The Buffalo Sabres took on the Chicago Blackhawks on April 13 at United Center in Chicago, with puck drop set for 7:30 PM and more on the line for Buffalo than for its opponent. The Sabres entered at 49-23-8, still able to clinch home ice in the first round and, potentially, the division that night.
Chicago came in at 28-38-14, last in the division by 10 points and described as a team with nothing to lose. That made the sabres vs blackhawks matchup a test of whether Buffalo could handle urgency without overplaying its top names, especially with the coaching staff advised not to burn out its best performers.
The numbers pointed to a game with a narrow margin for error on special teams. Buffalo ranked 18th on the power play at 19.9 percent and sixth on the penalty kill at 81.6 percent, while Chicago sat 28th on the power play at 17.5 percent and second on the penalty kill at 83.6 percent.
That backdrop is why the preview urged Buffalo to roll all lines and avoid asking Rasmus Dahlin to carry a 30-minute load. The Sabres had already secured a playoff spot before April 13, and the question in Chicago was whether they could bank the points and the seeding without leaning too heavily on the same players who got them there.
For Buffalo, this was the sort of late-season game that can shape the first round before it starts. The Sabres had the standings leverage, but the Blackhawks had the freedom of a team with little left to protect, and that combination often makes April hockey harder than the records suggest.
