Sabres’ Win Streak Ends At 10, But Now It’s On Buffalo To Shake Off Loss And Start A New Win Streak

We knew a loss for the Buffalo Sabres was coming – the Sabres weren’t going to win their final 53 games of the NHL’s current regular-season, and they fell to the last-place-in-the-Eastern-Conference Columbus Blue Jackets by a 5-1 score on Saturday. But Buffalo’s 10-game winning streak has only gotten them back in the Stanley Cup playoff conversation, as their 11-14-4 start to the season dug them a considerable hole to claw their way out from.

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And even now, after winning ten straight, the Sabres (a) are not in a playoff position, and (b) they’re only four standings points ahead of the Blue Jackets. This tells you all you need to know about the overall parity/mediocrity in the league, but it also tells you that the ultimate judgement on the Sabres’ season will be in how they respond to their loss in their latest game.

If the Sabres suddenly swing the other way on a five-or-six-game losing streak, they’ll almost assuredly be back in the Eastern basement again, and all this goodwill they’ve built up between the start of the 10-game win streak back on Dec. 9 will melt away in the heat of fan resentment. However, if they bounce back, not only could they catch the third-place Montreal Canadiens (who are only four points ahead of Buffalo), but the second-place Tampa Bay Lightning (five points ahead of the Sabres) and first-place Detroit Red Wings (six points ahead of Buffalo) are also realistic targets for the Sabres.

So it’s not how the streak ended that’s the issue. It’s the response Buffalo has in their final 42 games that will dictate whether 14 years of fan anger will extend another year, or whether the Sabres can finally get over the hump and give their paying customers the satisfaction they’ve deserved by getting into the playoffs.

In 2026, The Goal For The Sabres Couldn’t Be Clearer: It’s Playoffs-Or-Bust For Buffalo The Buffalo Sabres ended the calendar year 2025 on a high. But in 2026, Sabres GM Jarmo Kekalainen has to do everything in his power to get his team into the Stanley Cup playoffs and end Buffalo’s 14-year playoff drought. And that means going all-in by or before the trade deadline.

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As we’ve argued, Buffalo GM Jarmo Kekalainen should be going all-in on a playoff spot this season. And the good news is that the slate is now clean after this 10-game win streak. There’s no more deficit to worry about. The opportunity is there for the taking for the Sabres, and their next game – on Tuesday, against the lowly Vancouver Canucks – is one they absolutely have to win, less the worrywarts in Buffalo’s fan base have more material to dwell on.

The Sabres’ 10-game streak gave Sabres fans legitimate hope that this team may at long last be different. Now it’s on Buffalo to demonstrate they can shake off a one-off, keep their eyes on the prize, and put together win streaks on the regular the rest of the way this year.