| 2008–09Buffalo Sabres | |
|---|---|
| Division | 3rdNortheast |
| Conference | 10thEastern |
| 2008–09 record | 41–32–9 |
| Home record | 23–15–3 |
| Road record | 18–17–6 |
| Goals for | 250 |
| Goals against | 234 |
| Team information | |
| General manager | Darcy Regier |
| Coach | Lindy Ruff |
| Captain | Craig Rivet |
| Alternate captains | Jochen Hecht Teppo Numminen Jason Pominville Jaroslav Spacek |
| Arena | HSBC Arena |
| Average attendance | Average: 18,533 Capacity: 99.2% Total: 296,522 |
| Team leaders | |
| Goals | Thomas Vanek (40) |
| Assists | Jason Pominville (46) |
| Points | Derek Roy (70) |
| Penalty minutes | Craig Rivet (125) |
| Plus/minus | Tim Connolly (+12) |
| Wins | Ryan Miller (34) |
| Goals against average | Ryan Miller (2.53) |
The2008–09Buffalo Sabres season was the39thseason of operation for the Buffalo Sabres in theNational Hockey League, their 38th season of play.
In their second pre-season game, the Sabres played theMontreal Canadiens inRoberval, Quebec, the 2008 winner of theKraft Hockeyville contest. In their newly renovated arena, Roberval hosted the preseason game on Tuesday, September 23, 2008. Montreal scored the first three goals, then held off Buffalo for a 3–2 win in at Benoit-Levesque Arena.[1]
| 2008 Pre-season Game Log: 2–4–1 (Home: 1–0–1; Road: 1–4–0) | ||||||||||
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| # | Date | Visitor | Score | Home | OT | Decision | Attendance | Record | Recap | |
| 1 | September 22 | Buffalo | 4–7 | Toronto | Enroth | 18,819 | 0–1–0 | [1] | ||
| 2 | September 23 | Buffalo | 2–3 | Montreal† | Dennis | ? | 0–2–0 | [2] | ||
| 3 | September 27 | Toronto | 2–3 | Buffalo | OT | Miller | 14,629 | 1–2–0 | [3] | |
| 4 | September 28 | Minnesota | 2–1 | Buffalo | SO | Lalime | 17,311 | 1–2–1 | [4] | |
| 5 | October 1 | Buffalo | 2–3 | Minnesota | Miller | 18,064 | 1–3–1 | [5] | ||
| 6 | October 2 | Buffalo | 5–2 | Columbus | Lalime | 11,314 | 2–3–1 | [6] | ||
| 7 | October 5 | Buffalo | 0–3 | Detroit | Miller | 15,983 | 2–4–1 | [7] | ||
| †Game was played inRoberval, Quebec. | ||||||||||
| GP | W | L | OTL | GF | GA | Pts | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | z –Boston Bruins | 82 | 53 | 19 | 10 | 274 | 196 | 116 |
| 2 | Montreal Canadiens | 82 | 41 | 30 | 11 | 249 | 247 | 93 |
| 3 | Buffalo Sabres | 82 | 41 | 32 | 9 | 250 | 234 | 91 |
| 4 | Ottawa Senators | 82 | 36 | 35 | 11 | 217 | 237 | 83 |
| 5 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 82 | 34 | 35 | 13 | 250 | 293 | 81 |
| R | Div | GP | W | L | OTL | GF | GA | Pts | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | z –Boston Bruins | NE | 82 | 53 | 19 | 10 | 274 | 196 | 116 | ||
| 2 | y –Washington Capitals | SE | 82 | 50 | 24 | 8 | 272 | 245 | 108 | ||
| 3 | y –New Jersey Devils | AT | 82 | 51 | 27 | 4 | 244 | 209 | 106 | ||
| 4 | Pittsburgh Penguins | AT | 82 | 45 | 28 | 9 | 264 | 239 | 99 | ||
| 5 | Philadelphia Flyers | AT | 82 | 44 | 27 | 11 | 264 | 238 | 99 | ||
| 6 | Carolina Hurricanes | SE | 82 | 45 | 30 | 7 | 239 | 226 | 97 | ||
| 7 | New York Rangers | AT | 82 | 43 | 30 | 9 | 210 | 218 | 95 | ||
| 8 | Montreal Canadiens | NE | 82 | 41 | 30 | 11 | 249 | 247 | 93 | ||
| 8.5 | |||||||||||
| 9 | Florida Panthers | SE | 82 | 41 | 30 | 11 | 234 | 231 | 93 | ||
| 10 | Buffalo Sabres | NE | 82 | 41 | 32 | 9 | 250 | 234 | 91 | ||
| 11 | Ottawa Senators | NE | 82 | 36 | 35 | 11 | 217 | 237 | 83 | ||
| 12 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NE | 82 | 34 | 35 | 13 | 250 | 293 | 81 | ||
| 13 | Atlanta Thrashers | SE | 82 | 35 | 41 | 6 | 257 | 280 | 76 | ||
| 14 | Tampa Bay Lightning | SE | 82 | 24 | 40 | 18 | 210 | 279 | 66 | ||
| 15 | New York Islanders | AT | 82 | 26 | 47 | 9 | 201 | 279 | 61 | ||
bold – qualified for playoffs,y – division winner,z – placed first in conference (and division)
AT – Atlantic Division,NE – Northeast Division,SE – Southeast Division
| 2008–09 Game Log | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The Buffalo Sabres failed to qualify for the2009 NHL Playoffs.
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| Regular season | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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†Denotes player spent time with another team before joining Sabres. Stats reflect time with Sabres only.
‡Traded mid-season. Stats reflect time with Sabres only.
| Regular Season | |||||||||
| Player | Milestone | Date achieved | |||||||
| Jason Pominville | 100th NHL assist | October 13, 2008 | |||||||
| Thomas Vanek | 200th NHL point | October 15, 2008 | |||||||
| Lindy Ruff | 400th NHL win | October 15, 2008 | |||||||
| Patrick Lalime | 400th NHL appearance | October 27, 2008 | |||||||
| Mark Mancari | 1st NHL goal | November 22, 2008 | |||||||
| Nathan Gerbe | 1st NHL game | December 6, 2008 | |||||||
| Nathan Gerbe | 1st NHL assist | December 13, 2008 | |||||||
| Chris Butler | 1st NHL game 1st NHL assist | December 19, 2008 | |||||||
| Tim Kennedy | 1st NHL game | December 27, 2008 | |||||||
| Derek Roy | 100th NHL Goal | February 13, 2009 | |||||||
| Drew Stafford | 100th NHL Point | February 13, 2009 | |||||||
| June 20,2008 | ToBuffalo Sabres 1st-round pick (12th overall) in2008 | ToLos Angeles Kings 1st-round pick (13th overall) in2008 3rd-round pick in2009 |
| June 21, 2008 | ToBuffalo Sabres 3rd-round pick (81st overall) in2008 4th-round pick (101st overall) in2008 | ToLos Angeles Kings 3rd-round pick (74th overall) in2008 |
| July 4, 2008 | ToBuffalo Sabres Craig Rivet 7th-round pick in2010 | ToSan Jose Sharks 2nd-round pick in2009 2nd-round pick in2010 |
| July 4, 2008 | ToBuffalo Sabres 3rd-round pick in2009 2nd-round pick in2010 | ToVancouver Canucks Steve Bernier |
| March 4, 2009 | ToBuffalo Sabres Mikael Tellqvist | ToPhoenix Coyotes 4th-round pick in2010 |
| March 4, 2009 | ToBuffalo Sabres Dominic Moore | ToToronto Maple Leafs 2nd-round pick in2009 |
| March 4, 2009 | ToBuffalo Sabres 2nd-round pick in2009 | ToEdmonton Oilers Ales Kotalik |
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Buffalo's picks at the2008 NHL entry draft inOttawa,Ontario.
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | Nationality | College/Junior Team |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 12 | Tyler Myers | D | Kelowna Rockets (WHL) | |
| 1 | 26 | Tyler Ennis | C | Medicine Hat Tigers (WHL) | |
| 2 | 44 | Luke Adam | C | St. John's Fog Devils (QMJHL) | |
| 3 | 81 | Corey Fienhage | D | Eastview High School (USHS-MN) | |
| 4 | 101 | Justin Jokinen | RW | Cloquet High School (USHS-MN) | |
| 4 | 104 | Jordon Southorn | D | P.E.I. Rocket (QMJHL) | |
| 5 | 134 | Jacob Lagace | LW | Chicoutimi Sagueneens (QMJHL) | |
| 6 | 164 | Nick Crawford | D | Saginaw Spirit (OHL) |
On June 11, the Buffalo Sabres signed a three-year deal with thePortland Pirates of theAmerican Hockey League, ending a 29-year affiliation with theRochester Americans.[4]