The Buffalo Sabres are desperate to be a playoff team next season -- but they're in the NHL's toughest division -- the Atlantic Division. And their games against Atlantic teams will be crucial to help decided whether or not they'll be a playoff team next year. As such, we're analyzing Buffalo's chances against each Atlantic team in a THN.com series; We started alphabetically with the Boston Bruins, then turned our attention to the Detroit Red Wings, followed by the defending Stanley Cup-champion Florida Panthers.
Today, it's time for a look at another team that wants to be a playoff team next year -- the Montreal Canadiens. Do the Sabres have what it takes to edge out the Habs for a wild card berth next season? Look below for our best guess.
BUFFALO SABRES VS. MONTREAL CANADIENS
NEW CANADIENS PLAYERS: Noah Dobson, D; Kaapo Kahkonen, G; Joe Veleno, C; Zack Bolduc, LW; Sammy Blais, LW
2024-25 SERIES: Sabres 0-3-1, Canadiens 4-0-0
2025-26 GAMES AGAINST EACH OTHER: October 20, at Montreal; January 15 at Buffalo; January 22 at Montreal; January 31 at Buffalo
CAN THE SABRES BEAT THIS TEAM? The Canadiens made one of the biggest splashes of the current off-season when GM Kent Hughes acquired star defenseman Noah Dobson from the New York Islanders. The deal instantly gave the Habs one of the NHL's best defense corps -- but they're going to have a tough test in the Sabres' equally deep group of blueliners.
However, it's not only the defense that's improved in Montreal. Hughes also fortified his group of forwards by trading for former St. Louis Blues winger Bolduc, and signing pluggers Veleno and Blais to help fill out the bottom-six group of forwards. All in all, the Habs now have a terrific core of young talent -- including captain Nick Suzuki and rookie-of-the-year D-man Lane Hutson -- and they're almost certainly going to battle for one of the wild card berths in the Eastern Conference.
Last season, the Canadiens had Buffalo's number, beating the Sabres in all four games the teams played against one another. And while things may be different in 2025-26, there's a distinct possibility Montreal once again dominates the Sabres.
Know Your Enemy, Sabres Edition: Does Buffalo Have Any Hope Of Beating The Defending Stanley Cup-Champion Panthers?The Buffalo Sabres are under massive pressure to qualify for the Stanley Cup playoffs for the first time in 15 years. To do so, they're going to have to make the most of their games with their Atlantic Division rivals. And in this continuing THN.com series, we're analyzing Buffalo's chances against each of their seven Atlantic rivals.
All four of the games between the two teams will be played by the end of January, so from Buffalo's perspective, it's crucial that the Sabres set a tone by coming out of the gate strongly and poutting Montreal on notice that this year will be different than last year.
Indeed, if the teams in the Metropolitan Division send four teams to the playoffs this coming season, that will leave only four playoff spots for the Atlantic's teams to battle over. And it easily could come down to one or two standings points separating the playoff teams from the non-playoff teams.
In the macro picture, then, every game really does matter for Buffalo and Montreal. An overtime or shootout loss could dictate whether the Sabres end their 14-year playoff drought, or whether it will continue for another painful year. And if Buffalo once again loses all four games against the Habs, it's going to be very difficult for them to eke out enough points elsewhere to make up for it.
Know Your Enemy, Sabres Edition: Can Buffalo Beat The Playoff-Desperate Detroit Red Wings?The Buffalo Sabres have completed most of their off-season moves this summer. We've examined the most-likely trade partners for Buffalo, and in this file, we're continuing our new THN.com series "Know Your Enemy, Sabres Edition". In this series, we're breaking down the Sabres' seven Atlantic Division rivals, focusing on what changes those seven teams have made, Buffalo's record against them last season, their games against each other this coming year, and our opinion of whether the team is one the Sabres should be beating next year.
The Canadiens are clearly a team on the rise. The Sabres want to be as well, but in the zero-sum industry they're operating in, both Buffalo and Montreal understand there's not room for everyone to be a playoff team next year. This past season was an anomaly in that five Atlantic teams made it into the post-season. If we were betting, we'd bet that wouldn't happen again next season.
So the challenge is clear for the Sabres -- avenge their four losses to the Canadiens by beating them more often than not this time around, or suffer a similar fate to the one they've been dealing with for nearly a decade-and-a-half.
It's that straightforward, and beating Montreal is going to be one of the keys, one way or another, to deciding how Buffalo's year plays out.