2013–14 Buffalo Sabres season

The 2013–14 Buffalo Sabres season was the 44th season for the National Hockey League (NHL) franchise that was established on May 22, 1970.[3] The Sabres moved to the realigned Atlantic Division, which included the previous season's Northeast Division with the addition of the Tampa Bay Lightning, Florida Panthers and Detroit Red Wings.[4] Ron Rolston, who started the season as head coach, was fired after 20 games and replaced by Ted Nolan, who had previously coached the team from 1995 to 1997. In terms of point percentage, this is the worst season in Sabres franchise history, and the third worst in the salary cap era behind the 2016-2017 Colorado Avalanche and the 2019-2020 Detroit Red Wings.

2013–14 Buffalo Sabres
Division8th Atlantic
Conference16th Eastern
2013–14 record21–51–10
Home record13–21–7
Road record8–30–3
Goals for157
Goals against248
Team information
General managerDarcy Regier (Oct. 2 – Nov. 13)
Tim Murray (Jan. 9 – Apr. 13)
CoachRon Rolston (Oct. 2 – Nov. 13)
Ted Nolan (interim, Nov. 13 – Apr. 13)
CaptainThomas Vanek (Oct. 2–27)
Steve Ott (Oct. 27 – Feb. 28)
Vacant (Feb. 28 – Apr. 13)
Alternate captainsChristian Ehrhoff
Henrik Tallinder
Drew Stafford (Mar.–Apr.)[1]
ArenaFirst Niagara Center
Average attendance18,543 (95.8%)[2]
(37 games)
Minor league affiliate(s)Rochester Americans (AHL)
Team leaders
GoalsTyler Ennis (21)
AssistsChristian Ehrhoff (27)
PointsCody Hodgson (43)
Penalty minutesJohn Scott (96)
Plus/minusLuke Adam
Johan Larsson
Torrey Mitchell (0)
WinsRyan Miller (15)
Goals against averageMichal Neuvirth (2.56)

Off-season

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Ron Rolston was made the permanent head coach when Darcy Regier removed the interim tag from his title. Regier did not interview any other candidates for the position.[5] Rolston replaced Lindy Ruff who was fired the season before after serving as head coach for nearly 16 seasons.

Training camp

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The Sabres' training camp saw the arrival of many highly touted prospects into the Sabres' lineup. Newly acquired first round picks Rasmus Ristolainen and Nikita Zadorov both made the opening day roster along with 2012 first round picks Mikhail Grigorenko, Zemgus Girgensons and 2011 first round pick Joel Armia. Armia and Zadorov were both injured in the pre-season and would not play right away.[6]

The pre-season saw the Sabres involved in a controversial game. In a road game at the Toronto Maple Leafs, a fight between Corey Tropp and Toronto winger Jamie Devane ended with Tropp injured. On the ensuing faceoff, Sabres' enforcer John Scott lined up opposite to Phil Kessel and attempted to engage him in a fight. A line brawl followed in which 209 minutes in penalties were handed out, including 11 fighting majors and 14 ten-minute misconduct penalties. During the fight, Maple Leaf David Clarkson would leave the bench to fight. Clarkson would later be suspended by the NHL for ten regular season games.[7] Phil Kessel received a three-game pre-season game ban for slashing Scott with the intent to injure.[8] Sabres Head Coach Ron Rolston was fined an undisclosed amount for "player selection." The fine was controversial due to the fact that Scott was on the ice the previous shift and the Leafs, being the home team, had last change.[9] Corey Tropp suffered a broken jaw and concussion in the fight.[10]

The day before the start of the regular season, Rolston named the new team captain. With the trade of team captain Jason Pominville the year before, the captaincy had remained vacant. Rolston used a rotating captaincy in the preseason. Steve Ott and Thomas Vanek were named co-captains for the 2013–14 season.[11] Ott would wear the "C" for all road games and Vanek would wear it at home. Christian Ehrhoff would wear an "A" during all games.

Regular season

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Opening the season with a lineup that featured Zemgus Girgensons, Mikhail Grigorenko, Rasmus Ristolainen and Nikita Zadorov, the 2013–14 Sabres were the first team since the 1995–96 season to include four teenagers.[12]

On November 13, 2013, general manager Darcy Regier and Head Coach Ron Rolston were relieved of their duties. Former Sabre Pat LaFontaine was hired as President of Hockey Operations (a position that had been left vacant since the departure of Larry Quinn in 2011) and Ted Nolan was hired as the interim head coach.[13] After hiring Ottawa Senators' Assistant general manager Tim Murray to the vacant general manager position on January 9,[14] Pat LaFontaine resigned as President of Hockey Operations on March 1, 2014, to return to his previous position with the NHL.[15]

The Sabres made numerous trades leading up to and right before the March 5 trading deadline.[16] On February 28, they traded away veterans Ryan Miller and Steve Ott to the St. Louis Blues. Then on March 5, the NHL trade deadline day, they made three separate trades with the Minnesota Wild, Washington Capitals and Los Angeles Kings.

Standings

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Atlantic Division
Pos Team GP W L OTL ROW GF GA GD Pts
1 p – Boston Bruins 82 54 19 9 51 261 177 +84 117
2 x – Tampa Bay Lightning 82 46 27 9 38 240 215 +25 101
3 x – Montreal Canadiens 82 46 28 8 40 215 204 +11 100
4 x – Detroit Red Wings 82 39 28 15 34 222 230 −8 93
5 Ottawa Senators 82 37 31 14 30 236 265 −29 88
6 Toronto Maple Leafs 82 38 36 8 29 231 256 −25 84
7 Florida Panthers 82 29 45 8 21 196 268 −72 66
8 Buffalo Sabres 82 21 51 10 14 157 248 −91 52
Source: National Hockey League
p – Clinched Presidents' Trophy; x – Clinched playoff spot
Eastern Conference Wild Card
Pos Div Team GP W L OTL ROW GF GA GD Pts
1 ME x – Columbus Blue Jackets 82 43 32 7 38 231 216 +15 93
2 AT x – Detroit Red Wings 82 39 28 15 34 222 230 −8 93
3 ME Washington Capitals 82 38 30 14 28 235 240 −5 90
4 ME New Jersey Devils 82 35 29 18 35 197 208 −11 88
5 AT Ottawa Senators 82 37 31 14 30 236 265 −29 88
6 AT Toronto Maple Leafs 82 38 36 8 29 231 256 −25 84
7 ME Carolina Hurricanes 82 36 35 11 34 207 230 −23 83
8 ME New York Islanders 82 34 37 11 25 225 267 −42 79
9 AT Florida Panthers 82 29 45 8 21 196 268 −72 66
10 AT Buffalo Sabres 82 21 51 10 14 157 248 −91 52
Source: National Hockey League
x – Clinched playoff spot

Schedule and results

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Pre-season

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Regular season

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2013–14 Game Log
Overall: 21–51–10 (Home: 13–21–7; Road: 8–30–3)

Legend:   Win (2 points)   Loss (0 points)   Overtime/shootout loss (1 point)

Playoffs

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The Sabres failed to qualify for the playoffs for the third straight year.

Player stats

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Final stats

Skaters
Goaltenders
Regular Season[17]
Player GP GS TOI W L OT GA GAA SA SV% SO G A PIM
Ryan Miller 40 40 2,383:47 15 22 3 108 2.72 1411 0.923 0 0 2 0
Jhonas Enroth 28 26 1,574:14 4 17 5 74 2.82 834 0.911 0 0 0 0
Matt Hackett 8 8 426:06 1 6 1 22 3.10 239 0.908 0 0 0 0
Nathan Lieuwen 7 5 363:22 1 4 0 18 2.98 191 0.906 0 0 0 0
Michal Neuvirth 2 2 117:03 0 2 0 5 2.56 98 0.949 0 0 0 0
Connor Knapp 2 1 76:31 0 0 1 4 3.12 32 0.875 0 0 0 0

Denotes player spent time with another team before joining the Sabres. Stats reflect time with the Sabres only.
Denotes player was traded mid-season. Stats reflect time with the Sabres only.
Bold/italics denotes franchise record.


Milestones

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Transactions

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The Sabres have been involved in the following transactions during the 2013–14 season:

Trades

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June 30, 2013[18] To Carolina Hurricanes
Andrej Sekera
To Buffalo Sabres
Jamie McBain
2nd-round pick in 2013 – J. T. Compher
July 7, 2013[19] To New Jersey Devils
Riley Boychuk
To Buffalo Sabres
Henrik Tallinder
October 27, 2013[20] To New York Islanders
Thomas Vanek
To Buffalo Sabres
Matt Moulson
1st-round pick in 2015[a] – Colin White
2nd-round pick in 2015 – Brendan Guhle
December 19, 2013[21] To Edmonton Oilers
Conditional 6th-round pick in 2014[b]
To Buffalo Sabres
Linus Omark
February 28, 2014[22] To St. Louis Blues
Ryan Miller
Steve Ott
To Buffalo Sabres
Jaroslav Halak
Chris Stewart
William Carrier
1st-round pick in 2015[c] – Jack Roslovic
Conditional 3rd-round pick in 2016Linus Nassen
March 5, 2014[23] To Los Angeles Kings
Brayden McNabb
Jonathan Parker
2nd-round pick in 2014 – Alex Lintuniemi
2nd-round pick in 2015Erik Cernak
To Buffalo Sabres
Nicolas Deslauriers
Hudson Fasching
March 5, 2014[24] To Washington Capitals
Jaroslav Halak
3rd-round pick in 2015 – Robin Kovacs
To Buffalo Sabres
Michal Neuvirth
Rostislav Klesla
March 5, 2014[25] To Minnesota Wild
Matt Moulson
Cody McCormick
To Buffalo Sabres
Torrey Mitchell
2nd-round pick in 2014[d] – Vitek Vanecek
2nd-round pick in 2016[e] – Chad Krys

Draft picks

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Buffalo Sabres' picks at the 2013 NHL Entry Draft, to be held in Newark, New Jersey on June 30, 2013.[49]

Round # Player Pos Nationality College/Junior/Club team (League)
1 8 Rasmus Ristolainen Defense   Finland TPS (SM-liiga)
1 16[a] Nikita Zadorov Defense   Russia CSKA Moscow (KHL)
2 35[b] J. T. Compher Center   United States U.S. National Team Development Program (USHL)
2 38 Connor Hurley Center   United States Edina High School (USHS-MN)
2 52[c] Justin Bailey Right wing   United States Kitchener Rangers (OHL)
3 69 Nicholas Baptiste Right wing   Canada Sudbury Wolves (OHL)
5 129 Cal Petersen Goaltender   United States Waterloo Black Hawks (USHL)
5 130[d] Gustav Possler Right wing   Sweden Modo Hockey J20 (J20 SuperElit)
5 143[e] Anthony Florentino Defense   United States South Kent School (USHS-CT)
6 159 Sean Malone Center   United States U.S. National Team Development Program (USHL)
7 189 Eric Locke Center   United States Saginaw Spirit (OHL)
Draft notes[50]

References

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  1. ^ MYERS MISSES PRACTICE, EXPECTED TO PLAY TUESDAY
  2. ^ "2013–2014 NHL Attendance – National Hockey League – ESPN". ESPN. Archived from the original on December 14, 2008.
  3. ^ National Hockey League (2010). The National Hockey League Official Guide & Record Book/2011. Triumph Books. p. 27. ISBN 978-1-60078-422-4.
  4. ^ Dan Rosen (June 26, 2013). "Realignment plan approved by Board of Governors". NHL.com.
  5. ^ "Ron Rolston introduced as Sabres' permanent coach". Buffalo News. May 7, 2013. Retrieved October 2, 2013.
  6. ^ "FOLIGNO LIKELY TO MISS OPENER". Sabres.com. NHL.com. Retrieved October 2, 2013.
  7. ^ Stubits, Brian. "David Clarkson won't waste people's time; decides against appeal". CBS. CBS. Retrieved October 2, 2013.
  8. ^ Stubits, Brian. "Phil Kessel suspended for remainder of preseason for slashing in brawl". CBS. CBS. Retrieved October 2, 2013.
  9. ^ Stubits, Brian. "Report: Several coaches 'irate' at Ron Rolston's 'player selection' fine". CBS. CBS. Retrieved October 2, 2013.
  10. ^ Ryndak, Chris. "TROPP OUT 5–6 WEEKS WITH BROKEN JAW". Sabres.com. NHL.com. Retrieved October 2, 2013.
  11. ^ "OTT AND VANEK TO SHARE CAPTAINCY". Sabres.com. NHL.com. Retrieved October 2, 2013.
  12. ^ "@PR_NHL status update". Twitter. Retrieved October 20, 2013.
  13. ^ LaFONTAINE & NOLAN RETURN TO THE SABRES
  14. ^ Snow, Kevin (January 9, 2014). "MURRAY BRINGS A NO-NONSENSE APPROACH TO SABRES GM POSITION". Buffalo Sabres. Retrieved March 1, 2014.
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  26. ^ a b "SABRES SIGN DEFENSEMEN SULZER, BAGNALL – Buffalo Sabres – News". Buffalo Sabres. July 6, 2013.
  27. ^ "TARDIF AGREES TO ONE-YEAR DEAL – Buffalo Sabres – News". Buffalo Sabres. August 5, 2013.
  28. ^ "Blues Sign Forward Mark Mancari – St Louis Blues – News". St. Louis Blues. July 5, 2013.
  29. ^ "Jets agree to terms with Adam Pardy – Winnipeg Jets – News Articles". Winnipeg Jets. July 6, 2013.
  30. ^ "Hurricanes Agree to Terms with Nathan Gerbe – Carolina Hurricanes – News". Carolina Hurricanes. July 6, 2013.
  31. ^ SABRES CLAIM D'AGOSTINI OFF WAIVERS
  32. ^ KONOPKA CLAIMED OFF WAIVERS BY BUFFALO
  33. ^ SABRES CLAIM CORY CONACHER
  34. ^ Blue Jackets claim forward Corey Tropp off waivers from Buffalo
  35. ^ SABRES TERMINATE OMARK CONTRACT
  36. ^ "SABRES AGREE TO TERMS WITH ELLIS ON TWO-YEAR DEAL – Buffalo Sabres – News". Buffalo Sabres. July 3, 2013.
  37. ^ "SABRES SIGN RISTOLAINEN TO ENTRY-LEVEL CONTRACT – Buffalo Sabres – News". Buffalo Sabres. July 12, 2013.
  38. ^ a b "SABRES SIGN FLYNN AND CRAWFORD – Buffalo Sabres – News". Buffalo Sabres. July 19, 2013.
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  41. ^ "SABRES RE-SIGN CODY HODGSON". sabres.nhl.com. nhl.com. Retrieved September 26, 2013.
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  50. ^ "2013 NHL Entry Draft Pending Transactions". Pro Sports Transactions. Retrieved June 15, 2013.
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  55. ^ "BRENNAN DEALT TO PANTHERS – Buffalo Sabres – News". Buffalo Sabres. March 15, 2013.