Buffalo Sabres clinch 2025-26 Atlantic Division title
The Buffalo Sabres aren’t just ending their 14-season playoff drought this year, they’re doing it in style.
The Sabres have been assured of heading back to the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time since 2010-11 for over a week, but now they have clinched the Atlantic Division title as a result of Tampa Bay’s 4-3 overtime victory over the Detroit Red Wings.
THE ATLANTIC IS OURS ⚔️ See you on home ice, sabrehood! #LetsGoBuffalo | bufsabres.co/3Q3hrTb
This marks the first time the Sabres have won their division since the 2009-10 campaign, when they claimed the Northeast Division title in an era where a 30-team NHL was divided into six five-team divisions.
It’s been a roller coaster of a year for the Sabres, who started it like they did many others during what was the longest playoff drought in the NHL, trying to dig their way out of an early hole.
On December 8, Buffalo owned an 11-14-4 record and sat in last place in the Eastern Conference, four points behind the next-closest team. Ever since that point, the Sabres have been a force to be reckoned with. They have gone 38-13-4 since that night, rocketing their way up the standings and never looking back.
Tage Thompson posted his second consecutive season with over 70 points, and Rasmus Dahlin has performed at a level that will garner him considerable voting consideration, and possibly favorite status, in the race for the Norris Trophy.
The Sabers are likely to finish as the No. 2 seed in the East, which would set up a first-round matchup against either the Boston Bruins or Ottawa Senators, who are locked in as the East’s two wild-card teams.
The 2025-26 NHL regular season will conclude on Thursday, with the playoffs kicking off Saturday afternoon. The Sabers will look to win their first Stanley Cup championship in franchise history after falling short during the 1999 final.