5 takeaways | Sabres offense stymied in loss to Islanders

Taylor Hall boiled the problems facing the Sabres in their first games back from a two-week layoff down to one simple stat.
"There's a lot of good things, and I know that's probably not what people want to hear and not the spicy headline," Hall said. "But we are doing things that a lot of times are going to win you games, and right now, we just can't find any offensive part, and that's all it is.
"Defensively, we've been strong enough to be in games. Offensively, we have one goal in the last 120 minutes."
Following a 2-1 loss on Monday, the Sabres were once again stymied by the defensively stout New York Islanders in a 3-0 loss at KeyBank Center on Tuesday. Rookie goaltender Ilya Sorokin made 20 saves for the shutout in his first NHL victory.
Here are five takeaways.

#

1. Sabres searching for answers offensively

Coach Ralph Krueger echoed Hall in saying that he liked much what he saw in terms of how the team played within its system and worked defensively. The Sabres finished with a 12-5 edge in high-danger shot attempts at 5-on-5, according to Natural Stat Trick.
He also acknowledged that it's ultimately scoring goals that counts.
"It's a bitter pill to swallow but, again, the job of us here and myself and leadership is to maintain rigid focus on the process, working on solutions for what's not happening here and that's our inability to score 5-on-5," he said. "It's not just individuals, it's us as a team that needs to find that success quickly."
The Sabres had little in the way of chances through the first two periods. Hall had a breakaway attempt stopped by Sorokin in the first while Victor Olofsson saw a one-timer on the power play ring the post.
That changed in the third, but the push came too late. Sorokin came up with key saves on chances from in tight by Olofsson and Sam Reinhart. When Olofsson finally beat the rookie goaltender on the power play with 6:59 remaining, the goal was taken off the board due to an offside entry.
"It's a been a struggle for me, personally," Hall said. "I know I'd love to have four or five goals right now. I feel like I've had some bad luck a bit. But at the same time, when you're not scoring, you got to change something, you got to find whatever is in your game that's not allowing you to put the puck in the net.
"Right now, it's been tough. I can't lie to you. If I have four or five goals right now, you don't really know what our season looks like, especially with how close of games we've had and how much we've been in games right until the very end. It's tough, but personally, I got to keep chugging along, find out what I can do better to score and produce offense, because that's what I was brought here to do."

2. Islanders claim another early lead

The Sabres fell into a 2-0, first-period hole for the second straight game, a tall mountain to overcome against an Islanders team that is known for suffocating teams with its defensive structure.
Anders Lee opened the scoring just 4:43 into the contest, burying a crossing feed from defenseman Noah Dobson after the Islanders forced a turnover in the neutral zone. Jean-Gabriel Pageau caught a stretch pass and buried a far-side shot past Carter Hutton to double the lead at 11:53.
Buffalo mounted a stronger comeback attempt than it had Monday, but the lead proved insurmountable.
"Everyone knows how the Islanders play," Hall said. "They play true to their identity every shift. You fall behind, it's a tough game. That's exactly what they want. I mean, every team wants to play with a lead, but they're probably the best in the league at that.
"It's not our goalie's fault; it's just kind of the way things have gone. As we get playing more hockey here, it's important for us to not come in after the first period down one, down two. It's a tough hill to climb, especially in a season where teams are keeping it simple."

3. In-game adjustments

Tage Thompson was moved alongside Jack Eichel and Olofsson during the second period. He took the place of Jeff Skinner, who finished the contest alongside Riley Sheahan and Rasmus Asplund.
Thompson was credited with four shot attempts and four hits in 14:42.
"It just seemed to be the better decision for the team," Krueger said. "We actually liked the lineup that we played the second half with. And, again, I try to make those decisions for the team. It didn't work, so in the end something we need to look at."

4. McCabe returns

Jake McCabe was back in the lineup after missing Monday's game as he worked his way back from the COVID-related absence list. McCabe confirmed he tested positive for COVID-19 and experienced symptoms for roughly five days during the Sabres' two-week layoff.
McCabe played on a pair with Will Borgen and skated 18:58, including 2:21 on the penalty kill. Brandon Montour, who returned from the COVID-related absence list alongside McCabe and also confirmed he tested positive for the virus, did not play.

5. Moving forward

The Sabres will see plenty more of the Islanders in the weeks ahead. They visit the Islanders on Feb. 22 and then meet for three straight games on Long Island from March 4 to 7.
"We come out of this one angry but that's not useful unless we use it properly," Krueger said. "So, I'm going to make sure the team remembers what happened here these two games.
"… After 15 days without having any games, the guys did not quit. They did try and turn that score. I don't think anybody can call these guys anything but guys that were still believing in being able to turn the score and fix it. But we didn't get it done, so unacceptable for us. We need to be disappointed, but we need to react."