2017–18 Buffalo Sabres season

The 2017–18 Buffalo Sabres season was the 48th season for the National Hockey League franchise that was established on May 22, 1970. The Sabres missed the playoffs again, finishing last in the division for the second straight year and last overall in the league.
==Standings==
===Divisional standings===
===Conference standings===
==Off-season==
General manager Tim Murray and head coach Dan Bylsma were both fired at the end of the previous season. Two former Sabres players were hired in their places: Jason Botterill, at the time a front office executive with the Pittsburgh Penguins, was hired as general manager, while Hockey Hall of Fame defenseman Phil Housley, at the time defensive coordinator for the Nashville Predators, was named head coach.
The Sabres once again held a summer development camp during the second week of July. In contrast to the previous two seasons, no full Blue/White game was played; the four-team three-on-three tournament was reprised. Team White, led by 2017 first-round draft pick Casey Mittelstadt, won the tournament.http://buffalonews.com/2017/07/11/casey-mittelstadts-white-team-wins-development-camp-3-3-tournament/ The team will host its third annual Prospects Challenge in September; the tournament will expand to four teams, with the Pittsburgh Penguins joining the returning Sabres, New Jersey Devils and Boston Bruins in the tournament.
==Schedule and results==
===Preseason===
The Sabres released their preseason schedule on June 19, 2017.
2017 preseason game log: 1–4–1 (Home: 1–2–1 ; Road: 0–2–0)	2017 preseason game log: 1–4–1 (Home: 1–2–1 ; Road: 0–2–0)	2017 preseason game log: 1–4–1 (Home: 1–2–1 ; Road: 0–2–0)	2017 preseason game log: 1–4–1 (Home: 1–2–1 ; Road: 0–2–0)	2017 preseason game log: 1–4–1 (Home: 1–2–1 ; Road: 0–2–0)	2017 preseason game log: 1–4–1 (Home: 1–2–1 ; Road: 0–2–0)	2017 preseason game log: 1–4–1 (Home: 1–2–1 ; Road: 0–2–0)	2017 preseason game log: 1–4–1 (Home: 1–2–1 ; Road: 0–2–0)	2017 preseason game log: 1–4–1 (Home: 1–2–1 ; Road: 0–2–0)	2017 preseason game log: 1–4–1 (Home: 1–2–1 ; Road: 0–2–0)	2017 preseason game log: 1–4–1 (Home: 1–2–1 ; Road: 0–2–0)
# 	Date 	Visitor 	Score 	Home 	OT 	Decision 	Attendance 	Record 	Recap 	
1 	September 18 	Carolina 	3–2 	Buffalo 	OT 	Ullmark 	16,310 	0–0–1 	Recap 	
2 	September 19 	Pittsburgh 	3–4 	Buffalo 	OT 	— 	— 	1–0–1 	Recap 	
3 	September 22 	Buffalo 	0–3 	Toronto 	 	— 	— 	1–1–1 	Recap 	
4 	September 23 	Toronto 	3–1 	Buffalo 	 	Lehner 	17,345 	1–2–1 	Recap 	
5 	September 27 	Buffalo 	4–5 	Pittsburgh 	 	Johnson 	17,693 	1–3–1 	Recap 	
6 	September 29 	NY Islanders 	3–1 	Buffalo 	 	Lehner 	16,967 	1–4–1 	Recap 	
Notes:
Game was played at Pegula Ice Arena in University Park, Pennsylvania.
Game was played at Ricoh Coliseum in Toronto, Ontario.	
Notes:
Game was played at Pegula Ice Arena in University Park, Pennsylvania.
Game was played at Ricoh Coliseum in Toronto, Ontario.	
Notes:
Game was played at Pegula Ice Arena in University Park, Pennsylvania.
Game was played at Ricoh Coliseum in Toronto, Ontario.	
Notes:
Game was played at Pegula Ice Arena in University Park, Pennsylvania.
Game was played at Ricoh Coliseum in Toronto, Ontario.	
Notes:
Game was played at Pegula Ice Arena in University Park, Pennsylvania.
Game was played at Ricoh Coliseum in Toronto, Ontario.	
Notes:
Game was played at Pegula Ice Arena in University Park, Pennsylvania.
Game was played at Ricoh Coliseum in Toronto, Ontario.	
Notes:
Game was played at Pegula Ice Arena in University Park, Pennsylvania.
Game was played at Ricoh Coliseum in Toronto, Ontario.	
Notes:
Game was played at Pegula Ice Arena in University Park, Pennsylvania.
Game was played at Ricoh Coliseum in Toronto, Ontario.	
Notes:
Game was played at Pegula Ice Arena in University Park, Pennsylvania.
Game was played at Ricoh Coliseum in Toronto, Ontario.	
Notes:
Game was played at Pegula Ice Arena in University Park, Pennsylvania.
Game was played at Ricoh Coliseum in Toronto, Ontario.	
===Regular season===
The team's regular season schedule was published on June 22, 2017.
2017–18 game log 	2017–18 game log 	2017–18 game log 	2017–18 game log 	2017–18 game log 	2017–18 game log 	2017–18 game log 	2017–18 game log 	2017–18 game log 	2017–18 game log 	2017–18 game log
{| class="toccolours collapsible collapsed" style="width:100%;"	
{| class="toccolours collapsible collapsed" style="width:100%;"	
{| class="toccolours collapsible collapsed" style="width:100%;"	
{| class="toccolours collapsible collapsed" style="width:100%;"	
{| class="toccolours collapsible collapsed" style="width:100%;"	
{| class="toccolours collapsible collapsed" style="width:100%;"	
{| class="toccolours collapsible collapsed" style="width:100%;"	
{| class="toccolours collapsible collapsed" style="width:100%;"	
{| class="toccolours collapsible collapsed" style="width:100%;"	
{| class="toccolours collapsible collapsed" style="width:100%;"	
{| class="toccolours collapsible collapsed" style="width:100%;"
October: 3–7–2 (Home: 1–3–1 ; Road: 2–4–1)	October: 3–7–2 (Home: 1–3–1 ; Road: 2–4–1)	October: 3–7–2 (Home: 1–3–1 ; Road: 2–4–1)	October: 3–7–2 (Home: 1–3–1 ; Road: 2–4–1)	October: 3–7–2 (Home: 1–3–1 ; Road: 2–4–1)	October: 3–7–2 (Home: 1–3–1 ; Road: 2–4–1)	October: 3–7–2 (Home: 1–3–1 ; Road: 2–4–1)	October: 3–7–2 (Home: 1–3–1 ; Road: 2–4–1)	October: 3–7–2 (Home: 1–3–1 ; Road: 2–4–1)	October: 3–7–2 (Home: 1–3–1 ; Road: 2–4–1)	October: 3–7–2 (Home: 1–3–1 ; Road: 2–4–1)
# 	Date 	Visitor 	Score 	Home 	OT 	Decision 	Attendance 	Record 	Pts 	Recap
1 	October 5 	Montreal 	3–2 	Buffalo 	SO 	Lehner 	19,070 	0–0–1 	1 	Recap
2 	October 7 	Buffalo 	3–6 	NY Islanders 	 	Lehner 	15,234 	0–1–1 	1 	Recap
3 	October 9 	New Jersey 	6–2 	Buffalo 	 	Johnson 	17,697 	0–2–1 	1 	Recap
4 	October 12 	Buffalo 	2–3 	San Jose 	 	Lehner 	17,402 	0–3–1 	1 	Recap
5 	October 14 	Buffalo 	2–4 	Los Angeles 	 	Lehner 	18,230 	0–4–1 	1 	Recap
6 	October 15 	Buffalo 	3–1 	Anaheim 	 	Johnson 	15,821 	1–4–1 	3 	Recap
7 	October 17 	Buffalo 	4–5 	Vegas 	OT 	Johnson 	17,617 	1–4–2 	4 	Recap
8 	October 20 	Vancouver 	4–2 	Buffalo 	 	Johnson 	18,050 	1–5–2 	4 	Recap
9 	October 21 	Buffalo 	5–4 	Boston 	OT 	Lehner 	17,565 	2–5–2 	6 	Recap
10 	October 24 	Detroit 	0–1 	Buffalo 	 	Lehner 	16,882 	3–5–2 	8 	Recap
11 	October 25 	Buffalo 	1–5 	Columbus 	 	Johnson 	14,383 	3–6–2 	8 	Recap
12 	October 28 	San Jose 	3–2 	Buffalo 	 	Lehner 	18,892 	3–7–2 	8 	Recap
==Player statistics==
As of the conclusion of the regular season.
;Skaters
 Regular season
Player	 	 	 	 	 	
 	67	25	39	64	−25	32
 	81	24	37	61	−23	2
 	82	25	25	50	−24	26
 	76	15	29	44	−34	40
‡ 	61	20	20	40	−14	57
 	73	6 	35	41	−25	48
 	82	16	18	34	−17	8
 	48	7 	18	25	−10	14
 	79	5 	17	22	−15	37
 	74	13	6 	19	−8 	22
 	80	4 	13	17	−30	49
 	71	7 	8 	15	−12	26
† 	49	6 	8 	14	−13	6
 	53	3 	9 	12	−11	26
 	47	0 	10	10	−9 	18
 	59	1 	8 	9 	−19	36
 	37	3 	5 	8 	−8 	8
 	66	4 	4 	8 	−11	69
 	33	4 	2 	6 	−3 	14
 	6 	1 	4 	5 	1 	2
 	18	0 	5 	5 	−2 	8
 	12	3 	1 	4 	−2 	2
 	39	2 	2 	4 	−4 	6
 	21	2 	1 	3 	−6 	6
 	44	1 	1 	2 	−16	28
 	34	0 	2 	2 	−5 	15
 	3 	1 	0 	1 	−3 	0
 	7 	0 	1 	1 	−1 	2
 	18	0 	1 	1 	−9 	20
 	15	0 	0 	0 	−9 	20
 	3 	0 	0 	0 	1 	2
 	14	0 	0 	0 	−9 	2
 	9 	0 	0 	0 	−4 	4
 	5 	0 	0 	0 	−1 	2
† 	2 	0 	0 	0 	1 	0
;Goaltenders
 Regular season
Player	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	53	50	2,852:01	14	26	9	143	3.01	1,560	.908 	3	0	0	2
 	36	29	1,773:32	10	16	3	105	3.55	962 	.891 	0	0	0	0
 	5 	3 	240:18 	1 	2 	0	8 	2.00	123 	.935 	0	0	0	0
 	1 	0 	38:39 	0 	1 	0	0 	0.00	14 	1.000	0	0	0	0
†Denotes player spent time with another team before joining the Sabres. Stats reflect time with the Sabres only.
‡Denotes player was traded mid-season. Stats reflect time with the Sabres only.
Bold/italics denotes franchise record.
==Transactions==
The Sabres have been involved in the following transactions during the 2017–18 season.
===Trades===
Date	Details 	Details 	Ref
 	To Montreal Canadiens3rd-round pick in 2017 	To Buffalo SabresNathan Beaulieu 	
 	To Vegas Golden Knights6th-round pick in 2017 	To Buffalo SabresExpansion draft considerations 	
 	To Minnesota WildTyler EnnisMarcus Foligno3rd-round pick in 2018	To Buffalo Sabres seasonJason PominvilleMarco Scandella4th-round pick in 2018 	
 	To Montreal CanadiensNicolas Deslauriers 	To Buffalo SabresZach Redmond 	
 	To Detroit Red Wings5th-round pick in 2019 	To Buffalo SabresScott Wilson 	
 	To San Jose SharksEvander Kane 	To Buffalo SabresDanny O'ReganConditional 1st-round in 2019Conditional 4th-round pick in 2020	
 	To Arizona CoyotesHudson Fasching 	To Buffalo SabresRights to Brandon HickeyRights to Mike Sislo 	
Notes:
# The Vegas Golden Knights selected William Carrier in the 2017 NHL Expansion Draft. The draft pick was exchanged so that the Golden Knights would not select Linus Ullmark.
===Free agents acquired===
Date	Player 	Former team 	Contract terms(in U.S. dollars) 	Ref
 	Kyle Criscuolo	Grand Rapids Griffins 	2-year, $1.3 million 	
 	Seth Griffith 	Toronto Maple Leafs 	1-year, $650,000 	
 	Chad Johnson 	Arizona Coyotes 	1-year, $2.5 million 	
 	Jacob Josefson	New Jersey Devils 	1-year, $700,000 	
 	Kevin Porter 	Pittsburgh Penguins 	2-year, $1.3 million 	
 	Benoit Pouliot	Edmonton Oilers 	1-year, $1.15 million 	
 	Matt Tennyson 	Carolina Hurricanes 	2-year, $1.3 million 	
 	Adam Wilcox 	Florida Panthers 	1-year, $650,000 	
 	Andrew Oglevie	University of Notre Dame	2-year, $1.85 million entry-level contract	
 	Lawrence Pilut	HV71 	2-year, $2.7 million entry-level contract 	
===Free agents lost===
Date	Player 	New team 	Contract terms(in U.S. dollars)	Ref
 	Mat Bodie 	Tampa Bay Lightning	1-year 	
 	Erik Burgdoerfer	Ottawa Senators 	2-year, $1.3 million 	
 	Derek Grant 	Anaheim Ducks 	1-year, $650,000 	
 	Dmitry Kulikov 	Winnipeg Jets 	3-year 	
 	Anders Nilsson 	Vancouver Canucks 	2-year, $5 million 	
 	Cal O'Reilly 	Minnesota Wild 	2-year, $1.4 million 	
 	Cole Schneider 	New York Rangers 	2-year, $1.3 million 	
 	Jean Dupuy 	Toronto Marlies 	Unknown 	
 	Justin Kea 	Florida Everblades 	1-year 	
 	Brian Gionta 	Team USA 	Through Olympics, $0 	
 	Jacob Josefson 	Djurgårdens IF 	4-year 	
 	Zach Redmond 	Rochester Americans	2-year 	
===Claimed via waivers===
Player 	Previous team 	Date	Ref
Jordan Nolan	Los Angeles Kings	 	
===Lost via waivers===
Player	New team	Date	Ref
 	 	 	
===Players released===
Date	Player	Via	Ref
===Lost via retirement===
Date	Player	Ref
===Player signings===
Date	Player 	Contract terms(in U.S. dollars) 	Ref
 	Taylor Fedun 	2-year, $1.3 million, two-way contract 	
 	Johan Larsson 	2-year, $2.95 million 	
 	Robin Lehner 	1-year, $4 million 	
 	Evan Rodrigues 	2-year, $1.3 million 	
 	Nathan Beaulieu 	2-year, $4.8 million 	
 	Zemgus Girgensons 	2-year, $3.2 million 	https://www.nhl.com/news/zemgus-girgensons-signs-two-year-contract-with-buffalo/c-290699472
 	Jack Eichel 	8-year, $80 million contract extension 	
 	Cliff Pu 	3-year, $2.775 million entry-level contract	
 	Will Borgen 	3-year, $2.775 million entry-level contract	
 	Casey Mittelstadt 	3-year, $4.475 million entry-level contract	
 	Victor Olofsson 	2-year, $1.85 million entry-level contract 	
 	Casey Nelson 	2-year, $1.625 million contract extension 	
 	Rasmus Asplund 	3-year, $2.775 million entry-level contract	
 	Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen	3-year, $2.775 million entry-level contract	
==Draft picks==
Below are the Buffalo Sabres' selections at the 2017 NHL Entry Draft, which was held on June 23 and 24, 2017 at the United Center in Chicago.
Round	# 	Player 	Pos	Nationality 	College/Junior/Club Team (League)
1 	8 	Casey Mittelstadt 	C 	United States	Green Bay Gamblers (USHL)
2 	37 	Marcus Davidsson 	C 	Sweden 	Djurgårdens IF (SHL)
2 	541	Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen	G 	Finland 	HPK U20 (Jr. A SM-liiga)
3 	892	Oskari Laaksonen 	D 	Finland 	Ilves U20 (Jr. A SM-liiga)
4 	99 	Jacob Bryson 	D 	Canada 	Providence College (Hockey East)
7 	192	Linus Weissbach 	LW 	Sweden 	Tri-City Storm (USHL)
Draft notes:
# The Minnesota Wild's second-round pick went to the Buffalo Sabres as the result of a trade on March 2, 2015 that sent Chris Stewart to Minnesota in exchange for this pick.
# The Washington Capitals' third-round pick went to the Buffalo Sabres as the result of a trade on February 23, 2016 that sent Mike Weber to Washington in exchange for this pick.
==References==
Category:Buffalo Sabres seasons
Buffalo Sabres