Sabres Have Poor Leadership to Blame for 12-Game Losing Streak

The rest of the NHL has been making moves left and right as there have been waiver wire pickups for players with potential , and trades made for other players that don’t have no-trade clauses, and do not need to be convinced to come to Buffalo that Adams could have made an attempt for. Instead, he has watched his team lose game after game and hide behind the shield that is owner Terry Pegula, who recently gave a statement of confidence in him and the team during his trip to Montreal to only watch them get decimated 6-1 by the Canadiens. The moment that a new GM can be put in place that is willing to make moves with this team and treat it like an organization meant to win games rather than develop the rest of the league’s star players, is the moment that things will turn around, and Adams is not that guy.

Sabres’ Team Leadership Is Weak

Naming Dahlin the team captain this past offseason was a big deal as it solidified his place as their leader, and it showed that he was possibly ready to take the next step in his career. This losing streak has come largely while he has been out of the lineup, but he is not completely out of fault either. While he may not be on the ice to contribute directly to the game, he should still be a voice of leadership for them at all times, and as the losses keep piling up, that responsibility lands on him. As he returns to the lineup, it will be interesting to see how much things change, but even after their most recent loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs, there still wasn’t enough coming from him to warrant a justification of that letter resting on his chest.

The same logic applies to the alternate captains of Tuch, Cozens, Samuelsson, and Thompson. All of them have been present for every single game of this streak, and have not been contributing anything of substantial value during that stretch. Thompson has been the best, scoring seven points in that stretch, but as a group, there has been so little coming from them that it is embarrassing. It was refreshing to at least see a little bit of heart coming from Thompson when he stepped up to fight Morgan Rielly against the Maple Leafs on Friday evening, but as a whole, none of them has been a substantial presence on the ice.

Samuelsson should be a steady force in the defensive end and a physical one that causes momentum shifts with his plays. Tuch is a speed-driven forward that causes turnovers and makes great passes to other forwards who finish the plays that he starts. Cozens is supposed to be a physical forward who drives the net and makes offense happen in any way he can. Then, Thompson is the one who should be putting the puck in the back of the net. Those are the primary directives of each of those players, and they have not been doing what they should, and leading their team on the ice, so leading off the ice during a historic losing streak is likely not in the cards either. Sitting players only does so much. It may be time to move on from one or more of them.

Sabres Should Welcome Change

When things get this bad, change on the roster or in some capacity should be welcomed. Whatever this team is currently doing and working with is not clicking, and recognizing that they are the problem is the first step. It starts with getting Adams out of the GM’s chair and replacing him with someone more seasoned, or at the bare minimum, more accustomed to making moves that will stop the bleeding on a team that is desperate for something to give. Then, once he is gone, it is up to the players to respond to that change and play their way into a better scenario, on or off this team. Regardless of their motivations, the players that are here need to either step up, or move on. Losing this many in a row is unacceptable, and if it continues to trend downward, the Sabres may not just be on their way to a 14th season out of the playoffs, but looking at a third rebuild.