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Sabres First Quarter Report Card - Goaltenders

michael augello
·2 min read

The Buffalo Sabres showed some resilience in back-to-back games against the Anaheim Ducks and San Jose Sharks, falling behind in both contests in the second period, only to rally late in each contest to sweep the California leg of their four-game road swing.

The Sabres are 11-9-1 at the quarter mark of the regular season. They are in third place in the Atlantic Division with 23 points, which means it's a good time to evaluate where the club stands.

Goaltending

Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen (8-4-1, 2.55 GAA, .910 save %)

Luukkonen has pretty much started this season where he left off, as the Sabres workhorse between the pipes and providing a steady presence in goal. The 25-year-old has made two-thirds of the club’s starts and has eight of their 11 wins.

His usage would likely have been higher had a lower-body injury kept him out a week, but Luukkonen seems on pace to start between 55 to 60 games this season.

Grade – A-

Devon Levi (2-5-0, 3.95 GAA, .870 save %)

The heavy workload of Luukkonen made it difficult for the 22-year-old sophomore to get regular work and that resulted in an inability to maintain consistency. Relegated to playing mostly the second of back-to-back games, Levi struggled through the first six weeks of the regular season, and appeared shaky in relief against Montreal and in starts against St. Louis and Philadelphia. Once James Reimer was reclaimed off waivers, the Sabres opted to send the youngster to the AHL to get regular work.

Grade – C-

Related: Summer Depth Additions Paying Off For Sabres

James Reimer (1-0-0, 2.00 GAA, .939 save %)

Reimer’s first start as a Sabre against San Jose on Saturday is the kind of performance clubs look for in a backup goalie. The 34-year-old veteran was claimed off of waivers by Anaheim and re-claimed when Ducks goalie John Gibson returned. If Reimer can give Buffalo similar performances when called on, it would allow them to keep Levi in Rochester for an extended period to develop.

Grade - A

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