BUFFALO, N.Y. — The balance of power is about to shift in the Atlantic Division, but how soon?
The Boston Bruins finished first in the division, and first in the entire NHL last season, but lost a lot of big pieces in the last few weeks including Tyler Bertuzzi, Dmitry Orlov, Taylor Hall, and potentially Patrice Bergeron.
In fact, if both Bergeron and David Krejci don't return, the center position could be a position of weakness in Boston that's detrimental to their playoff hopes.
The Buffalo Sabres are definitely a team on the rise, and finished only one point back of the Eastern Conference champion Florida Panthers last season.
Joe DiBiase of Locked on Sabres contends it's not a huge stretch to wonder whether the Sabres have the ability to pass the Bruins in the standings as early as next season.
"There's many reasons to believe there's regression coming in Boston," DiBiase said, pointing to how recent Presidents' Trophy winners have taken a tumble in the standings in the following year.
The Sabres are very strong down the middle, with Tage Thompson, Dylan Cozens, Casey Mittlestadt, and maybe even Peyton Krebs being capable of stepping into the top center role in Boston over Pavel Zacha or Charlie Coyle.
The Sabres haven't passed the Bruins, and Boston remains very strong in net and on the blue line, despite losing Connor Clifton to the Sabres in free agency.
But, the gap has dramatically decreased, especially if Bergeron doesn't return.
"The gap between these two teams was the Atlantic Ocean, and now it's closer to Lake Erie," DiBiase concludes.
In future episodes, DiBiase will take a look at the Sabres in relation to other Atlantic teams like the Panthers, Toronto Maple Leafs, and Tampa Bay Lightning.