The Buffalo Sabres don’t get to coast on last season’s success, and Boston is a big reason why.
Buffalo beat the Bruins in the first round of the 2025-26 Stanley Cup playoffs after winning the Atlantic Division, but the regular season told a different story. The Sabres dropped three of four to Boston last year, and that’s a reminder that this matchup is still going to demand their best.
Boston didn’t overhaul itself, either. The Bruins remain anchored by David Pastrnak, Charlie McAvoy and Jeremy Swayman, and their summer additions were described as mostly cosmetic. The biggest new wrinkle for Buffalo is getting a longer look at former Sabres star Peterka, who played with the Utah Mammoth last year before Boston traded for him this summer.
The schedule only makes the test tougher. Buffalo will face Boston three times in a two-week stretch late in the season, after the Sabres have already gone through a very different post-trade-deadline phase. And because they won’t see the Bruins until the new calendar year, those games could land right in the middle of a crowded race in the Atlantic.
That’s the bigger picture here: Buffalo and Boston could be battling for one of the final wild card spots in the East. Every meeting matters, especially inside the division, and the Sabres have to keep stacking wins against opponents like the Bruins if they want to stay in control of their own path.
Boston has already shown it can make life difficult for Buffalo. If the Sabres slip and the Bruins pass them in the standings, those losses will sting even more. Buffalo may not be as dominant in 2026-27 as it was a year ago, but finishing ahead of Boston has to be non-negotiable.
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Colten Ellis Is Giving The Sabres A Crease Decision To Make
Colten Ellis spent his rookie NHL season making the kind of steady case Buffalo likes to see from a goalie pushing for more work. In 16 games, he showed enough poise to look comfortable at the top level, while his track record at the American League level has already marked him as a reliable option in the organizations pipeline.
The real question now is how the Sabres sort out the crease as Ellis heads into the final year of his current deal. He could be in line for a larger role next season, but Alex Lyon and Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen are also under contract, which gives Buffalo a crowded situation to weigh before it decides how much room there is for Ellis to keep climbing. [Read more 🡒]
Sabres Camp Battle Could Squeeze Out A Young Forward
The Sabres head into camp with more center candidates than clear openings, and that kind of depth can be a blessing right up until it becomes a problem. Tage Thompson, Josh Norris and Ryan McLeod look like the backbone of the group, while Jiri Kulich, Sam Carrick, Tyson Kozak and Peyton Krebs all factor into the discussion in one way or another. Add in two young players who have been pushing to force their way into the mix, and Buffalo suddenly has a lineup puzzle that could shape the early part of the season.
Noah Ostlund and Konsta Helenius are the names to watch most closely as the competition tightens, because there is only so much room for both to keep climbing at once. If the Sabres decide one of their younger centers still needs more runway, Rochester is the likely next stop, which makes this a camp battle with real consequences for a player trying to turn promise into an NHL job. [Read more 🡒]
Sabres Face A Goalie Dilemma They May Not Want To Solve
Buffalo has already done its homework on Connor Hellebuyck, and the answer came back with a familiar kind of hesitation: the price was steep enough that Jarmo Kekalainen passed. The Winnipeg netminder remains one of the leagues most recognizable goaltenders, and his public trade request has only added to the intrigue, but the Sabres are looking at this through the same hard-edged lens that usually shapes major decisions in the NHL. When a goalie comes with elite credentials and a heavy ask in return, the margin for error gets very thin.
The concern in Buffalo is not just what it would take to get Hellebuyck out of Winnipeg, but whether the move would actually solve enough to justify the cost. The Jets are said to want multiple players and draft picks, and some analysts have even wondered if the Sabres would be better served sticking with their current goaltending setup instead of making a blockbuster swing. For a team still trying to balance present urgency with long-term flexibility, that is the kind of dilemma that can linger well past the first offer. [Read more 🡒]