The Buffalo Sabres keep discovering the same thing: the line looks best when Zach Benson is on it.
That was especially obvious Thursday night against the Ducks, when Benson piled up a goal and two assists and the line he skated with Tage Thompson and Peyton Krebs combined for 11 points. The performance came after Lindy Ruff took a chance at the start of this West Coast trip by breaking up Buffalo’s most effective trio to that point - Benson, Noah Ostlund and Jack Quinn.
Ruff moved Benson up to the top line with Thompson and put Josh Doan in Benson’s old spot with Ostlund and Quinn. Two games later, the results have made the answer pretty clear.
According to Natural Stat Trick, the Benson-Thompson-Krebs line posted a CF% of 88.24% and an xGF% of 82.55%.
Before Benson was moved, the trio of Benson, Quinn and Ostlund had logged around 114 minutes together and put up a CF% of 67.35% and an xGF% of 66.41%. That was easily Buffalo’s most steady and productive line early in the season. But since Benson left that group, Quinn and Ostlund have played 33 minutes together without him and dropped to a CF% of 33.85% and an xGF% of 37.86%.
Benson’s value isn’t just showing up in the box score, either. He had six points in Buffalo’s first 10 games, then added five more over the last three. Just as important, he keeps doing the small things that matter: battling for loose pucks, extending shifts with his forecheck, and working in the hard areas around the net.
That kind of game wears down opponents and creates room for everyone else.
He also keeps making life easier for his linemates. One clear example came on Tage Thompson’s first goal, when Benson took the pass at the blue line and fed Thompson in stride. Thompson never had to slow down and was able to drive to the net for the first of his three goals on the night.
For Buffalo, having a player like Benson gives Ruff real flexibility. He looks like he can play with anybody, and the group around him seems to get better because of it.
In Other News...
Sabres Line Shakeup Just Unlocked Something Huge For Tage Thompson
A late lineup tweak gave Buffalo a different look against Anaheim, and it paid off in a big way. Peyton Krebs was elevated into the first line mix and immediately helped tilt the ice, piling up three assists in the Sabres 7-6 win while Tage Thompson turned the change into one of his biggest nights of the season.
Thompsons hat trick and five-point performance were the headline, but the chemistry on that top unit was the real story for Buffalo. The Sabres got a glimpse of how dangerous that group can be when it clicks, and the way Krebs fit into the role left the coaching staff with a useful problem to think about once the lineup settles back down. [Read more 🡒]
Sabres Playoff Push May Hinge On One Growing Concern
Buffalos early-season position has the feel of a team still trying to sort out what it is. The Sabres have shown enough to stay in the conversation, and the underlying numbers suggest there is more there than the standings show, but the path to the postseason is already crowded. In a conference where a few points can separate a handful of teams, every uneven stretch matters, and Buffalo has not yet put together the kind of run that can create breathing room.
The bigger concern is the one that keeps showing up in the same places: in net and on special teams. The Sabres have not gotten the steady goaltending they need, and the power play and penalty kill have also left room for doubt, which can erase the value of stronger five-on-five play. There is still time for the roster to settle in and for help to arrive later, but if Buffalo is going to turn its promising start into a real playoff push, those problem areas have to move in the right direction soon. [Read more 🡒]