History of the Buffalo Sabres
The Buffalo Sabres have been with the NHL since 1970. In sports history, they have been on the wrong end of many of the most devastating losses, causing many to believe in the Buffalo Sports Curse.
The Sabres began play in 1970. Seymour Knox III and Northrup Knox were the first owners.
The drafts of center Gilbert Perreault in 1970 and winger Rick Martin in 1971 and the late-season trade for winger Rene Robert late in the 1971-72 season highlighted the first two seasons of the Sabres’ history.
Buffalo qualified for the playoffs in just their third year in the NHL. To the eventual champion Montreal Canadiens, they lost in six games.
In the 1974-75 regular season, Buffalo finished in a tie for the best record in the NHL. For the Stanley Cup Finals, they eventually qualified, where they were to face the Philadelphia Flyers. Even though Buffalo went on to win the game, the Flyers ended up with the Stanley Cup after six games.
The late 70s and early 80s, Danny Gare joined the team and continue to be a dominant force. They were the first team to beat the Soviet Olympic Team when they toured the United States and won the regular season conference championship.
In the mid 90s, the team moved from to Marine Midland Arena. Buffalo won the Northeast Division, in their first season at Marine Midland Arena (1996-97).
1996-97 was Buffalo’s strong regular season and was overshadowed by a tumultuous post season. The Sabres lost in five games to the Philadelphia Flyers and the team was involved in few controversies.
In 1999, the Sabres finally returned to the Stanley Cup Finals. When they lost to the Dallas Stars in six games, they were met with a heartbreak all over again.
The Sabres have returned to blue and gold colors for the first time since the team abandoned them for red and black in 1996, since their return to the Stanley cup. Including division titles in 2007 and 2010, they have enjoyed moderate success. In the 2010 playoffs as the third seed in the Eastern Conference, most recently, they lost to sixth-seeded Boston Bruins in the first round.
