Assistant coach Seth Appert has spent the offseason working to improve the Buffalo Sabres’ power play, which last season ranked 24th in the NHL with an 18.8 percent conversion rate. Appert collaborated with the analytics department and Sam Ventura, vice president of hockey strategy and research, to analyze both data and game footage. Their goal was to identify weaknesses from the 2024-25 season and learn from successful teams.
The Sabres’ top power-play unit—consisting of Jason Zucker, Tage Thompson, Alex Tuch, Josh Norris, and Rasmus Dahlin—has already shown progress during preseason games. In one instance, Thompson scored on a one-timer against Detroit. Dahlin also made a notable end-to-end rush during a game against Pittsburgh.
Appert explained his approach: “I think when players have clarity – clarity of purpose, collectively, but also clarity of what is available against this opponent that night – now, their skill, their creativity can start to take over. I believe that predictability and structure can lead to creativity and speed.”
He added: “… I liked the end of last season, in terms of the power play, and I like the process and the work they’re putting in in the preseason to give ourselves a chance to be a successful unit together.”
One key area identified for improvement is starting strong. The team began last season with an 0-for-22 stretch on the power play but improved after December 21—when Zucker returned to his net-front role and Dahlin came back from injury—raising their conversion rate to 22.6 percent over the final part of the year.
Appert said, “I think confidence and momentum on the power play are huge, and I think that they earned some of that in the last 50 games last year. So, they’re coming in probably in a better spot than we started the year before, from that perspective.”
Players and coaches also emphasized outworking opposing penalty killers. Alex Tuch said, “I think our willingness to just work and try to outwork the penalty kill has been a lot better than it was last year.” Rasmus Dahlin added: “You’ve got to have a 5-on-5 mentality; you’ve got to battle out there and do everything quick.” Zucker noted: “There’s times when power plays can get lulled into, ‘We’ve got an extra guy, so it’s just gonna be easy.’ And PKs, obviously, are known to work pretty damn hard. So, you have to have that mentality of outworking them.”
Appert pointed out that most power-play goals across top NHL teams come not from set plays but from recovering loose pucks and winning battles along the boards: “We looked at the best teams in the league: 70-plus percent of their power-play goals weren’t on pretty, set plays. Those are the ones that you see on the highlights, but they’re usually off of recoveries and loose puck scrums.”
The addition of Josh Norris is expected to strengthen faceoff performance—a critical factor for maintaining possession on power plays. Last season, Buffalo won only 50.1 percent of its draws with an extra skater (ranking 25th in the NHL), while Norris has averaged over 53 percent throughout his career. He also brings proven scoring ability; since 2021-22 he ranks among the top players in goals per minute played with a man advantage.
Appert praised Norris’s impact: “Just holding onto the puck and trying to make the right play every time and not forcing it if you don’t have to,” said Norris. Zucker added: “It’s been good to work with him on our low plays, and he thinks the game really well. He’s a really skilled player, and I think he’s going to be a huge asset for us.”
Consistency is another focus as coach Lindy Ruff prefers keeping units together through much of the season unless changes are necessary due to lack of production or injuries. Thompson explained: “It’s obviously one of those things where you need chemistry on the power play, and sometimes that can take a little bit to get together. I think if you’re rotating units pretty frequently, it might be tough to find a groove… If you’re with a group for a while and you’re not getting it done, obviously things need to change.”
Ruff has indicated that Zucker, Thompson, Tuch, Norris and Dahlin will continue as Buffalo’s primary unit as long as they remain healthy.
Dahlin concluded: “It’s a mix of having chemistry, knowing exactly where your guys are and filling spots when guys are in the wrong spot. Combined with hard work, that’s when good things happen.”
