Utah HC, Sabres enduring irritating spells

Two teams going through frustrating stretches meet Saturday afternoon in Buffalo when the host Sabres face the Utah Hockey Club.

The Sabres are mired in a season-worst five-game losing streak (0-3-2). Four of those losses were by one goal, and two occurred in overtime. However, there’s more to the story, especially in the last two losses that coincided with the start of a season-long five-game homestand.

On Tuesday, the Sabres built a four-goal lead in the first period against Colorado only to see the Avalanche rally for a 5-4 victory, thanks to a four-goal third period. Two days later, Buffalo held leads of 1-0 and 2-1 against Winnipeg, another Stanley Cup contender, only for the Jets to win 3-2 in overtime.

General manager Kevyn Adams spoke to the media on Friday, telling reporters he’s not ready to panic or make wholesale changes to a team that’s the youngest in the league.

“Development is not linear,” Adams said. “There’s ups and downs, and you have to understand that when you’re building your team, you’re going to go through that when you have young players in the lineup. I’m a firm believer there’s no better way to learn than to go through it and experience things.”

Even with the losing streak, the Sabres are not way behind the pack in the Eastern Conference. With 25 points, they are only two points behind the New York Rangers for the final wild-card spot heading into play on Friday.

The Sabres may be without defenseman Rasmus Dahlin. Buffalo’s captain missed Thursday’s game due to back spasms, and the team did not provide a timeline for his return. The 24-year-old is third on the team with 19 points and second with 13 assists.

Utah returns to the ice for the first time since Monday, when the club fell 2-1 at home to Dallas.

Coach Andre Tourigny’s squad has alternated losses and wins in its last seven games, going 3-3-1 in that span. All four defeats were by one goal to the Boston Bruins, Toronto Maple Leafs, Edmonton Oilers and the Stars, all teams with expectations to make deep playoff runs this season. That stretch also includes a 6-1 win versus the Pittsburgh Penguins and a 6-0 rout on the road against the Vegas Golden Knights.

After the loss to the Stars, Tourigny told reporters he was “proud” of his team’s play but “frustrated” with its results. His focus now is to help his team, the fourth-youngest in the league, with some perspective.

“There is no moral victory in the league,” he said. “You want to win. We want to win, but it’s important when we talk to the players, to focus on the process and keep focusing on the process. Because if you focus on the result, you grip your stick (tighter) and you’re trying to do things you should not.”

One positive development for Utah has been the play of Nick Schmaltz. The 28-year-old center has been leading the team with 17 assists this season. However, he scored his first three goals of the season over the past two games, with two against the Golden Knights.

Saturday’s game is the first of back-to-back road games for Utah, which travels to Philadelphia for a Sunday contest.

–Field Level Media