What’s the situation?
James Reimer won in a barn burner on March 30th, allowing 5 goals in the Buffalo Sabres 8-5 win over the Washington Capitals. Not only have the Sabres had success in their recent games, but so has the old-timer, James Reimer. Since his loss in Utah on the 20th, he has not lost a game. Starting 4 of the Sabres last 5 games, only one was a loss.
Ukko Pekka-Luukkonen, the team’s designated starter on the other hand has not had much success as of recent. He has played 5 of Buffalo’s last 10 games, only winning 2 of them, both went to overtime. UPL has lost 7 of his last 10 starts and his struggles are not going away. The young tendie had just signed a huge contract extension of 23.75 million dollars for 5 years.
Buffalo is in the hunt for the playoffs and needs a reliable starting goaltender and a backup that can pick up whatever slack is left behind. Whether that be injury reasons, getting reps in or is there for support. With Luukkonen’s lackluster performance in these final games, next season may not be as bright as fans hope. The teams needs a reliable tendy, one they can play confidently in front of and one they can trust do their job and do it well.
Ukko Pekka-Luukkonen
As stated, Ukko Pekka-Luukkonen has had an issue in net, losing 7 of his last 10 starts. The Sabres as a whole are seeming to have issues when the young tendie is in net as well. UPL looks uncomfortable in every start. He’s jumping around in the crease, losing sight of the puck and letting in weak shots. His save percentage to finish the previous season was .910 but has fallen since then to below .900
His save percentage this season is .885. This is not horrible by any means but having been named the starter AND signing a hefty contract over the summer, the young goaltender needs to step his game up if he wants to remain as the starter, or on the team in general. New head coach Lindy Ruff has stated many times that he likes UPL, but wants to see more from the young man.
In his last 10, he has 7 games below a .900 S% and 3 games below .800. The goaltender has faced 230 shots, allowing 42 goals. 4 of the last 10, UPL has allowed 5+ goals, all of the games have turned out to be losses. Those are not very good stats for a starting goaltender.
Luukkonen has been dealing with a lot of stress given those many poor numbers. It’s not easy for a young goaltender with so much pressure to cross every T and dot every I. This is making it easier for fans to see where UPL is coming from, but given the entire season has looked as poor as the last 10 GP, patience within the fan base is running thin and UPL is feeling these effects.
Fans boo the team off the ice even after one or two periods if the score is not what they would like. UPL is being crushed mentally and this season cannot end fast enough for him. So this now raises the question, is Ukko Pekka-Luukkonen the issue, or can he come back in the 2025-2026 season a different man?
James Reimer
Anyone who has been watching Reimer’s last 10 can tell you how well the 37 year old goalie has been doing as of late. He is 5-4-1 in his last 10 and impressed everyone. James has stepped up for UPL’s shortcomings and won many crucial games, his most notable wins are against the Jets, leader of the Western Conference and the Capitals, leader of the Eastern Conference.
He started the season at .904 S% and with 10 games remaining, sits at a .902 S%. The older tender has been nothing short of elite, especially when the Sabres needed him most. His stats have improved since his start on December 21st. It’s been a night a day difference since then and his confidence has been through the roof.
He has only 2 games below a .900 S%, the other 8 have been .900 or better. He’s also faced 297 shots and allowed just 30 goals. For the icing on the cake, he has had just one single game in his last 10 where he allowed 5+ goals. The 37 year old is on a 4 game winning streak and looks to be unstoppable between the pipes.
James has not signed a contract with the Sabres as he is still finishing his previous deal. There is no stress on the goalie, he is assigned as the backup and everyone seems to overlook him. When no one expects anything of you, how can you possibly do anything bad? Maybe that is the mentality James has, or maybe he wants to be seen, wants to be noticed. Maybe he wants and thrives off pressure.
2-4-1 was Reimer’s stats in 2024. In 2025 the goaltender is 5-4-1 and absolutely thriving between the pipes right now. Lindy Ruff has said over and over how high the confidence is in the goaltender and how much he has been a help for his teammates. Reimer looks comfortable in net, he looks ready to play every game and the players can let out a sigh of relief as they know the net is minded by someone who knows what they are doing.
The Issue
As stated before, the Buffalo Sabres need a goaltender who feels comfortable in net no matter the situation. They need someone who can take on the stress and thrive in it. They need someone who can tone out the boo’s if they have a bad period and most of all they need someone who can be the last line of defence and take on the role without any second thoughts.
James Reimer has proved he is that guy, but he is 37. Most goalies do not play past 36. The game is getting faster and faster, old guys can’t keep up with it so they either retire or take on the backup role and help mentor the young bucks entering the team. Unfortunately, James Reimer seems to be in that position.
Ukko Pekka-Luukkonen is the perfect candidate for the Sabres. He’s proved it before and everyone is waiting for him to do it again. But, they can’t wait forever. It’s okay to have a down month, or down few months, but to play at the NHL level is not for the weak. Goaltender is without a doubt one of the hardest positions to play in sports so careers will have ups and downs, but in the end, that is what defines you: how you recover.
The Buffalo Sabres are a team loaded with young talent and they are ready to take that to the next level, all they need is reliable goaltending. Reimer could certainly play another season or two and help Luukkonen, but the young goalie will need to fix his game and come out stronger. The Sabres are giving up more goals with UPL in net and losing more games. That is the complete opposite when Reimer is in net.
The situation needs to be fixed for Buffalo to take this next step in their career. They have great offensive players, they have scored 4+ goals per game in their last five games. The defence is holding on tight, first overall picks Rasmus Dahlin and Owen Power are doing all they can do to defend the blue line. All that’s left is goaltending. When Buffalo fixes the issue, teams need to look out because they will come at everyone hard. The team will be different, they’ll be winners.
