Sabres Playoff Odds Hit Zero

The Buffalo Sabres are very likely to miss the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the 14th consecutive season.

Mar 6, 2025; Tampa, Florida, USA; Buffalo Sabres center Tage Thompson (72) is congratulated by defenseman Rasmus Dahlin (26) after he scored a goal against the Tampa Bay Lightning during the second period at Amalie Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images / Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images

The Buffalo Sabres are on the verge of making history and not the kind they want to be remembered for. Currently holding the worst record in the Eastern Conference, it seems clear the Sabres will miss the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the 14th consecutive year, once again tying them for the longest playoff drought in the big-four North American sports leagues.

The only other team with a playoff drought as long as the Sabres’ is the National Football League’s New York Jets.

The Sabres haven’t technically been mathematically eliminated from the playoff race, but the analytics believe they’ve run out of chances. According to moneypuck.com, the Sabres odds of reaching the playoffs has officially hit 0%.

After a 4-0 shutout at the hands of the reigning Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers, the Sabres have become the sixth team to see their odds completely diminish. The San Jose Sharks, Chicago Blackhawks, Pittsburgh Penguins, and Nashville Predators have all previously hit the 0% mark. The Seattle Kraken join the list alongside the Sabres.

With a 24-32-6 record for just 54 standings points, the Sabres are 14 points behind the Columbus Blue Jackets for the second wild card spot in the East.

Entering the 2024-25 season, the Sabres knew they needed to string together a successful season or suffer ugly consequences in the offseason. The vibes were high heading into the year, too, but nothing has gone right in Buffalo.

Lindy Ruff returned as head coach, they named Rasmus Dahlin as their new captain, and their up-and-coming stars like Dylan Cozens, J.J. Peterka, and Owen Power all looked ready to take the next steps.

Ruff behind the bench hasn’t changed anything, Dahlin is great, but that was to be expected, Cozens was traded at the deadline, and the rest found themselves in trade rumors in recent weeks.

When will the misery end in Buffalo? The last time the Sabres played in a playoff game was April 26th, 2011. Their youngest player Zach Benson was just six years old, Barack Obama was still in his first term as United States President, and the Fast and Furious movie franchise was three days away from putting out Fast Five.

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