# 2000–01 Buffalo Sabres season

The 2000–01 Buffalo Sabres season was the 31st season for the team in the National Hockey League (NHL). The Sabres finished with a 46–30–5–1 record in the regular season, and won the Conference Quarterfinals (4–2) over the Philadelphia Flyers, but lost the Conference Semifinals (4–3) to the Pittsburgh Penguins. It was also the final time they made the playoffs before the 2004–05 NHL lockout.

## Regular season

The Sabres allowed the fewest goals (184), had the most shutouts (13), allowed the fewest power-play goals (40) and had the best penalty-kill percentage (88.02%).

### Final standings

Northeast Division :
| No. | CR | | GP | W | L | T | OTL | GF | GA | Pts |
| 1 | 2 | Ottawa Senators | 82 | 48 | 21 | 9 | 4 | 274 | 205 | 109 |
| 2 | 5 | Buffalo Sabres | 82 | 46 | 30 | 5 | 1 | 218 | 184 | 98 |
| 3 | 7 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 82 | 37 | 29 | 11 | 5 | 232 | 207 | 90 |
| 4 | 9 | Boston Bruins | 82 | 36 | 30 | 8 | 8 | 227 | 249 | 88 |
| 5 | 11 | Montreal Canadiens | 82 | 28 | 40 | 8 | 6 | 206 | 232 | 70 |
Note: CR = Conference rank; GP = Games played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; OTL=Overtime loss; GF = Goals for; GA = Goals against; Pts = Points Bolded teams qualified for the playoffs.
Eastern Conference :
| R | | Div | GP | W | L | T | OTL | GF | GA | Pts |
| 1 | Z- New Jersey Devils | AT | 82 | 48 | 19 | 12 | 3 | 295 | 195 | 111 |
| 2 | Y- Ottawa Senators | NE | 82 | 48 | 21 | 9 | 4 | 274 | 205 | 109 |
| 3 | Y- Washington Capitals | SE | 82 | 41 | 27 | 10 | 4 | 233 | 211 | 96 |
| 4 | X- Philadelphia Flyers | AT | 82 | 43 | 25 | 11 | 3 | 240 | 207 | 100 |
| 5 | X- Buffalo Sabres | NE | 82 | 46 | 30 | 5 | 1 | 218 | 184 | 98 |
| 6 | X- Pittsburgh Penguins | AT | 82 | 42 | 28 | 9 | 3 | 281 | 256 | 96 |
| 7 | X- Toronto Maple Leafs | NE | 82 | 37 | 29 | 11 | 5 | 232 | 207 | 90 |
| 8 | X- Carolina Hurricanes | SE | 82 | 38 | 32 | 9 | 3 | 212 | 225 | 88 |
| 8.5 |||||||||||
| 9 | Boston Bruins | NE | 82 | 36 | 30 | 8 | 8 | 227 | 249 | 88 |
| 10 | New York Rangers | AT | 82 | 33 | 43 | 5 | 1 | 250 | 290 | 72 |
| 11 | Montreal Canadiens | NE | 82 | 28 | 40 | 8 | 6 | 206 | 232 | 70 |
| 12 | Florida Panthers | SE | 82 | 22 | 38 | 13 | 9 | 200 | 246 | 66 |
| 13 | Atlanta Thrashers | SE | 82 | 23 | 45 | 12 | 2 | 211 | 289 | 60 |
| 14 | Tampa Bay Lightning | SE | 82 | 24 | 47 | 6 | 5 | 201 | 280 | 59 |
| 15 | New York Islanders | AT | 82 | 21 | 51 | 7 | 3 | 185 | 268 | 52 |
Divisions: AT – Atlantic, NE – Northeast, SE – Southeast
Z – Clinched Conference; Y – Clinched Division; X – Clinched Playoff spot

## Playoffs
### (4) Philadelphia Flyers vs. (5) Buffalo Sabres

The Flyers were entering this year's playoffs still trying to forget the Eastern Conference finals the previous year. In 2000, they had a 3–1 series lead against the eventual Stanley Cup champion New Jersey Devils, but lost the next three. Head coach Craig Ramsay was fired in the middle of the season, with general manager Bobby Clarke explaining his decision was based on the fact his Flyers were not "tough enough". As Ramsay's replacement, Clarke hired former teammate Bill Barber. The Sabres season was not as complicated, as head coach Lindy Ruff led his Sabres to one of their best regular seasons in recent history. In the playoffs, the two teams had met three times in four years, with the most recent series ending in with a Flyers win. The Sabres would look for revenge in the city of brotherly love.
After Philadelphia was stopped by Dominik Hasek and the Sabres in the first two games, one of which was ended by a Jay McKee overtime goal, the Flyers came out in Game 3 determined to win a game before losing the first three, and they did by one goal, but they lost again to the Sabres in Game 4 in overtime after Curtis Brown beat goaltender Roman Cechmanek. The Flyers won in Game 5 by a two-goal margin, but were hammered by the Sabres in Game 6: they gave up a total of eight goals, five of which were surrendered by Cechmanek, who was replaced early by Brian Boucher, who himself conceded three goals. Hasek recorded another shutout in Game 6 as the Sabres progressed to the conference semifinals.

### (5) Buffalo Sabres vs. (6) Pittsburgh Penguins

Entering the series, Buffalo held the best penalty killing (PK) squad which killed 88%, and Pittsburgh entered the series with the fifth best powerplay (PP) squad, which scored on 20% of its opportunities. However, the Buffalo PK and the Pittsburgh PP would underachieve during the series: Pittsburgh only scored 4 times on 27 opportunities (14%), so, consequently, Buffalo's PK percent dropped to 86. Buffalo also scored four power play goals, but on 33 chances (12%).
The Sabres and Penguins had evenly matched goaltending: Pittsburgh goaltenders saved 155 shots out of 172 (90.2%), and Buffalo's saved 166 shots out of 183 (90.8%). Both teams scored 17 goals during the series, and they also scored the same number of power play goals, four.
The Sabres just could not put the puck past Johan Hedberg in Game 1, with the Penguins needing only star center Mario Lemieux's first-period goal to finish off Buffalo and take an early series lead. Dominik Hasek gave up three goals, the other two of which came courtesy of centers Wayne Primeau and Jan Hrdina in the second half of the third period. Penguins winger Jaromir Jagr, who assisted on the Lemieux goal in the first period, injured his leg in the third period and would miss Game 2. Both teams were rather inept on the powerplay, wasting five conversion opportunities each.
In Game 2, the first period had no scoring, despite five different powerplays for the two teams. Then, about halfway through the second period, Penguins center Robert Lang scored a goal to give the Penguins a 1–0. Three minutes later, Sabres center Stu Barnes tied the game with the game's only powerplay goal. In the third period, Pittsburgh would score two more goals through defenceman Andrew Ference and an empty-netter by Alexei Kovalev.
For the second consecutive game, there were no goals scored in the first period of Game 3, despite a combined 17 shots on goal. The Penguins scored on the power play in the second period to take the lead, but Sabres center Curtis Brown would tie the game through an even-strength goal as the period would end at 1–1. Johan Hedberg had been solid in the net for the Penguins, but conceded 3 goals from just 11 shots in the third period. At about the halfway point in the third period, Sabres defenseman Jason Woolley scored the go-ahead goal, and three minutes later, Miroslav Satan would score another goal to give Buffalo a two-goal lead. Defenseman James Patrick finished off the game with an empty-net goal to send the Sabres to a 4–1 victory in Game 3.
Building off the road win in Game 3, Buffalo scored the first goal in Game 4 very early in the first period by center Jean-Pierre Dumont, but the Penguins would respond with a powerplay goal by center Martin Straka. Sabres center Curtis Brown scored a short-handed goal late in the first period to give Buffalo the edge heading into the locker rooms. The second period featured only one goal by Janne Laukkanen, set up by Jagr and Lemieux, and the game was tied up going into the third. Stu Barnes scored twice in the third period, and the Sabres went on to win the game by three, five goals to two. Both teams were effective on the powerplay, each scoring one goal on two chances. Coming off two straight home losses, Buffalo works hard on the road to swipe the two home games back, swinging the series back to Buffalo's advantage.
Penguins wingman Jaromir Jagr initiated the scoring in game five with a powerplay goal, the only goal in the first period. Pittsburgh would tack on another goal early on in the second period by winger Aleksey Morozov, but Sabres center Chris Gratton would respond with a powerplay goal, and the Penguins still had the lead until they gave up another short-handed goal to Curtis Brown. Curtis Brown's goal forced overtime, and Stu Barnes would score the game-winning goal to give Buffalo the series lead. The Sabres were down by two goals early but fought back and won the game by scoring three unanswered goals. Game five was the first overtime game in the string of three that would end the series.
Buffalo's right winger Maxim Afinogenov scored in the first half of the first period of game six to give the Sabres and early lead, a lead the team would need because Pittsburgh's Alexei Kovalev tied the game up early in the second period. Donald Audette would break up the tied game with an even-strength goal late in the second period. Pittsburgh would persevere and score the tying goal with less than a minute to go in the third period courtesy of Mario Lemieux, so this match headed to overtime. Martin Straka was the hero of the Penguins on that night, as he scored the game-winning goal about halfway through the overtime period. Both teams didn't score on any of the combined seven chances they saw, and the fabled game seven was due.
In game seven, the first period was an uneventful one, featuring no goals and few penalties, but the second period was a different story. Buffalo struck first as Jean-Pierre Dumont scored very early in the period, but that one-goal lead wouldn't last because Andrew Ference scored a powerplay goal to even things up at one goal apiece. Just about 30 seconds into the third period, Buffalo struck again as winger Steve Heinze scored a powerplay goal. Robert Lang would then score to tie the game up at two goals apiece. With a minute remaining in the third period and the Sabres applying pressure in the Penguins zone, Penguins defenceman Darius Kasparaitis grabbed the puck and threw it over the boards into the crowd. No penalty was called on the play and the game went to overtime. Later, Kasparaitis would win the game and the series for the Penguins as he scored off of passes from Jagr and Lang. Pittsburgh went on to face the New Jersey Devils in the conference finals.

## Schedule and results
### Regular season

2000–01 regular season :
October: 5–3–1–1 (home: 4–0–1–0; road: 1–3–0–1)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
1WOctober 5, 20004–2Chicago Blackhawks (2000–01)1–0–0–0Recap
2WOctober 7, 20005–3Los Angeles Kings (2000–01)2–0–0–0Recap
3LOctober 13, 20002–3@ Edmonton Oilers (2000–01)2–1–0–0Recap
4LOctober 14, 20000–4@ Vancouver Canucks (2000–01)2–2–0–0Recap
5LOctober 17, 20003–4@ Montreal Canadiens (2000–01)2–3–0–0Recap
6TOctober 20, 20002–2 OTMighty Ducks of Anaheim (2000–01)2–3–1–0Recap
7OTLOctober 21, 20004–5 OT@ Detroit Red Wings (2000–01)2–3–1–1Recap
8WOctober 25, 20004–1Carolina Hurricanes (2000–01)3–3–1–1Recap
9WOctober 27, 20002–1Toronto Maple Leafs (2000–01)4–3–1–1Recap
10WOctober 28, 20003–1@ Chicago Blackhawks (2000–01)5–3–1–1Recap :
November: 7–4–1–0 (home: 5–1–1–0; road: 2–3–0–0)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
11WNovember 3, 20005–4Montreal Canadiens (2000–01)6–3–1–1Recap
12LNovember 4, 20000–3@ Philadelphia Flyers (2000–01)6–4–1–1Recap
13WNovember 9, 20003–0New York Islanders (2000–01)7–4–1–1Recap
14WNovember 11, 20004–0@ New Jersey Devils (2000–01)8–4–1–1Recap
15WNovember 13, 20003–2 OTCalgary Flames (2000–01)9–4–1–1Recap
16TNovember 15, 20002–2 OTDallas Stars (2000–01)9–4–2–1Recap
17WNovember 17, 20003–1Minnesota Wild (2000–01)10–4–2–1Recap
18LNovember 18, 20001–4@ St. Louis Blues (2000–01)10–5–2–1Recap
19LNovember 22, 20001–3Philadelphia Flyers (2000–01)10–6–2–1Recap
20WNovember 24, 20003–2New York Rangers (2000–01)11–6–2–1Recap
21WNovember 25, 20005–3@ Montreal Canadiens (2000–01)12–6–2–1Recap
22LNovember 28, 20001–3@ Ottawa Senators (2000–01)12–7–2–1Recap :
December: 8–5–1–0 (home: 4–3–0–0; road: 4–2–1–0)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
23LDecember 1, 20004–6Pittsburgh Penguins (2000–01)12–8–2–1Recap
24WDecember 2, 20003–2@ Pittsburgh Penguins (2000–01)13–8–2–1Recap
25WDecember 5, 20003–2@ Montreal Canadiens (2000–01)14–8–2–1Recap
26WDecember 7, 20005–2New Jersey Devils (2000–01)15–8–2–1Recap
27LDecember 8, 20002–5@ New York Rangers (2000–01)15–9–2–1Recap
28WDecember 12, 20003–0@ Boston Bruins (2000–01)16–9–2–1Recap
29LDecember 15, 20003–5@ Carolina Hurricanes (2000–01)16–10–2–1Recap
30WDecember 16, 20003–2Florida Panthers (2000–01)17–10–2–1Recap
31TDecember 20, 20002–2 OT@ Washington Capitals (2000–01)17–10–3–1Recap
32LDecember 21, 20001–3Washington Capitals (2000–01)17–11–3–1Recap
33WDecember 23, 20005–2San Jose Sharks (2000–01)18–11–3–1Recap
34LDecember 26, 20003–5Pittsburgh Penguins (2000–01)18–12–3–1Recap
35WDecember 29, 20002–0Ottawa Senators (2000–01)19–12–3–1Recap
36WDecember 30, 20002–0@ New York Islanders (2000–01)20–12–3–1Recap :
January: 5–7–2–0 (home: 2–3–1–0; road: 3–4–1–0)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
37LJanuary 1, 20013–4Boston Bruins (2000–01)20–13–3–1Recap
38TJanuary 3, 20011–1 OT@ Toronto Maple Leafs (2000–01)20–13–4–1Recap
39TJanuary 5, 20013–3 OTToronto Maple Leafs (2000–01)20–13–5–1Recap
40WJanuary 6, 20012–0@ Nashville Predators (2000–01)21–13–5–1Recap
41LJanuary 9, 20011–2@ San Jose Sharks (2000–01)21–14–5–1Recap
42LJanuary 11, 20012–3@ Los Angeles Kings (2000–01)21–15–5–1Recap
43WJanuary 12, 20014–0@ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (2000–01)22–15–5–1Recap
44WJanuary 16, 20013–1Tampa Bay Lightning (2000–01)23–15–5–1Recap
45WJanuary 19, 20011–0Florida Panthers (2000–01)24–15–5–1Recap
46LJanuary 20, 20010–2@ Toronto Maple Leafs (2000–01)24–16–5–1Recap
47LJanuary 23, 20011–2Columbus Blue Jackets (2000–01)24–17–5–1Recap
48LJanuary 26, 20011–2Boston Bruins (2000–01)24–18–5–1Recap
49WJanuary 27, 20012–1@ New York Islanders (2000–01)25–18–5–1Recap
50LJanuary 31, 20012–5@ Florida Panthers (2000–01)25–19–5–1Recap :
February: 9–4–0–0 (home: 5–2–0–0; road: 4–2–0–0)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
51LFebruary 1, 20012–4@ Tampa Bay Lightning (2000–01)25–20–5–1Recap
52WFebruary 6, 20016–3@ New York Rangers (2000–01)26–20–5–1Recap
53WFebruary 7, 20012–1 OTNew York Islanders (2000–01)27–20–5–1Recap
54WFebruary 10, 20012–1 OT@ Ottawa Senators (2000–01)28–20–5–1Recap
55LFebruary 11, 20013–4Montreal Canadiens (2000–01)28–21–5–1Recap
56LFebruary 13, 20014–5@ Atlanta Thrashers (2000–01)28–22–5–1Recap
57WFebruary 15, 20013–1Atlanta Thrashers (2000–01)29–22–5–1Recap
58WFebruary 17, 20015–1New Jersey Devils (2000–01)30–22–5–1Recap
59WFebruary 19, 20012–0Ottawa Senators (2000–01)31–22–5–1Recap
60WFebruary 22, 20011–0@ New Jersey Devils (2000–01)32–22–5–1Recap
61LFebruary 23, 20013–7Phoenix Coyotes (2000–01)32–23–5–1Recap
62WFebruary 25, 20015–4Tampa Bay Lightning (2000–01)33–23–5–1Recap
63WFebruary 27, 20014–1@ Ottawa Senators (2000–01)34–23–5–1Recap :
March: 9–5–0–0 (home: 5–1–0–0; road: 4–4–0–0)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
64LMarch 1, 20010–2@ Philadelphia Flyers (2000–01)34–24–5–1Recap
65WMarch 3, 20013–2 OT@ Colorado Avalanche (2000–01)35–24–5–1Recap
66LMarch 4, 20011–4@ Dallas Stars (2000–01)35–25–5–1Recap
67WMarch 6, 20013–1@ Boston Bruins (2000–01)36–25–5–1Recap
68LMarch 9, 20010–4Edmonton Oilers (2000–01)36–26–5–1Recap
69WMarch 14, 20016–3New York Rangers (2000–01)37–26–5–1Recap
70WMarch 16, 20014–2Vancouver Canucks (2000–01)38–26–5–1Recap
71WMarch 17, 20013–2@ Washington Capitals (2000–01)39–26–5–1Recap
72WMarch 20, 20013–0Toronto Maple Leafs (2000–01)40–26–5–1Recap
73LMarch 21, 20010–1@ Carolina Hurricanes (2000–01)40–27–5–1Recap
74WMarch 24, 20013–1Carolina Hurricanes (2000–01)41–27–5–1Recap
75WMarch 26, 20014–0@ Atlanta Thrashers (2000–01)42–27–5–1Recap
76LMarch 27, 20011–4@ Pittsburgh Penguins (2000–01)42–28–5–1Recap
77WMarch 30, 20014–0Atlanta Thrashers (2000–01)43–28–5–1Recap :
April: 3–2–0–0 (home: 1–2–0–0; road: 2–0–0–0)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
78WApril 1, 20014–2@ Tampa Bay Lightning (2000–01)44–28–5–1Recap
79WApril 2, 20015–3@ Florida Panthers (2000–01)45–28–5–1Recap
80LApril 4, 20012–3Boston Bruins (2000–01)45–29–5–1Recap
81WApril 6, 20012–1Washington Capitals (2000–01)46–29–5–1Recap
82LApril 8, 20011–2Philadelphia Flyers (2000–01)46–30–5–1Recap :
Legend:
  Win (2 points)
  Loss (0 points)
  Tie (1 point)
  Overtime loss (1 point) :

### Playoffs

2001 Stanley Cup playoffs :
Eastern Conference Quarterfinals vs. (4) Philadelphia Flyers – Sabres win 4–2
GameResultDateScoreOpponentSeriesRecap
1WApril 11, 20012–1@ Philadelphia FlyersSabres lead 1–0Recap
2WApril 14, 20014–3 OT@ Philadelphia FlyersSabres lead 2–0Recap
3LApril 16, 20012–3Philadelphia FlyersSabres lead 2–1Recap
4WApril 17, 20014–3 OTPhiladelphia FlyersSabres lead 3–1Recap
5LApril 19, 20011–3@ Philadelphia FlyersSabres lead 3–2Recap
6WApril 21, 20018–0Philadelphia FlyersSabres win 4–2Recap :
Eastern Conference Semifinals vs. (6) Pittsburgh Penguins – Penguins win 4–3
GameResultDateScoreOpponentSeriesRecap
1LApril 26, 20010–3Pittsburgh PenguinsPenguins lead 1–0Recap
2LApril 28, 20011–3Pittsburgh PenguinsPenguins lead 2–0Recap
3WApril 30, 20014–1@ Pittsburgh PenguinsPenguins lead 2–1Recap
4WMay 2, 20015–2@ Pittsburgh PenguinsSeries tied 2–2Recap
5WMay 5, 20013–2 OTPittsburgh PenguinsSabres lead 3–2Recap
6LMay 8, 20012–3 OT@ Pittsburgh PenguinsSeries tied 3–3Recap
7LMay 10, 20012–3 OTPittsburgh PenguinsPenguins win 4–3Recap :
Legend:
  Win
  Loss :

## Player statistics
### Scoring

* Position abbreviations: C = Center; D = Defense; G = Goaltender; LW = Left Wing; RW = Right Wing
* † = Joined team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, signing) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Sabres only.
* ‡ = Left team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, release) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Sabres only.
| No. | Player | Pos | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs |
| No. | Player | Pos | GP | G | A | Pts | +/- | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | +/- | PIM |
| 81 | Miroslav Satan | LW | 82 | 29 | 33 | 62 | 5 | 36 | 13 | 3 | 10 | 13 | 4 | 8 |
| 17 | Jean-Pierre Dumont | RW | 79 | 23 | 28 | 51 | 1 | 54 | 13 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 4 | 8 |
| 41 | Stu Barnes | C | 75 | 19 | 24 | 43 | −2 | 26 | 13 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 0 | 2 |
| 77 | Chris Gratton | C | 82 | 19 | 21 | 40 | 0 | 102 | 13 | 6 | 4 | 10 | 0 | 14 |
| 93 | Doug Gilmour | C | 71 | 7 | 31 | 38 | 3 | 70 | 13 | 2 | 4 | 6 | −1 | 12 |
| 44 | Alexei Zhitnik | D | 78 | 8 | 29 | 37 | −3 | 75 | 13 | 1 | 6 | 7 | −3 | 12 |
| 61 | Maxim Afinogenov | RW | 78 | 14 | 22 | 36 | 1 | 40 | 11 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 1 | 4 |
| 52 | Dave Andreychuk | LW | 74 | 20 | 13 | 33 | 0 | 32 | 13 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 4 |
| 37 | Curtis Brown | C | 70 | 10 | 22 | 32 | 15 | 34 | 13 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 4 | 8 |
| 9 | Erik Rasmussen | LW | 82 | 12 | 19 | 31 | 0 | 51 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| 25 | Vaclav Varada | RW | 75 | 10 | 21 | 31 | −2 | 81 | 13 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 8 |
| 5 | Jason Woolley | D | 67 | 5 | 18 | 23 | 0 | 46 | 8 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 1 | 2 |
| 45 | Dmitri Kalinin | D | 79 | 4 | 18 | 22 | −2 | 38 | 13 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 4 |
| 4 | Rhett Warrener | D | 77 | 3 | 16 | 19 | 10 | 78 | 13 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 4 |
| 42 | Richard Smehlik | D | 56 | 3 | 12 | 15 | 6 | 4 | 10 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 4 |
| 29 | Vladimir Tsyplakov | LW | 36 | 7 | 7 | 14 | 2 | 10 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
| 3 | James Patrick | D | 54 | 4 | 9 | 13 | 9 | 12 | 13 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 2 |
| 57 | Steve Heinze† | RW | 14 | 5 | 7 | 12 | 6 | 8 | 13 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 0 | 10 |
| 55 | Denis Hamel | LW | 41 | 8 | 3 | 11 | −2 | 22 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 74 | Jay McKee | D | 74 | 1 | 10 | 11 | 9 | 76 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 6 |
| 32 | Rob Ray | RW | 63 | 4 | 6 | 10 | 2 | 210 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 28 | Donald Audette† | RW | 12 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 1 | 12 | 13 | 3 | 6 | 9 | −1 | 4 |
| 26 | Eric Boulton | LW | 35 | 1 | 2 | 3 | −1 | 94 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 39 | Dominik Hasek | G | 67 | 0 | 3 | 3 | | 22 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 14 |
| 16 | Chris Taylor | C | 14 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 43 | Martin Biron | G | 18 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 51 | Brian Campbell | D | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −2 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 35 | Mika Noronen | G | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 34 | Peter Skudra†‡ | G | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |

### Goaltending

* † = Joined team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, signing) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Sabres only.
* ‡ = Left team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, release) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Sabres only.
| No. | Player | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs |
| No. | Player | GP | W | L | T | SA | GA | GAA | SV% | SO | TOI | GP | W | L | SA | GA | GAA | SV% | SO | TOI |
| 39 | Dominik Hasek | 67 | 37 | 24 | 4 | 1726 | 137 | 2.11 | .921 | 11 | 3904 | 13 | 7 | 6 | 347 | 29 | 2.09 | .916 | 1 | 833 |
| 43 | Martin Biron | 18 | 7 | 7 | 1 | 427 | 39 | 2.55 | .909 | 2 | 918 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 35 | Mika Noronen | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 39 | 5 | 2.78 | .872 | 0 | 108 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 34 | Peter Skudra†‡ | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | | 0 | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |

## Awards and records
### Awards

| Type | Award/honor | Recipient |
| League (annual) | NHL First All-Star Team | Dominik Hasek (Goaltender) |
| League (annual) | Vezina Trophy | Dominik Hasek |
| League (annual) | William M. Jennings Trophy | Dominik Hasek |
| League (in-season) | NHL All-Star Game selection | Dominik Hasek |

### Milestones

| Milestone | Player | Date |
| First game | Eric Boulton | October 5, 2000 |
| First game | Mika Noronen | October 5, 2000 |
| 500th game played | Dominik Hasek | February 25, 2001 |

## Transactions

The Sabres were involved in the following transactions from June 11, 2000, the day after the deciding game of the 2000 Stanley Cup Finals, through June 9, 2001, the day of the deciding game of the 2001 Stanley Cup Finals.

### Trades

| Date | Details | Details |
| June 23, 2000 (2000-06-23) | To Buffalo Sabres Past considerations | To Columbus Blue Jackets Matt DavidsonJean-Luc Grand-Pierre5th-round pick in 20005th-round pick in 2001 |
| June 25, 2000 (2000-06-25) | To Buffalo Sabres 5th-round pick in 2001 | To Montreal Canadiens 6th-round pick in 2000 |
| June 25, 2000 (2000-06-25) | To Buffalo Sabres 7th-round pick in 2000 | To Tampa Bay Lightning 7th-round pick in 20019th-round pick in 2001 |
| June 25, 2000 (2000-06-25) | To Buffalo Sabres 8th-round pick in 2000 | To Calgary Flames 8th-round pick in 2001 |
| March 13, 2001 (2001-03-13) | To Buffalo Sabres Donald Audette | To Atlanta Thrashers Rights to Kamil Piros4th-round pick in 2001 |
| March 13, 2001 (2001-03-13) | To Buffalo Sabres Steve Heinze | To Columbus Blue Jackets 3rd-round pick in 2001 |

### Players acquired

| Date | Player | Former team | Term | Via | Ref |
| July 13, 2000 (2000-07-13) | Dave Andreychuk | Colorado Avalanche | 1-year | Free agency | |
| October 6, 2000 (2000-10-06) | Peter Skudra | Boston Bruins | | Waivers | |

### Players lost

| Date | Player | New team | Via |
| June 23, 2000 (2000-06-23) | Dwayne Roloson | Columbus Blue Jackets | Expansion draft |
| June 23, 2000 (2000-06-23) | Geoff Sanderson | Columbus Blue Jackets | Expansion draft |
| July 1, 2000 (2000-07-01) | Craig Fisher | | Contract expiration (VI) |
| July 1, 2000 (2000-07-01) | Mike Zanutto | | Contract expiration (UFA) |
| July 26, 2000 (2000-07-26) | Domenic Pittis | Edmonton Oilers | Free agency (VI) |
| August 9, 2000 (2000-08-09) | Jason Cipolla | Rochester Americans (AHL) | Free agency (UFA) |
| August 29, 2000 (2000-08-29) | Mark Dutiaume | B.C. Icemen (UHL) | Free agency (UFA) |
| September 8, 2000 (2000-09-08) | Randy Cunneyworth | | Retirement (III) |
| September 10, 2000 (2000-09-10) | Paul Kruse | San Jose Sharks | Free agency (UFA) |
| September 18, 2000 (2000-09-18) | Scott Nichol | Detroit Vipers (IHL) | Free agency (VI) |
| September 23, 2000 (2000-09-23) | Daniel Bienvenue | El Paso Buzzards (WPHL) | Free agency (UFA) |
| November 3, 2000 (2000-11-03) | Dixon Ward | Boston Bruins | Free agency (III) |
| November 14, 2000 (2000-11-14) | Peter Skudra | Boston Bruins | Waivers |
| May 12, 2001 (2001-05-12) | Doug Gilmour | | Retirement |

### Signings

| Date | Player | Term | Contract type |
| July 12, 2000 (2000-07-12) | Rob Ray | 1-year | Re-signing |
| July 20, 2000 (2000-07-20) | Alexei Zhitnik | 1-year | Re-signing |
| July 28, 2000 (2000-07-28) | Chris Taylor | 1-year | Re-signing |
| August 1, 2000 (2000-08-01) | Jason Woolley | 1-year | Re-signing |
| August 23, 2000 (2000-08-23) | James Patrick | 1-year | Re-signing |
| September 7, 2000 (2000-09-07) | Vladimir Tsyplakov | 1-year | Re-signing |
| September 7, 2000 (2000-09-07) | Jason Woolley | multi-year | Extension |
| September 8, 2000 (2000-09-08) | Denis Hamel | | Re-signing |
| September 8, 2000 (2000-09-08) | Jason Holland | | Re-signing |
| September 8, 2000 (2000-09-08) | Erik Rasmussen | | Re-signing |
| November 7, 2000 (2000-11-07) | Martin Biron | | Re-signing |

## Draft picks

Buffalo's draft picks at the 2000 NHL entry draft held at the Pengrowth Saddledome in Calgary, Alberta.
| Round | # | Player | Nationality | College/Junior/Club team (League) |
| 1 | 15 | Artyom Kryukov | Russia | Lokomotiv Yaroslavl (Russia) |
| 2 | 48 | Gerard Dicaire | Canada | Seattle Thunderbirds (WHL) |
| 4 | 111 | Ghyslain Rousseau | Canada | Baie-Comeau Drakkar (QMJHL) |
| 5 | 149 | Denis Denisov | Russia | CSKA Moscow Jr. (Russia) |
| 7 | 213 | Vasili Bizyayev | Russia | CSKA Moscow Jr. (Russia) |
| 7 | 220 | Paul Gaustad | United States | Portland Winterhawks (WHL) |
| 8 | 258 | Sean McMorrow | Canada | Kitchener Rangers (OHL) |
| 9 | 277 | Ryan Courtney | Canada | Windsor Spitfires (OHL) |

## Farm teams

Rochester Americans finished with a record of 46–22–9–3. They were swept out of the playoffs in the first round.