Locked On Sabres - Daily Podcast On The Buffalo Sabres

The Buffalo Sabres opened up their preseason with a loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins, filled with a lineup of AHL guys, AND Jiří Kulich. Kulich, who has not played a hockey game in almost a year, played big minutes in Pittsburgh and looked up-and-down, as one would expect. There were some nice offensive plays and we saw Kulich's shot power on display, but there were some sloppy plays in his first game action too. Some of that can be explained by him being surrounded by AHL players, playing against many NHL players in the Pens lineup. The hope would be Kulich progresses more and more, playing more than anyone this preseason.

Plus, Radim Mrtka looks really solid playing on a pair with Ryan Johnson. Mrtka showed really good movement for a big man and broke up some dangerous chances from the likes of Kris Letang. Colten Ellis also looked stronger than Alex Lyon in limited action. And Lindy Ruff gives his plan for third pair defensemen Louis Crevier and Conor Timmins, who are not expected to ever actually play together.

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The Buffalo Sabres powerplay had some abysmal stretches last season and it's almost amazing they ended up ranking 20th in the NHL. However, the powerplay did begin to turn it on at the end of the season, trying to get the puck down low. Are the Sabres ready to do that again? Josh Doan and Zach Benson could be enormous in the Sabres powerplay taking a big step forward.

With Alex Tuch walking out the door, the Sabres biggest piece to replace on special teams is his penalty kill spot. The combination of Ryan McLeod and Tuch was the most dangerous shorthanded duo in the NHL over the last few years. Now that half of that duo is gone, Doan and others will have big shoes to fill. The Sabres penalty kill finished 4th best in the NHL last season and will do great to repeat that.

Plus, the Sabres as a shootout team going into the season, led by shootout king Jack Quinn.

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Head to https://Talkiatry.com/LOCKEDONNHL to complete the short assessment and get matched with an in-network psychiatrist in just a few minutes. 
 

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This season, FanDuel is making the excitement go beyond what happens on the field with the all-new FanDuel Rewards Club, featuring exclusive offers, surprises, and more. Every week, check the FanDuel app to see what’s waiting for you or visit https://FANDUEL.COM  to get started. 
 

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The Buffalo Sabres held their Blue & Gold Scrimmage at KeyBank Center ahead of the preseason and the line of Benson-Östlund-Quinn showed out scoring two goals and looking like the best trio on the ice. Which should be no surprised as any line Zach Benson goes on ends up looking good. It was also our first look at Owen Power and Olen Zellweger as a pairing, which Sneaky Joe has the review of. Lindy Ruff believed the two looked good, but also maybe too fancy at times.

Also, Radim Mrtka struggles again. Should we be getting worried about Mrtka's long-term development?

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Talkiatry
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FanDuel
This season, FanDuel is making the excitement go beyond what happens on the field with the all-new FanDuel Rewards Club, featuring exclusive offers, surprises, and more. Every week, check the FanDuel app to see what’s waiting for you or visit https://FANDUEL.COM  to get started. 
 

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Lindy Ruff met with the media after the Sabres practiced on Friday and along the way mentioned he believes this team has the best center depth he's seen in his entire career, with 9 NHL centermen. Is this the deepest center group we've seen, even more so than the 2006 Sabres? The depth has pushed Jiří Kulich, Konsta Helenius, and Ryan McLeod to the wing for the time being.

Is Kulich capable of playing on the wing? Plus, a breakdown of all the new lines Lindy has put together, including a very interesting Benson, Östlund, and Quinn line. And a Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen narrative is starting that isn't true.

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With Buffalo Sabres training camp opening up, GM Jarmo Kekäläinen and head coach Lindy Ruff met with the media for the first time this season! Of course, the subject of Connor Hellebuyck came up, who is not reporting to Winnipeg Jets training camp. Neither Jarmo nor Lindy said anything to make it sound like the Sabres are closed to the idea, and they definitely could've.

Plus, Jason Zucker has a sports hernia injury that will impact the opening night lineup. How will lines look without him? Also, an update on Louis Crevier and Lindy unveils where he'll have Tage Thompson playing positionally.

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The Buffalo Sabres joined the party as NHL teams are racing to get 8-year contracts in, while they're still allowed to do so, signing Noah Östlund to an eight year extension! This is a big bet on a player who hasn't even played 70 games in the NHL yet, but Östlund is a good bet to take. Lindy Ruff loves him. He's got almost every tool in toolbag. And the cost isn't that much at $6.6M per year. Östlund has shown elite vision and passing, has a good shot, and is already mature and responsible enough to be put in any situation offensively or defensively. It's hard to see these deal going poorly for the Sabres. The only small thing to worry about would be injuries, which Östlund has had since before the NHL.

Plus, with giant extensions to Ryan Leonard in Washington and Drake Batherson in Ottawa, should the Sabres look to pay Jack Quinn now to a long term extension? Waiting a year on Quinn could mean a giant cap number, as 45 point players are now getting $10.5M per year. And at the Sabres prospect showcase, Radim Mrtka is not impressing the way you'd hope.

Butcher Box
If you're looking for an easier way to get great meals on the table, give ButcherBox a try. Go to https://ButcherBox.com/LOCKEDONNHL to get $20 off your first box, plus your choice of free ribeye, new york strip, or filet mignon in every box for a year — with free shipping always.

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KALSHI
Today's episode is brought to you by Kalshi. For a limited time, Download Kalshi and use code Locked On to get $25 when you trade $25. Kalshi. Trade what’s next. 

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Training camps are about to open around the NHL, including the Buffalo Sabres' camp which have have tons and tons of battles for roles in their lineup before the start of the regular season. The most interesting of which will be who plays on the top line with Tage Thompson. Much of that will depend on whether Tage is a center or wing. If he's a winger, like he was to start last year, Jiri Kulich could be a darkhorse to open the year as the Sabres #1 center. Konsta Helenius is also an option to open the season on the top line. Down the depth chart, there will be competition on the Sabres fourth line, and can Ryan McLeod stay in the top nine?

Plus, Olen Zellweger vs Louis Crevier to be Owen Power's partner. And Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen vs Alex Lyon to be the opening night starter. Lindy Ruff will have a lot to figure out before the Sabres open up against the Blue Jackets in three weeks.

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The Toronto Maple Leafs are coming off their worst season in years, and it sets up a big question about Auston Matthews' future in Toronto. Will a poor start to the season cause Matthews to push his way out? The Leafs amazingly won the draft lottery and selected Gavin McKenna, who could be their savior.

However, the hire of Jim Hiller as head coach presents a new style of play for Toronto. Likely an ultra-defensive, conservative style of hockey that should keep the Leafs competitive, but limit their ability to win big.

If they decide to play that way, it's only good news for Lindy Ruff's style of play that the Sabres employ.

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The Buffalo Sabres are the defending Atlantic Division champions, but the Florida Panthers are still the gold standard of the division. The back-to-back Stanley Cup Champions had a forgettable season in 2025-26 due to countless injuries to Aleksander Barkov, Matthew Tkachuk, Brad Marchand, Sam Reinhart, and several other important players. It didn't help that Sergei Bobrovsky had the worst season of his career behind an injured squad.

The Panthers had a big summer, trading away three 1st round picks to acquire Brady Tkachuk, pairing him with his brother in their forward ranks. The Tkachuk brothers will be one of the most intimating lines anywhere in the NHL. The Sabres were able to take on and beat the Tampa Bay Lightning playing a physical, ugly style multiple times, but the Panthers are better. Can they do the same against Florida?

The likes of Zach Benson and Josh Doan will be very important when the Sabres play their four matchups with the Panthers this season. And the division could very well come down to these two teams.

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The Buffalo Sabres soared past the Detroit Red Wings last season, ending their 14-year playoff drought, while the Red Wings collapsed to extend their playoff drought to 10-years, now the longest in the NHL. Detroit now owns the second longest drought in NHL history, and their offseason makes it seem like catching the Sabres record is very realistic.

Dylan Larkin wants out and maybe the only reason he hasn't been traded yet is the Red Wings don't have a General Manager. With Steve Yzerman being fired this offseason, are the Red Wings looking at baseball people to take over?!?!

Patrick Kane already hit the ejector seat. Will Alex DeBrincat follow? The Red Wings are headed in the wrong direction and the Sabres should dominate them head-to-head this year.

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