Will The Sabres Ride With Reimer The Rest Of The Way?

Sabres starter Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen has started 53 games this season, but only twice since March 23rd.

The Buffalo Sabres will finish off their three-game homestand against the Carolina Hurricanes at KeyBank Center on Tuesday night, looking for their fifth win in a row and their seventh straight victory on home ice. The Sabres recent success can in part be attributed to goalie James Reimer, who has won six straight games and helped Buffalo climb out of a three-month stay at the bottom of the Eastern Conference.

Reimer’s success came at the same time that starter Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen struggled. Since the beginning of March, the big Finn has struggled, with a 4-7-0 record, 4.01 GAA, and .848 save %, while Reimer has gone 6-1-1, with a 2.98 GAA, and .900 save %.

With six games left on the schedule and only one back-to-back remaining, it remains an open question how much head coach Lindy Ruff will lean on Reimer to handle the goaltending workload. While winning is important and Reimer playing the way he has may give the Sabres a better chance to win, straightening out Luukkonen and getting him back on track would seem more important for the future.

Sabres 2023 fifth-round pick Scott Ratzlaff’s junior career likely concluded on an impressive note, as the Everett Silvertips eliminated the Seattle Thunderbirds in the first round of the WHL Playoffs.

The 20-year-old goaltender faced 272 shots (over 40 shots in every game) and posted a .919 save % in the six-game series, including 47 saves in a 1-0 double overtime loss on Monday. Ratzlaff was signed to a three-year entry-level contract last October, and now that his junior season is over, he could join the AHL Rochester Americans on a tryout contract for the rest of the season, as 2022 first-rounder Noah Ostlund did last April.