Holding a four-point lead in the Atlantic Division with just 15 games remaining, the Buffalo Sabres are in good shape to snap a well-documented 14-year playoff drought.
But a challenging four-game Western trip that begins Tuesday against the Vegas Golden Knights has the potential to be a stumbling block.
The Sabres also will visit Anaheim, which held a one-point lead over Vegas in a tight Pacific Division race entering Monday, as well as San Jose and Los Angeles, two teams in a dogfight to make the playoffs.
“It’s a tough trip in regards that you’re going to play four games in six nights,” Buffalo coach Lindy Ruff said before a long flight to Las Vegas after Monday’s practice. “You’ve got to be ready, because this time of year every team is looking to stay where they’re at, or looking to climb the standings. And every team we’re playing is right there in the thick of it, so it’s gonna be a heck of a road trip.”
The good news is that Buffalo has excelled on the road since a 4-3 overtime win at Edmonton on Dec. 9, going 17-2-1 in its last 20 road games. Goaltender Alex Lyon has won nine straight road starts, two off the NHL record held by Devan Dubnyk (2014-15) and Evgeni Nabokov (2009-10).
“We have a lot more confidence, obviously,” Ruff said. “We’ve played well on the road. We’ve been able to hang around in tight games and find ways to win. We’ve been able to push through when the game is tied in the third, we’ve been able to come back (after) a poor first period or poor start to the game. I think the group believes that even if things haven’t gone your way early on, you can still battle back.”
Buffalo is 9-1-0 over its last 10 games following a 4-1-0 homestand, with the lone loss coming 2-1 to Washington on Thursday. The Sabres bounced back for a 3-2 shootout win over Toronto on Saturday to improve to 4-0 in shootouts.
“I think sometimes when you play five games in a row at home, and you’ve had success and a couple of huge emotional games, and everybody’s trying to tell you how good you are, it’s time to go on the road for a couple,” Ruff joked.
First up is a Vegas team that appears to have turned things around following a stretch that saw it lose six of seven. The Golden Knights bring a two-game win streak into the third game of a four-game homestand, cruising to a 6-2 victory over Pittsburgh and following that up with a 4-0 blanking of Chicago on Saturday.
Adin Hill, making his fourth consecutive start, finished with 21 saves for his first shutout since March 13, 2025, while Pavel Dorofeyev registered his second straight three-point game with two goals and an assist.
Perhaps more comforting to Vegas coach Bruce Cassidy was the fact his team — which endured a span of falling behind 3-0 four times in five games — built up another early big lead, scoring three goals in the first 12 minutes.
“We’re not chasing the game nearly as much,” Cassidy said. “It’s a lot easier to play that way.”
“I feel like our game is trending in the right direction,” Hill added. “So we just have to keep building it and get ready for the playoffs, keep stacking wins.”
This will be the second of two regular-season meetings. Buffalo won the first 3-2 at home March 3, with Tage Thompson credited with the game-winning goal after the Golden Knights trimmed a 3-0 deficit to 3-2.
