Sabres: three burning questions for 2024-25 season

The Buffalo Sabers will begin their 2024-25 season in less than two months. While the Sabers have had a busy offseason, there’s no doubt they have some things they need to answer for throughout the campaign. Because of this, let’s now discuss three burning questions surrounding the Sabers and their players heading into the 2024-25 campaign.

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Will Devon Levi take the next step?

Devon Levi is considered to have a multitude of advantages. He dominated at the college level at Northeastern University and was outstanding for the Rochester Americans last season. However, he struggled to adjust to the NHL at times when he was with the Sabers in 2023-24. Will this change in 2024-25?

There is undoubtedly a good chance that Levi will take another step forward next season. Although Levi displayed a .899 SV% in 23 games for the Sabers in 2023-24, his play improved noticeably when he was called up late in the year. Levi will now look to carry that into 2024-25. If that happens, the Sabers will have two impactful young goaltenders between the pipes, which would make them harder to beat. They also have veteran James Reimer as additional insurance.

Who will move up to the Sabres’ Top Six?

Throughout the 2024 NHL offseason, the Sabers have been linked to several notable forwards. The main aim of the summer was to add a winger with an impact in the top six, but this did not materialise. After standing out in the trade market, the Sabers opted to strengthen the bottom six.

With the Sabers shopping Jeff Skinner and not finding a permanent replacement, they have a top-six left tackle to contend with in training camp. Zach Benson and Jason Zucker are two clear candidates for the role. Top prospect Jiri Kulich could also be a dark horse candidate as he can play both on the wing and in the middle.

Is this finally the year?

The biggest question surrounding the Sabers heading into the 2024-25 season is whether they can finally break their 13-year playoff drought. Many pegged the 2023-24 campaign as the year they would do it, but unfortunately, they took a step back.

However, after making several changes to their group, there should be some optimism regarding the Sabres’ chances. The bottom six look better on paper as they have added Zucker, Ryan McLeod, Sam Lafferty, Nicolas Aube-Kubel and Beck Malenstyn. They also have young players like Benson, Levi, JJ Peterka and Jack Quinn who have the potential to take bigger steps.

It will be fascinating to see if this is the year the Sabers finally break their drought.

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