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Buffalo Sabres Line Combinations & PP1 Units Today

View the Sabres' current line combinations, power play units, and penalty kill pairings. See who's on PP1, which defensemen are killing penalties, and track time on ice trends.

Eastern ConferenceAtlantic DivisionUpdated · through games of

Over the first 7 games of 2026-27, Jack Quinn, Noah Ostlund and Zach Benson have formed the Sabres top line at 5-on-5 (the trio that plays the most per game), together for 70:05 (17% of team time). Mattias Samuelsson and Rasmus Dahlin lead the blue line as the top pair. PP1 is Thompson, Dahlin, Quinn, Ostlund and Benson, taking 48% of the power-play time.

PP1Tage Thompson, Rasmus DahlinDTD, Jack Quinn, Noah Ostlund, Zach Benson48% of PP time
PP2Josh Norris, Josh Doan, Owen Power, Jiri Kulich, Konsta Helenius12% of PP time

Since last game (Oct 13):▲ Owen Power to PP1

Buffalo Sabres · season stats · power play|League boards: best forward lines (CF%) · defence pairs (CF%) · PP units (GF/60)

Line Watch

Changes vs each player's previous 5 games

  • Owen Power moved up to PP1 from PP2 (last game)

    PP1 promotion · Oct 13

Sabres injuries (9)Show

Injured players stay in the shift-based units until they drop out of the sample; their tags show on the units below. "Returning" is approximate: cleared from the injury report in the last 3 days · injury report checked Oct 14, 5:40 PM ET.

  • Alex LyonIR· ~10d

    Injured reserve (upper body), est. return Oct 24 (back in about 10 days, ESPN estimate)

  • Conor TimminsIR· ~3d

    Injured reserve (lower body), est. return Oct 17 (back in about 3 days, ESPN estimate)

  • Jack RathboneIR· ~10d

    Injured reserve (undisclosed), est. return Oct 24 (back in about 10 days, ESPN estimate)

  • Jason ZuckerIR· ~1d

    Injured reserve (abdomen), est. return Oct 15 (back in about 1 day, ESPN estimate)

  • Matt GrzelcykIR· ~7d

    Injured reserve (lower body), est. return Oct 21 (back in about 7 days, ESPN estimate)

  • Topias LeinonenIR· ~10d

    Injured reserve (lower body), est. return Oct 24 (back in about 10 days, ESPN estimate)

  • Rasmus DahlinDTD

    Day-to-day (upper body)

  • Sam CarrickSCR

    Healthy scratch 2 straight games

  • Tyson KozakSCR

    Healthy scratch last game

Track Buffalo Sabres line changes daily

Lines here come from real NHL shift data, refreshed after every game. Line Watch flags PP1 promotions, line moves and ice-time jumps as soon as they show up; email alerts for your own players are next.

Track Buffalo Sabres lines →

Buffalo Sabres Line Combinations

Forward lines, defense pairs, power play and penalty kill units built from real game shift data for the Sabres. Tap "Mates" on any player to see who he plays with.

Shift-based lines from the first 7 games of 2026-27 through 2026-10-13. Not confirmed lines for tonight. Only 7 2026-27 games so far, so the lines use this season only (Last 20 adds 2025-26 games). Players no longer on the team are excluded.

Forward lines (5v5)

L1

high · 72%7/7 GP
70:05 together17% of team 5v5 time
69.0%
GF%
75.0%
68.4%
67.7%

L2

medium · 33%7/7 GP
32:48 together8% of team 5v5 time
54.8%
GF%
100.0%
67.4%
66.8%

L3

low · 25%4/7 GP
17:53 together4% of team 5v5 time
33.3%
GF%
50.0%
51.3%
51.4%

L4

low · 11%1/7 GP
6:26 together2% of team 5v5 time
45.5%
GF%
100.0%
49.9%
49.5%

Defense pairs (5v5)

D1

high · 54%6/7 GP
66:55 together17% of team 5v5 time
55.5%
GF%
33.3%
52.1%
52.0%

D2

medium · 39%6/7 GP
47:26 together12% of team 5v5 time
61.0%
GF%
25.0%
71.3%
70.9%

D3

medium · 31%6/7 GP
24:40 together6% of team 5v5 time
56.0%
GF%
50.0%
45.6%
42.9%

Power play units

Team PP time: 49:48 (7:07 per game)

PP1

medium · 44%7/7 GP
23:53 together48% of team PP time
85.7%
GF%
100.0%
90.0%
89.3%

PP2

medium · 45%4/7 GP
5:57 together12% of team PP time
50.0%
GF%
—
91.3%
89.8%

PP units share players: a skater who stays out for most of the advantage can appear on both.

Penalty kill units

PK1 forwards

medium · 43%4/7 GP
4:47 together13% of team PK time
21.4%
GF%
0.0%
22.6%
22.1%

PK2 forwards

medium · 38%4/7 GP
4:11 together11% of team PK time
0.0%
GF%
—
0.0%
0.0%

PK1 defense

high · 74%5/7 GP
11:24 together31% of team PK time
9.1%
GF%
0.0%
6.2%
6.3%

PK2 defense

high · 79%6/7 GP
10:29 together28% of team PK time
16.0%
GF%
0.0%
5.9%
6.6%

Extras and rotating players

Sam Carrick, Matt Grzelcyk, Dennis Gilbert, Tyson Kozak

Lines and pairs are the disjoint groups with the most shared ice time, numbered by role: L1 is the trio whose players average the most even-strength plus power-play ice time per game, D1 the pair with the most total ice time. TOI share is the exact unit's time over the team's time at that strength. Confidence is how much of its players' own ice time the exact unit accounts for. CF% and GF% are on-ice shot-attempt and goal shares while the unit was out.

Line chemistry

Sabres 5v5 shared ice time, last 20 games

Sabres line chemistry: 18 skaters; the most-used pairing is Mattias Samuelsson and Rasmus Dahlin with 211:32 together.

  1. Samuelsson + Dahlin211:32 · 56.7%
  2. Thompson + Krebs182:44 · 51.0%
  3. Doan + Benson128:13 · 63.8%
  4. Thompson + Dahlin127:40 · 53.9%
  5. Zucker + Quinn123:33 · 56.6%
  6. Thompson + Power121:42 · 57.8%
  7. Norris + Doan118:58 · 59.9%
  8. Norris + Benson117:05 · 62.2%
  9. Samuelsson + Benson114:59 · 64.8%
  10. Krebs + Power113:43 · 57.1%
  11. Doan + Power113:22 · 69.1%
  12. Dahlin + Benson104:30 · 65.6%
Edge width = time together; colour = xGF% together.

Line river

Sabres forward lines game by game, last 7 games

Sabres forward lines over 7 games: each ribbon is a player moving between units.

L1L2L3L4Oct 1Oct 3Oct 6Oct 8Oct 10Oct 12Oct 13ThompsonQuinnOstlundBensonDoanKrebsNorrisMcLeodKulichHeleniusMalenstynDanforthCarrickKozak
  • Tage Thompson
  • Jack Quinn
  • Noah Ostlund
  • Zach Benson
  • Josh Doan
  • Peyton Krebs
  • Others
Each ribbon is one player; a gap means he was out or not on a unit that game.

Buffalo Sabres Line Combinations FAQ

Who is on the Buffalo Sabres power play?

The Buffalo Sabres power play units are determined by actual ice time data from recent games. Check the Power play units section above to see which players are currently on PP1 (the primary power play unit) and PP2 (the secondary unit) for the Sabres. PP1 players typically get the most man-advantage ice time and have the best scoring opportunities.

Who kills penalties for the Buffalo Sabres?

The Sabres' penalty kill units are shown in the Penalty kill units section above. This data shows which forward pairs and defensive pairs spend the most time together when the Sabres are shorthanded. Top PK players are valuable for fantasy hockey in leagues that count shorthanded points, blocks, and hits.

What are the current Buffalo Sabres line combinations?

The Buffalo Sabres line combinations shown above are calculated from actual NHL shift data, not projected lineups. Each forward line and defense pair is the group of players with the most shared ice time at 5-on-5, numbered by role (L1 is the trio that plays the most per game), and the confidence badge shows how settled that unit is. Tap Mates on any player to see everyone he shares the ice with.

How often are Buffalo Sabres line combinations updated?

Buffalo Sabres line combinations are updated daily based on the most recent game data. You can filter by game range (Last Game, Last 5, Last 10, Last 20, or Season) to see how line combinations have evolved over time. Recent data gives you the most current picture of how the coaching staff is deploying players.

Which Buffalo Sabres players are seeing increased ice time?

Check the Line Watch panel for Sabres players who moved up a line, joined PP1 or saw a jump in ice time compared with their previous five games. You can also compare the "Last Game" filter to "Last 10" or "Season": players with higher TOI recently may be getting promoted, while decreasing ice time could signal a demotion. This is valuable information for fantasy hockey waiver wire decisions.

Are Buffalo Sabres injuries affecting the line combinations?

If the Buffalo Sabres have injured players, you'll see an injury banner near the top of this page. Injuries to key players often create opportunities for other players to move up in the lineup or earn power play time. Check the injury status to understand why certain line combinations might look different than expected.

How does Buffalo Sabres split power play time between PP1 and PP2?

Some teams give significantly more ice time to PP1, while others split it more evenly. The Power play units section shows each unit's share of the Sabres power play time and each player's average PP TOI per game. If PP2 players are getting substantial ice time, they may have more fantasy value than PP2 players on other teams.

Who are the top Buffalo Sabres fantasy hockey players based on line combinations?

For fantasy hockey, prioritize Sabres players who appear on PP1 and play on the top lines at 5-on-5. Players on the first line who also appear on PP1 are getting the most opportunity. Look for defensemen who play both PP and PK for maximum peripheral stats (blocks, hits, shots).

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