The Buffalo Sabres are only two games into the season, and the record says 1-1. That’s not the kind of start that sends alarm bells blaring.
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen’s numbers, though, are a different story.
The Sabres’ No. 1 goalie has taken both starts so far, and he hasn’t exactly settled things down in net. Through those two games, he’s carrying a 4.03 goals against average and a .784 save percentage - the sort of line that gets noticed for all the wrong reasons.
That opening stretch began with a rough 6-3 loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets on the road. Buffalo answered on Saturday night with a 4-3 win over the Chicago Blackhawks in its home opener, and that’s the kind of response the Sabres need more of if they want to avoid the conversation shifting from concern to trade chatter.
Luukkonen was already in that conversation before the season even got rolling. He was reportedly one of the pieces GM Jarmo Kekalainen offered for Connor Hellebuyck, and Luukkonen later reportedly changed his no-trade list to specifically block a move to Winnipeg.
That kind of situation says plenty about commitment on both sides, but it also leaves Luukkonen under a sharper spotlight. If he’s going to hold that job down, he has to look like the guy Buffalo can trust.
And right now, that matters because the Sabres don’t have a long list of easy alternatives.
It would be unfair to pin the entire season on Luukkonen, but there’s no getting around the fact that a lot of Buffalo’s outlook depends on him finding his game. If he struggles badly, the team may have to explore another answer, whether that means a trade or a demotion.
The backup situation doesn’t offer much comfort. Alex Lyon is currently on the shelf, and while he can handle short stretches, he isn’t a full-season safety net. Colten Ellis, meanwhile, still hasn’t shown he can take on a full NHL workload.
So for now, the Sabres are left with a simple reality: Luukkonen has to sort it out. Unless Kekalainen finds a way to land Hellebuyck, this is Luukkonen’s net to claim.
It’s early, sure. But slow starts have a nasty habit of hanging around, and Buffalo can’t afford to let this one turn into a bigger problem. The Sabres need a run soon, and they need their goalie to lead the way.
In Other News...
Sabres Roster Squeeze Could Cost Buffalo A Current Depth Piece
Buffalos injury picture is starting to shift, and with it comes a familiar kind of headache for a team trying to keep enough healthy bodies around without losing useful depth. Lindy Ruff said veterans Jason Zucker and Conor Timmins may join the club for morning skate, a sign that both are moving in the right direction even if they are not yet ready to dress for games. For a Sabres group that has leaned on its depth pieces, the next steps matter almost as much as the returns themselves.
The roster squeeze is where things get tricky, because Buffalo cannot simply welcome players back and sort the rest out later. Any move to send down healthy scratches would force the Sabres to think carefully about waivers, and the club is also weighing how Zucker fits once he is fully healthy. It is the kind of short-term logjam that can turn into a longer-term decision about who stays in Buffalo and who might be exposed on the way down. [Read more 🡒]
Sabres Goaltending Suddenly Has A Real No. 1 Controversy
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonens uneven start to the 2026-27 season has quickly turned Buffalos goaltending into a live issue, and the Sabres are no longer treating the position as settled. After two shaky outings, the pressure is shifting toward Colten Ellis, who arrived off waivers last season and showed enough in his rookie year to look like more than just depth. For a team already carrying questions about its offseason approach in net, the timing has only sharpened the scrutiny on general manager Jarmo Kekalainen.
Ellis now has a real chance to press his case for the job, especially with Alex Lyon sidelined by an upper-body injury and the door open for a change. Buffalo does not need a goaltending debate this early, but that is where the conversation has landed, with Luukkonen fighting to steady himself and Ellis waiting for an opportunity to prove the Sabres may have a different answer than they expected. [Read more 🡒]
Sabres Next Contract Priority Just Got A Lot More Important
The Sabres have already taken one item off the future docket by locking up defenseman Louis Crevier, but the bigger contract conversations are still waiting in the wings. Buffalos next major decisions center on two young forwards, Jack Quinn and Jiri Kulich, both of whom have become increasingly central to how the roster should look going forward.
Quinn is off to a strong start, while Kulich continues to be viewed as a key part of the long-term build, which only raises the stakes on what comes next. For a team trying to shape a more stable core, getting those deals right matters just as much as any move already made, and it puts the Sabres in a familiar spot where todays progress is tied closely to the next round of negotiations. [Read more 🡒]