Counting stats
NHL Hits Leaders: Buffalo Sabres
2020-21All situationsThrough 57 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 2020-21: Rasmus Ristolainen (BUF), 193 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 | 193 | 49 | 3.94 | 8.3%▲7.7 |
| 2 | Colin MillerDBUF | BUF | 91 | 48 | 1.90 | 0.0% |
| 3 | Rasmus DahlinDBUF | BUF | 80 | 56 | 1.43 | 100%▲1 |
| 4 | Drake CaggiulaFBUF | BUF | 64 | 38 | 1.68 | — |
| 5 | Matt IrwinDBUF | BUF | 56 | 24 | 2.33 | — |
| 6 | Anders BjorkFBUF | BUF | 48 | 45 | 1.07 | — |
| 7 | Henri JokiharjuDBUF | BUF | 47 | 46 | 1.02 | 0.1% |
| 8 | Cody EakinFBUF | BUF | 33 | 46 | 0.72 | — |
| 9 | Jacob BrysonDBUF | BUF | 32 | 38 | 0.84 | 0.0% |
| 10 | Dylan CozensFBUF | BUF | 30 | 41 | 0.73 | 90%▲3.9 |
| 11 | Will BorgenDBUF | BUF | 30 | 10 | 3.00 | 4.1%▲3.8 |
| 12 | Kyle OkposoFBUF | BUF | 29 | 35 | 0.83 | — |
| 13 | Tage ThompsonFBUF | BUF | 25 | 38 | 0.66 | 100%▲1.3 |
| 14 | Jake McCabeDBUF | BUF | 22 | 13 | 1.69 | 34%▼15 |
| 15 | Tobias RiederFBUF | BUF | 21 | 44 | 0.48 | — |
| 16 | Jeff SkinnerFBUF | BUF | 20 | 53 | 0.38 | 0.1% |
| 17 | Jack EichelFBUF | BUF | 20 | 21 | 0.95 | 99%▲1.4 |
| 18 | Mattias SamuelssonDBUF | BUF | 20 | 12 | 1.67 | 79%▲9.3 |
| 19 | Victor OlofssonFBUF | BUF | 17 | 56 | 0.30 | 14%▲14 |
| 20 | Riley SheahanFBUF | BUF | 17 | 53 | 0.32 | — |
| 21 | Arttu RuotsalainenFBUF | BUF | 16 | 17 | 0.94 | — |
| 22 | Sam ReinhartFBUF | BUF | 15 | 54 | 0.28 | 99% |
| 23 | Rasmus AsplundFBUF | BUF | 15 | 28 | 0.54 | — |
| 24 | Brandon DavidsonDBUF | BUF | 14 | 6 | 2.33 | — |
| 25 | Casey MittelstadtFBUF | BUF | 9 | 41 | 0.22 | 14%▲12 |
| 26 | Steven FogartyFBUF | BUF | 4 | 9 | 0.44 | — |
| 27 | Brett MurrayFBUF | BUF | 3 | 2 | 1.50 | — |
| 28 | C.J. SmithFBUF | BUF | 3 | 1 | 3.00 | — |
| 29 | Jean-Sebastien DeaFBUF | BUF | 0 | 1 | 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.