Another Sabres season has come to an end. Much like the previous 41, it resulted in the team failing to win the Stanley Cup. Furthermore, the Sabres missed the playoffs for only the 12th time in franchise history. It’s also the 3rd time the Sabres have missed the playoffs since the lockout in 2004-2005. Including the 3 seasons prior to the lockout, they’ve missed the post season in six of the last ten. Let’s take a look back on why they’ve found themselves in this position, starting back in spring 2011.
There was overwhelming hype entering this season that stemmed from new ownership and the unprecedented run the Sabres made to close the 2010-2011 season before falling just short of upsetting the Flyers in round 1. The expectation for this season grew ever further thanks to a monster offseason. Prior to free agency, Darcy successfully turned Paul Bryon and Chis Butler into Robyn Regehr and Ales Kotalik. Regehr was the big catch, while Kotalik, a former Sabres, was placed on waivers prior to the regular season. Then, Darcy traded a 4th round pick to the New York Islanders in exchange for Christian Ehrhoff, who he then singed to a 10 year, 40 million dollar deal. While some are quick to gripe about the dollar amount, he has a very manageable cap hit of 4 million.
These moves stemmed speculation that the Sabres might actually make a run at prized free agent Brad Richards. In years past, the Sabres were often left out of such lofty sweepstakes. In the end however, Darcy & co. opted out of meeting with Richards to ensure that they were able to sign Ville Leino. Though most believed Darcy had overpaid for Leino, these moves came as a breath of fresh air to Sabres nation. It was also refreshing that they weren’t content to only make one move, as they had in the past. Of course, conventional wisdom told us that Regier’s hands had been tied by a penny-pinching ownership, and only now was he able to spend freely. Additionally, these moves were intended to represent a shift in culture. The Sabres were no longer going to pick at scraps, but go for the big guns.
This past offseason also saw many renovations to the arena. Most noticeably was the rebranding from HSBC Arena to First Niagara Center. And no sooner had it been announced that it became known as the F’N Center. Numerous alterations were made within the arena under the pretense that it would improve the fan experience. The most relevant upgrade however was that given to the team locker room and facilities. The belief, for reasons I’m now not so certain of, was that this would translate into a better product on the ice. It will however continue to serve as a reason for free agents to make Buffalo their new home. At least that’s the idea.
In addition to welcoming new recruits, Darcy also worked to retain several restricted free agents. Prior to free agency, he signed Drew Stafford, fresh off a career season, to a 4 year, 16 million dollar deal. He also retained 3 RFA defensemen in Marc-Andre Gragnani, Mike Weber, and Andrej Sekera. Though Tyler Myers would not become a RFA until the following summer, Darcy managed to lock him in for the long haul, signing him to a 7 year, 38.5 million dollar deal. With considerable defensive depth, Shaone Morrisonn was demoted to the Rochester Americans, in a move nearly all fans were content with.
On paper, the Sabres certainly looked to be a better team, and not only because they had the third highest payroll in the NHL. They improved their defensive core, and retained all key offensive players, save for the Big Black Scoring Machine and Old Man Niedermeyer. Additionally, Roy had been playing at a point per game clip before being injured the previous December. Fans hopes and expectations were high, and rightfully so. Though not a favorite for the Cup, they were pegged as potential dark horse candidate. Would the Sabres be able to deliver? Surely there's no way they could miss out on the playoffs, right?
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