1972–73 Buffalo Sabres | |
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Division | 4th East |
1972–73 record | 37–27–14 |
Home record | 30–6–3 |
Road record | 7–21–11 |
Goals for | 257 |
Goals against | 219 |
Team information | |
General manager | Punch Imlach |
Coach | Joe Crozier |
Captain | Gerry Meehan |
Arena | Buffalo Memorial Auditorium |
Average attendance | 15,632 |
Team leaders | |
Goals | Rene Robert (40) |
Assists | Gilbert Perreault (60) |
Points | Gilbert Perreault (88) |
Penalty minutes | Jim Schoenfeld (178) |
Wins | Roger Crozier (23) |
Goals against average | Dave Dryden (2.65) |
The 1972–73 Buffalo Sabres season was the Sabres' third season of operation in the National Hockey League. The team made it to the playoffs for the first time, but lost in the first round to Montreal, four games to two.
Offseason
[edit]The Sabres added future Hall of Fame defenseman Tim Horton in the intra-league draft. In the Amateur Draft, the Sabres picked defenseman Jim Schoenfeld as their first-round pick, fifth over-all.
Regular season
[edit]Final standings
[edit]GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | DIFF | Pts | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Montreal Canadiens | 78 | 52 | 10 | 16 | 329 | 184 | +145 | 120 |
2 | Boston Bruins | 78 | 51 | 22 | 5 | 330 | 235 | +95 | 107 |
3 | New York Rangers | 78 | 47 | 23 | 8 | 297 | 208 | +89 | 102 |
4 | Buffalo Sabres | 78 | 37 | 27 | 14 | 257 | 219 | +38 | 88 |
5 | Detroit Red Wings | 78 | 37 | 29 | 12 | 265 | 243 | +22 | 86 |
6 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 78 | 27 | 41 | 10 | 247 | 279 | −32 | 64 |
7 | Vancouver Canucks | 78 | 22 | 47 | 9 | 233 | 339 | −106 | 53 |
8 | New York Islanders | 78 | 12 | 60 | 6 | 170 | 347 | −177 | 30 |
Record vs. opponents
[edit]
Vs. East Division[edit]
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Vs. West Division[edit]
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Schedule and results
[edit]Regular season results | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
No. | R | Date | Score | Opponent | Record |
1 | W | October 8, 1972 | 5–3 | Atlanta Flames (1972–73) | 1–0–0 |
2 | W | October 11, 1972 | 7–3 | Los Angeles Kings (1972–73) | 2–0–0 |
3 | T | October 14, 1972 | 1–1 | @ Atlanta Flames (1972–73) | 2–0–1 |
4 | W | October 15, 1972 | 3–2 | Toronto Maple Leafs (1972–73) | 3–0–1 |
5 | W | October 19, 1972 | 6–0 | Vancouver Canucks (1972–73) | 4–0–1 |
6 | T | October 21, 1972 | 1–1 | @ St. Louis Blues (1972–73) | 4–0–2 |
7 | W | October 22, 1972 | 7–2 | Atlanta Flames (1972–73) | 5–0–2 |
8 | T | October 25, 1972 | 2–2 | Boston Bruins (1972–73) | 5–0–3 |
9 | T | October 28, 1972 | 3–3 | @ Montreal Canadiens (1972–73) | 5–0–4 |
10 | W | October 29, 1972 | 2–1 | Minnesota North Stars (1972–73) | 6–0–4 |
11 | L | November 1, 1972 | 1–7 | @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1972–73) | 6–1–4 |
12 | L | November 4, 1972 | 3–5 | @ Philadelphia Flyers (1972–73) | 6–2–4 |
13 | T | November 5, 1972 | 1–1 | St. Louis Blues (1972–73) | 6–2–5 |
14 | T | November 9, 1972 | 0–0 | California Golden Seals (1972–73) | 6–2–6 |
15 | L | November 11, 1972 | 1–3 | @ Philadelphia Flyers (1972–73) | 6–3–6 |
16 | W | November 12, 1972 | 1–0 | Pittsburgh Penguins (1972–73) | 7–3–6 |
17 | T | November 15, 1972 | 3–3 | @ Los Angeles Kings (1972–73) | 7–3–7 |
18 | L | November 17, 1972 | 1–5 | @ California Golden Seals (1972–73) | 7–4–7 |
19 | L | November 19, 1972 | 5–9 | @ Vancouver Canucks (1972–73) | 7–5–7 |
20 | L | November 22, 1972 | 2–6 | @ Detroit Red Wings (1972–73) | 7–6–7 |
21 | W | November 23, 1972 | 5–3 | New York Rangers (1972–73) | 8–6–7 |
22 | W | November 26, 1972 | 9–2 | New York Islanders (1972–73) | 9–6–7 |
23 | W | November 28, 1972 | 7–2 | @ New York Islanders (1972–73) | 10–6–7 |
24 | L | November 30, 1972 | 4–5 | @ Boston Bruins (1972–73) | 10–7–7 |
25 | L | December 2, 1972 | 6–8 | @ Minnesota North Stars (1972–73) | 10–8–7 |
26 | W | December 3, 1972 | 7–4 | Minnesota North Stars (1972–73) | 11–8–7 |
27 | W | December 6, 1972 | 3–2 | @ New York Rangers (1972–73) | 12–8–7 |
28 | W | December 7, 1972 | 6–1 | Detroit Red Wings (1972–73) | 13–8–7 |
29 | W | December 10, 1972 | 4–2 | Montreal Canadiens (1972–73) | 14–8–7 |
30 | W | December 13, 1972 | 7–3 | Boston Bruins (1972–73) | 15–8–7 |
31 | W | December 16, 1972 | 4–3 | @ St. Louis Blues (1972–73) | 16–8–7 |
32 | W | December 17, 1972 | 4–0 | Toronto Maple Leafs (1972–73) | 17–8–7 |
33 | W | December 20, 1972 | 6–3 | Vancouver Canucks (1972–73) | 18–8–7 |
34 | L | December 22, 1972 | 2–4 | @ California Golden Seals (1972–73) | 18–9–7 |
35 | L | December 23, 1972 | 0–2 | @ Los Angeles Kings (1972–73) | 18–10–7 |
36 | W | December 27, 1972 | 4–1 | @ New York Rangers (1972–73) | 19–10–7 |
37 | W | December 28, 1972 | 8–2 | Chicago Black Hawks (1972–73) | 20–10–7 |
38 | L | December 31, 1972 | 2–4 | @ Chicago Black Hawks (1972–73) | 20–11–7 |
39 | W | January 3, 1973 | 4–1 | New York Islanders (1972–73) | 21–11–7 |
40 | L | January 4, 1973 | 2–4 | @ Detroit Red Wings (1972–73) | 21–12–7 |
41 | W | January 6, 1973 | 4–1 | @ New York Rangers (1972–73) | 22–12–7 |
42 | W | January 7, 1973 | 2–0 | Philadelphia Flyers (1972–73) | 23–12–7 |
43 | L | January 11, 1973 | 2–4 | New York Rangers (1972–73) | 23–13–7 |
44 | L | January 14, 1973 | 0–6 | @ Boston Bruins (1972–73) | 23–14–7 |
45 | W | January 18, 1973 | 5–1 | Chicago Black Hawks (1972–73) | 24–14–7 |
46 | L | January 20, 1973 | 2–4 | @ Detroit Red Wings (1972–73) | 24–15–7 |
47 | L | January 21, 1973 | 3–4 | Philadelphia Flyers (1972–73) | 24–16–7 |
48 | W | January 25, 1973 | 5–2 | Minnesota North Stars (1972–73) | 25–16–7 |
49 | L | January 28, 1973 | 5–8 | Atlanta Flames (1972–73) | 25–17–7 |
50 | W | February 1, 1973 | 5–3 | Los Angeles Kings (1972–73) | 26–17–7 |
51 | T | February 3, 1973 | 1–1 | @ New York Islanders (1972–73) | 26–17–8 |
52 | W | February 4, 1973 | 5–1 | New York Islanders (1972–73) | 27–17–8 |
53 | L | February 7, 1973 | 1–2 | @ Chicago Black Hawks (1972–73) | 27–18–8 |
54 | W | February 8, 1973 | 4–0 | California Golden Seals (1972–73) | 28–18–8 |
55 | L | February 10, 1973 | 1–2 | @ Montreal Canadiens (1972–73) | 28–19–8 |
56 | L | February 11, 1973 | 2–5 | Detroit Red Wings (1972–73) | 28–20–8 |
57 | W | February 14, 1973 | 3–2 | @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1972–73) | 29–20–8 |
58 | W | February 15, 1973 | 4–1 | New York Rangers (1972–73) | 30–20–8 |
59 | T | February 17, 1973 | 3–3 | @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1972–73) | 30–20–9 |
60 | W | February 18, 1973 | 4–1 | Pittsburgh Penguins (1972–73) | 31–20–9 |
61 | W | February 22, 1973 | 3–1 | Vancouver Canucks (1972–73) | 32–20–9 |
62 | L | February 24, 1973 | 2–4 | @ Minnesota North Stars (1972–73) | 32–21–9 |
63 | W | February 25, 1973 | 2–1 | Pittsburgh Penguins (1972–73) | 33–21–9 |
64 | T | March 1, 1973 | 4–4 | @ Atlanta Flames (1972–73) | 33–21–10 |
65 | L | March 4, 1973 | 2–4 | Montreal Canadiens (1972–73) | 33–22–10 |
66 | T | March 6, 1973 | 2–2 | @ Los Angeles Kings (1972–73) | 33–22–11 |
67 | T | March 7, 1973 | 2–2 | @ California Golden Seals (1972–73) | 33–22–12 |
68 | L | March 9, 1973 | 2–5 | @ Vancouver Canucks (1972–73) | 33–23–12 |
69 | L | March 13, 1973 | 0–2 | @ St. Louis Blues (1972–73) | 33–24–12 |
70 | L | March 15, 1973 | 1–4 | Boston Bruins (1972–73) | 33–25–12 |
71 | T | March 17, 1973 | 3–3 | @ Montreal Canadiens (1972–73) | 33–25–13 |
72 | W | March 18, 1973 | 5–1 | Toronto Maple Leafs (1972–73) | 34–25–13 |
73 | L | March 21, 1973 | 2–6 | @ Chicago Black Hawks (1972–73) | 34–26–13 |
74 | T | March 24, 1973 | 4–4 | @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1972–73) | 34–26–14 |
75 | L | March 25, 1973 | 1–6 | @ Boston Bruins (1972–73) | 34–27–14 |
76 | W | March 27, 1973 | 3–2 | @ New York Islanders (1972–73) | 35–27–14 |
77 | W | March 28, 1973 | 6–3 | Philadelphia Flyers (1972–73) | 36–27–14 |
78 | W | April 1, 1973 | 3–1 | St. Louis Blues (1972–73) | 37–27–14 |
Playoffs
[edit]The 1972–73 season saw the Sabres qualify for the Stanley Cup playoffs for the first time. The team would ultimately lose to the eventual Stanley Cup Champion Montreal Canadiens in 6 games. After falling behind three games to none the Sabres won two straight to earn a final home game that was memorable for the "Thank you Sabres" chant from the end of the game.[3]
1973 Stanley Cup playoffs | |||||||||||||||||||||||
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# | Date | Visitor | Score | Home | OT | Montreal goals | Buffalo goals | Decision | Attendance | Series | Recap | ||||||||||||
1 | April 4 | Buffalo Sabres | 1–2 | Montreal Canadiens | 0–1 | ||||||||||||||||||
2 | April 5 | Buffalo Sabres | 3–7 | Montreal Canadiens | 0–2 | ||||||||||||||||||
3 | April 7 | Montreal Canadiens | 5–2 | Buffalo Sabres | 0–3 | ||||||||||||||||||
4 | April 8 | Montreal Canadiens | 1–5 | Buffalo Sabres | 1–3 | ||||||||||||||||||
5 | April 10 | Buffalo Sabres | 3–2 | Montreal Canadiens | 9:18 | 2–3 | |||||||||||||||||
6 | April 12 | Montreal Canadiens | 4–2 | Buffalo Sabres | 2–4 |
- Scorer of game-winning goal in italics
- *Denotes if necessary
Player statistics
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Scoring | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Goaltending | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Playoffs | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Scoring | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Goaltending | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Note: Pos = Position; GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; +/- = plus/minus; PIM = Penalty minutes; PPG = Power-play goals; SHG = Short-handed goals; GWG = Game-winning goals
MIN = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; GA = Goals-against; GAA = Goals-against average; SO = Shutouts;
Awards and records
[edit]Lady Byng Memorial Trophy: Gilbert Perreault
Transactions
[edit]Trades
[edit]Date | Details
| |
---|---|---|
June 6, 1972 | To New York Islanders 7th-round pick in 1972 (Don McLaughlin) 8th-round pick in 1972 (Rene Levasseur) 9th-round pick in 1972 (Bill Ennos) 10th-round pick in 1972 (Rene Lambert) |
To Buffalo Sabres Islanders promised to not draft certain players in the 1972 NHL Expansion Draft |
June 8, 1972 | To Montreal Canadiens Cash |
To Buffalo Sabres Ron Busniuk |
February 14, 1973 | To Atlanta Flames Butch Deadmarsh |
To Buffalo Sabres Norm Gratton |
Lost via retirement
[edit]Player |
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Dick Duff |
Claimed via Waivers[edit]
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Lost via Waivers[edit]
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Lost in the Expansion Draft
[edit]June 6, 1972 | To New York Islanders Tom Miller |
June 6, 1972 | To New York Islanders Ken Murray |
June 6, 1972 | To Atlanta Flames Rod Zaine |
1972 NHL Intraleague Draft
[edit]June 5, 1972 | From Pittsburgh Penguins Tim Horton |
Draft picks
[edit]NHL draft
[edit]Round | # | Player | Nationality | College/Junior/Club team |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 5 | Jim Schoenfeld | ![]() |
Niagara Falls Flyers (OHA) |
2 | 25 | Larry Carriere | ![]() |
Loyola University (CIAU) |
3 | 37 | Jim McMasters | ![]() |
Calgary Centennials (WCHL) |
4 | 53 | Rychard Campeau | ![]() |
Sorel Black Hawks (QMJHL) |
5 | 69 | Gilles Gratton | ![]() |
Oshawa Generals (OHA) |
6 | 85 | Peter McNab | ![]() |
U. of Denver (WCHA) |
Farm teams
[edit]The 1972–73 AHL season was a successful one for the Sabres' AHL affiliate, the Cincinnati Swords. The Swords would finish first overall in the regular season with a 54–17–5 record. They would go on to win the Calder Cup in the playoffs losing only 3 games in the 3 round best-of-7 event. It would be the only championship won by the team in its short existence.
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ "1972–1973 Division Standings Standings - NHL.com - Standings". National Hockey League.
- ^ "All-Time NHL Results". NHL.com. Retrieved August 25, 2023.
- ^ "1972–73". The 40th Anniversary Site of the Buffalo Sabres. Archived from the original on July 16, 2012. Retrieved April 15, 2011.
- ^ "1972-73 Buffalo Sabres Statistics - Hockey-Reference.com". hockey-reference.com. Retrieved July 13, 2009.