By Nick Lenahan
Like many of you, once the Sabres season ended, I dove headfirst into playoff hockey. I had to cleanse my palate of the controversy and rumors that surround the Queen City. That being said, the Sabres won the 1st overall pick in the 2021 NHL Draft and are looking right at Owen Power. I was skeptical at first because I didn’t know much about him, and I felt like we could probably use something other than another defenseman. I couldn’t have been more wrong.
The 18-year-old out of Mississauga, ON is an absolute stud. At 6’ 6” and 215 pounds, Owen is exactly what every team needs and wishes that they had. I hadn’t watched him play, so I had to dive into some scouting reports and highlights. Let me tell you, I couldn’t be more sold. His stature is a mix between Rasmus Ristolainen and Tage Thompson. He’d walk into the lineup as the second-largest player on the team. I don’t know about you guys, but I think there’s been a serious lack of physicality in the Sabres’ game. This is a player who has already drawn comparisons to Victor Hedman.
Already comparable in size and composure with the puck on his stick, Power brings a mix of hands and offensive pressure like Hedman. He also has the dexterity along his blue line and behind his net to fool forecheckers and penalty kill specialists alike. That confidence is going to make Buffalo substantially deeper on the power-play. Tell me you wouldn’t want a polarizing defenseman on your second power-play unit with a booming slapshot and the ability to find guys like Casey Mittelstadt and Tage Thompson open on their respective sides. He’s a game-changer. He turns a lack of confidence on the blue line into one more well-oiled cog to put in this machine of a rebuild.
A big reason why the Colorado Avalanche have been so successful is that guys like Cale Makar and Devon Toews jump into the play and stretch the ice out. This could be the case in Buffalo. Imagine Rasmus Dahlin and Owen Power in that similar layout. That confidence and dynamic/flowing play trick the opposition into jump into plays and opening up space due to missed assignments. Properly executed, this could allow players with a booming shot like Victor Olofsson and Jack Eichel (if he’s actually here) to gain more time to capitalize.
Here are some highlights if you don’t believe me.
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