NHL betting season. These two teams will hook up in Buffalo on Wednesday night.
It is certainly exciting when your new hot prospect takes to the ice for the first time, but Buffalo Sabres (1-4-0) fans are quickly learning that it is going to take a whole lot more than one new face to turn things around. Eichel is averaging about 20 minutes of ice time per game, which means he only has a short amount of time to make an impact. It is what happens in the other 40 minutes that tends to decide how the game play out. So far, no-one else on this Sabres team seems able to deliver the quality that their young draft pick can. Goals are in very short supply, and while the defense is certainly better than last season, they need to be close to perfect every night in order to pick up the slack.
Maple Leafs vs Sabres: NHL Betting Preview
Date: Wednesday, October 21, 2015 Time: 7:00PM Venue: First Niagara Center Opening Line: Toronto -111
Welcome to Duffalo! @duffersabres‘ new blog chronicles his experiences with the team. READ: https://t.co/E1bf6ja2As pic.twitter.com/1bNMr4eKQa
— Buffalo Sabres (@BuffaloSabres) October 20, 2015
While their record may not suggest it, the Maple Leafs (1-3-1) have not been as bad as advertised. They lost their first two games to a pair of very good teams, and have been pretty competitive in the 3 games that followed. They lost in a shootout to Ottawa, took down the Columbus Blue Jackets 6-3, and then lost a tight 2-1 game to the Pittsburgh Penguins. It is perhaps better than most people expected, but the fact of the matter is that you don’t get points for being a plucky loser. All the problems that were predicted before the season began have come true, most notably on defense, where the Leafs are giving up 3.5 goals per game. Their penalty killing is equally dire at just a 66.7% efficiency through the first 5 games. The signs are there that this team seems more willing to put up a fight under coach Mike Babcock, but it still figures to be a long season.
It is certainly exciting when your new hot prospect takes to the ice for the first time, but Buffalo Sabres (1-4-0) fans are quickly learning that it is going to take a whole lot more than one new face to turn things around. Eichel is averaging about 20 minutes of ice time per game, which means he only has a short amount of time to make an impact. It is what happens in the other 40 minutes that tends to decide how the game play out. So far, no-one else on this Sabres team seems able to deliver the quality that their young draft pick can. Goals are in very short supply, and while the defense is certainly better than last season, they need to be close to perfect every night in order to pick up the slack.
