Sabres hold slight edge vs Canadiens
- Buffalo opens its second-round series with Montreal on Wednesday, May 6, after winning the Atlantic with 109 points and taking Boston out in six. - This matchup is basically a coin flip: the teams split the season series 2-2, while Montreal reached Round 2 by beating Tampa Bay 2-1 in Game 7. - Buffalo has home ice and a rest edge, but Montreal arrives with momentum and a hot goalie, so the gap looks tiny.
Buffalo and Montreal are one of those playoff matchups that feel bigger than a normal second-round series. Two young Atlantic teams got here by very different routes, and now they meet with almost no daylight between them. Buffalo has the cleaner résumé — division title, home ice, extra rest. Montreal has the hotter recent pulse — a Game 7 road win in Tampa and a goalie who suddenly looks like a problem. ### Why is this series getting so much attention? Because it is not the usual heavyweight-versus-underdog setup. Buffalo finished first in the Atlantic at 109 points. Montreal finished third with 106. That is close already, and the regular-season series ended 2-2, which tells you the same thing in a different language — neither team really solved the other. (nhl.com) ### What did Buffalo do to get here? The Sabres beat Boston 4-2 in the first round and finally cleared a franchise-sized emotional hurdle. That was Buffalo’s first series win since 2007, which is why this run already feels different in western New York. The core that was supposed to arrive years ago is now actually here, and the attack runs through Tage Thompson, Alex Tuch, and Rasmus Dahlin. (media.nhl.com) ### What did Montreal do to get here? Montreal had the harder path. The Canadiens needed seven games to get past Tampa Bay, and they finished it with a 2-1 win on Sunday, May 3. That matters because a Game 7 win on the road can change the mood of a team fast — especially a young one. Instead of arriving as the fresher team, Montreal arrives as the team that just proved it can survive a knife-edge game. (nhl.com) ### So where does Buffalo’s edge come from? Mostly from the boring stuff that wins playoff rounds. Buffalo gets home ice because it finished higher in the standings. Game 1 is at KeyBank Center on Wednesday, May 6, and the Sabres also had more recovery time because they wrapped up Boston earlier. That does not guarantee anything, but in a series this even, a little more rest and one extra home game are real advantages. (nhl.com) ### Why do people keep saying the margin is tiny? Because the star power lines up unusually well. Buffalo leans on Thompson and Tuch. Montreal counters with Cole Caufield and Nick Suzuki, and NHL EDGE preview stats framed Thompson-versus-Caufield as one of the defining scoring battles in the series. On defense, Dahlin gives Buffalo(nhl.com)s not one team dragging the other into its style — both teams can actually play. (nhl.com) ### What about the goalie question? That might be the whole swing factor. NHL’s series preview pointed straight at Montreal hoping Jakub Dobes stays hot. That is the catch for Buffalo. If the Sabres get normal goaltending at both ends, their depth and rest edge may show up over seven games. If Dobes keeps stealing moments, the series gets weird fast. (nhl.com) ### When are the games? Game 1 is Wednesday, May 6, in Buffalo at 7 p.m. ET. The official series schedule was finalized once Montreal eliminated Tampa Bay, with Buffalo holding home ice for Games 1, 2, 5, and 7 if needed. (nhl.com)se. Montreal has the sharper upset profile. That usually makes for the best kind of playoff series: one where every small edge matters, and none of them feels safe.
