It feels a bit like deja vu all over again for the Buffalo Sabres.
Their power play has gone missing. And while they keep saying the right things, the words aren’t making the goals flow in.
The Sabres experienced a nightmare power play drought at the end of the 2025-26 season. When extending between the regular season and the playoffs, the Sabres went 39 power plays without scoring a goal.
Buffalo eventually snapped out of that, but apparently they didn’t solve everything about man-advantage situations.
To begin the 2026-27 season, the Sabres are 0-for-8 with more skaters on the ice than their opponent.
Lindy Ruff on Power Play
Sabres head coach Lindy Ruff continues to try and say the right things about the power play.
This is what he said about it on Monday, via The Athletic’s Matthew Fairburn:
“We just want to try to remain consistent with it. And I think that’s my job is to get them to a place where they believe in what we’re doing. Every power play is going to make mistakes, but I want them to believe in the process we’re going through and continue to stay with it.”
Ruff added that he believes the Sabres are “going to get there.”
It’s certainly a lot of coachspeak.
Will it fix anything? That might require more from the Sabres than just words.
Sabres Make Power Play Changes
The Sabres might need to change their power play arrangement to find a way to score.
They did that at practice on Monday. Noah Ostlund went onto the top power play unit in place of Josh Doan.
Sabres back at practice this morning. Colten Ellis is in the starter’s net. No Alex Lyon. And it appears Noah Östlund has replaced Josh Doan on the Sabres’ top PP unit. https://t.co/Vh7cdzanZk
— Matthew Fairburn (@MatthewFairburn) October 5, 2026
The Sabres, if they keep Ostlund out there, would also have Jack Quinn, Zach Benson, Tage Thompson and Rasmus Dahlin on the first unit.
If Doan bumped down, he would join Ryan McLeod, Konsta Helenius, Josh Norris and Owen Power on the second unit.
Sometimes, the best thing that can happen is a change. It might not even do anything different from a strategy standpoint. It simply mixes up the vibes.
The Sabres are hoping to return to the playoffs this season. They missed out on the postseason for 14 consecutive seasons before getting their last spring.
It sure would help if they remembered how to score a goal or two on the power play.
Sabres’ Power Play Remains a Mystery