BUFFALO – The Sabres find strength in numbers, as in they boast some of the NHL’s best depth, giving them intriguing choices to construct their lineup and tailor it to their opponent.
To wit: in Saturday’s come-from-behind 8-3 win in Montreal, rookie defenseman Zach Metsa made his debut, becoming the 27th player to skate for the Sabres in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
After sitting out the first 11 games as a healthy scratch, Metsa also became the 16th Sabres player to appear in his first postseason game this year.
Why turn to Metsa, who’s expected to play again tonight in Game 7 against the Canadiens in KeyBank Center, after nearly a month on the sideline in an elimination game?
Coach Lindy Ruff said the Sabres had a “couple question marks,” including defenseman Owen Power, whose status for Game 6 was a bit unclear after he slid into the end boards on Thursday.
Power played on Saturday – “I thought he gave us a hell of a game,” Ruff said – but dressing Metsa, a right-handed shot, gave Ruff options.
He replaced veteran Luke Schenn, a right-handed shot who gave the Sabres toughness and experience.
The Sabres have often been giving their fifth and sixth defenders – Conor Timmins has established himself in the fifth spot – special-teams duty and spot work alongside some of his top defensemen.
Ruff likes, among other things, Metsa’s ability to break the puck out of his own zone.
“If he plays a shift with (Rasmus) Dahlin, he plays a shift with Owen Power, he plays a shift with (Bowen) Byram, we’ve got that left-right connection,” Ruff said following the game in the Bell Centre. “I felt that if Owen Power couldn’t get through the game, we’d need a right defenseman, a guy that’d be comfortable to be playing over there. I thought he gave us a strong game.”
Metsa, 27, scored a late power-play goal in Saturday’s win and skated 12 minutes, 19 seconds.
The Sabres, who take pride in being an ensemble, have used all but one player on their roster, winger Tanner Pearson, this postseason. They even added center Konsta Helenius after the Rochester Americans’ season ended.
After sitting out some games, Helenius, 20, quickly morphed into a key contributor.
“You sit there, you make decisions as a staff on just really what gives you the best chance to win, and every night, whoever we dressed, we’ve felt that those that went in would give us our best chance,” Ruff said this morning in the Buffalo Marriott at LECOM Harborcenter.
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Among the changes the Sabres made up front in Saturday’s win, Tage Thompson, their top center, shifted to right wing alongside center Josh Norris and Zach Benson.
Thompson has spent parts of the last seasons playing the wing. He recorded one goal and one assist at even strength in Game 6 and one goal and four points overall.
“When I put him on the wing, it kind of frees him up a little bit, and he doesn’t have to put a lot of energy into playing in his own end, which frees him up to get going the other way,” Ruff said.
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Sabres winger Jack Quinn scored his first goals of the postseason in Saturday’s win, utilizing his wicked one-timer twice on the power play.
Just like for stretches of the regular season, Quinn, who reached the 20-goal mark for the first time, generated chances but couldn’t finish them.
“It was a little bit like his season, the start of the season for him, where he got stuck on 13 or 14 goals and had all kinds of opportunities, was getting probably one or two great looks a game and then finally broke out,” Ruff said. “… It’s part of growth, too. And now he feels good about how he’s shooting the puck.”