The 2021-22 season has come to a close and while the Sabres playoff drought has reached its 11th season, the team’s strong finish has Sabres fans everywhere feeling like brighter days are ahead. For my first series of grades, let’s take a look at how some of the Buffalo Sabres’ starting forwards faired this year by grading each of their performances.
*Note: these grades are the opinion of my own and any mean comments can be directed to @ZachSheldon on Twitter.
Rasmus Asplund: B+
Asplund finished this season’s campaign tied for the team lead in games played with 80. Surprisingly, this is the first full season Asplund had played at the NHL level. The previous two years saw him bounce between Buffalo and Rochester.
While the Swede did not light up the scoresheet, Asplund showed his prowess on the defensive side of the puck.
What plagued most of Asplund’s season was his 46-game scoreless drought. He started the year alongside Tage Thompson and Victor Olofsson, where Asplund found the back of the net four times in the team’s first eight games.
The only thing keeping Asplund without a grade in the A’s was his offensive disappearance for most of the season. We know the talent is there as he showed it at the beginning and tail-end of the year. Even if the 24-year-old cannot find the scoresheet consistently, he proved himself to be a shutdown forward on the ice.
Asplund manned the third line most of the season, expect him to be an anchor on the Sabres’ fourth line next year with the additions of Jack Quinn and JJ Peterka to the lineup.
Anders Bjork: D+
When Bjork was acquired in the Taylor Hall trade, hopes were for him to finally reach his potential. And at the end of last season, it appeared he might have found his home in Buffalo. However, in 58 games played this year, Bjork only had eight points.
Bjork started the season off hot, as he netted a goal in the first game of the year. Through the first 13 games of the year, he had three goals to his name. While these aren’t crazy numbers, they put him on pace for almost a 20-goal season if he continued that all year long.
Anders Bjork is someone I want to love as a player. He works hard and shows flashes of being a good asset. However, he goes missing far too often during games and during the season. The 25-year-old has one more year left on his deal, and he will be fighting for a lineup spot every night during the 2022-23 season. If he wants a spot on this team in October, he will have to use his speed more often and compete in every single game.
Dylan Cozens: B
Cozens had large expectations heading into his sophomore season. One of the bigger hopes for the “Workhorse from Whitehorse” was for better offensive production. His rookie season saw him with only 13 points in 49 games played. However, Cozens quietly put up 38 points in 79 games played, and brought a plethora of physicality to this young Sabres roster.
Even with the improvements in his game, Cozens still struggled in the +/- category with a -19 rating on the year. This was the second-worst on the team for forwards, with Peyton Krebs being at -20.
Overall, Cozens started to show some improvement in his game, especially with his intensity. He worked hard and competed in almost every game he was in, but the points were not fully there for him.
The defensive side of the puck is something Cozens will have to focus on this offseason if the Sabres want to be true playoff contenders next year. The 21-year-old is still incredibly young and should be seen on the scoresheet more starting in October.
Cody Eakin: C
The man voted with the best hair by the NHL Players Association was a polarizing talent for Sabres fans. He was a staple on the fourth line and made his money in the faceoff circle for the blue-and-gold. Eakin led the team with a 56% win rate on draws and was 15th in the NHL (minimum 800 faceoffs taken).
Eakin wrapped up the year with 69 games played and only 12 points. Those 12 points consisted of four goals and eight assists, one of the goals coming on the powerplay. Like you, I didn’t remember Eakin ever sniffing a second of powerplay time, but he netted his powerplay goal in October against the Coyotes.
Eakin is an Unrestricted Free Agent (UFA) heading into the summer, and it will be interesting to see what Sabres’ GM Kevyn Adams does with the wily vet. He will be 31 by next season, and the Sabres will have some fresh faces in the lineup. Eakin was the only Sabres forward to be above 50% in the faceoff circle which might earn him a contract.
Zemgus Girgensons: B-
The Sabres assistant captain was unfortunately sidelined for a portion of the season with a lower-body injury. However, when Girgensons was on the ice, he was a calming influence that this team needed in its bottom six.
Girgensons played 56 games this year and had 18 points to his name. The Latvian found success alongside Rasmus Asplund during even strength and shorthanded ice time.
The 28-year-old scored most of his goals in front of the net. This was an aspect this team has struggled with for years now, and hopefully a place they can improve their goal-scoring in the future.
If healthy, Girgensons should set a career-high in goals next year with 15. That is asking a lot as Girgensons has never played more than 75 games during his eight years wearing blue-and-gold. However, his presence in the locker room and on the ice warrants him wearing the “A” on his jersey in Buffalo. If Cody Eakin is not brought back, Girgensons will be relied on as the Sabres’ premier faceoff man.
Girgensons has one year left on his contract, and should be the backbone of the Sabres team from a defensive and leadership standpoint.
John Hayden: D+
Hayden has never been able to fully crack an NHL roster for an entire year. His sixth season saw him land in the 716 where he was on the fourth line or in the press box.
The Chicago native led the Sabres in fights with six on the year. When he found himself on the ice, Hayden did his best to protect his teammates.
The 27-year-old netted two goals and two assists in his 56 games wearing the Sabres’ crest. He was not brought in to be that scoring threat, but if this team wants to be successful, they need scoring outside of their top two lines.
Hayden will be a UFA this summer, and most likely will not be back in the Queen City. If he does find his way back, there will be less ice open to him, and he will have to bring an extra jolt of energy and physicality to find the lineup. The Sabres will always need a physical presence, but I do not think Hayden does enough outside of that to keep him on the ice.
Vinnie Hinostroza: B
The career journeyman found his home in Buffalo and found himself in limbo in the eyes of the fans. Hinostroza put up 25 points in his 62 games played while having a shooting percentage of 14%.
He has been a player who has made his mark in the NHL with his speed and work ethic; that did not change in Buffalo. Hinostroza found success when he moved his feet and put the puck on the net. He had the second-highest shooting percentage for forwards; only behind Tage Thompson.
Hinostroza spent most of the year on the third line, and if he is brought back next season should pair up well on the fourth line alongside Rasmus Asplund and Zemgus Girgensons. The Sabres’ roster in October should be more competitive than this year, and players like Hinostroza might find themselves being the odd-man-out on occasion.
What’s Next
If you didn’t see the player you were looking for, don’t worry! Keep it locked on Trainwreck Sports to see how I graded the other half of the forwards, along with the Sabres’ defenseman, goaltending and overall play.