Counting stats
NHL Hits Leaders: Buffalo Sabres
2017-18All situationsThrough 82 team games
This board ranks every NHL skater by total hits this season, regular season only.
Hits are body checks credited by the off-ice scorer. Physical third-liners and stay-at-home defensemen lead the league, often while their team spends long stretches without the puck. Hits are a category in most banger leagues, and the leaders are often cheap depth players. Recording varies by arena, so compare players across the league rather than reading too much into one building.
Leader for the Buffalo Sabres in 2017-18: Rasmus Ristolainen (BUF), 206 HIT.
- Legacy recording: before 2024-25 turnovers and hits were recorded arena by arena with large scorer bias. Compare players within this season only.
Hits leaderboard
| # | Player | Team | HIT | GP | Per game | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rasmus RistolainenDBUF | BUF | 206 | 73 | 2.82 | 8.3%▲7.7 |
| 2 | Zemgus GirgensonsFBUF | BUF | 134 | 71 | 1.89 | 3.2%▲3 |
| 3 | Scott WilsonFBUF | BUF | 128 | 69 | 1.86 | — |
| 4 | Jordan NolanFBUF | BUF | 123 | 69 | 1.78 | — |
| 5 | Justin FalkDBUF | BUF | 121 | 46 | 2.63 | — |
| 6 | Johan LarssonFBUF | BUF | 117 | 80 | 1.46 | — |
| 7 | Jake McCabeDBUF | BUF | 110 | 53 | 2.08 | 34%▼15 |
| 8 | Marco ScandellaDBUF | BUF | 91 | 82 | 1.11 | — |
| 9 | Kyle OkposoFBUF | BUF | 70 | 76 | 0.92 | — |
| 10 | Benoit PouliotFBUF | BUF | 69 | 74 | 0.93 | — |
| 11 | Josh GorgesDBUF | BUF | 69 | 34 | 2.03 | — |
| 12 | Jack EichelFBUF | BUF | 52 | 67 | 0.78 | 99%▲1.4 |
| 13 | Sam ReinhartFBUF | BUF | 48 | 82 | 0.59 | 99% |
| 14 | Nathan BeaulieuDBUF | BUF | 45 | 59 | 0.76 | — |
| 15 | Ryan O'ReillyFBUF | BUF | 42 | 81 | 0.52 | 84%▲5 |
| 16 | Jason PominvilleFBUF | BUF | 39 | 82 | 0.48 | — |
| 17 | Casey NelsonDBUF | BUF | 31 | 37 | 0.84 | — |
| 18 | Jacob JosefsonFBUF | BUF | 26 | 39 | 0.67 | — |
| 19 | Zach BogosianDBUF | BUF | 22 | 18 | 1.22 | 0.4% |
| 20 | Evan RodriguesFBUF | BUF | 19 | 48 | 0.40 | 8.3%▲6.5 |
| 21 | Justin BaileyFBUF | BUF | 19 | 12 | 1.58 | — |
| 22 | Nick BaptisteFBUF | BUF | 16 | 33 | 0.48 | — |
| 23 | Victor AntipinDBUF | BUF | 14 | 47 | 0.30 | — |
| 24 | Matt TennysonDBUF | BUF | 13 | 15 | 0.87 | — |
| 25 | Kyle CriscuoloFBUF | BUF | 13 | 9 | 1.44 | — |
| 26 | Seth GriffithFBUF | BUF | 10 | 21 | 0.48 | — |
| 27 | Brendan GuhleDBUF | BUF | 10 | 18 | 0.56 | — |
| 28 | Matt MoulsonFBUF | BUF | 8 | 14 | 0.57 | — |
| 29 | Hudson FaschingFBUF | BUF | 7 | 5 | 1.40 | — |
| 30 | Danny O'ReganFBUF | BUF | 5 | 21 | 0.24 | — |
| 31 | Taylor FedunDBUF | BUF | 4 | 7 | 0.57 | — |
| 32 | Zach RedmondDBUF | BUF | 4 | 3 | 1.33 | — |
| 33 | Casey MittelstadtFBUF | BUF | 2 | 6 | 0.33 | 14%▲12 |
| 34 | Alex NylanderFBUF | BUF | 0 | 3 | 0.00 | — |
How to read it
Total hits this season, all situations.
How reliable is it?
Totals reward games and ice time. Hit counts also depend on the arena's scorer, so a home-heavy schedule can inflate them.
About our data sources →Projected next
Our fantasy projections for hits: who should lead the coming games.