Game 26: When familiarity breeds frustration

Mistakes, emotional sags, and a rally that came up short leads to the Sabres' fourth straight loss and fifth in six games.

The Sabres and Red Wings skate in warmups ahead of their game Tuesday night in Buffalo. Detroit won 5-3. (Photo: Joe Yerdon)

BUFFALO — The formula for the Buffalo Sabres’ latest loss resembled many of their other losses this season and that kind of sameness is helping bring back memories of seasons past where things often went off the rails for games at a time.

It’s a sensation that’s far too familiar and one the team would much rather leave dead and buried in the past with so many painful memories from previous failed seasons. Current players shouldn’t have to answer for the past and the current iteration of the Sabres certainly don’t need to do that.

The return of the same woes that have dotted other losses this season is concerning especially when this is supposed to be a season where the Sabres are meant to take that next step in their growth. Instead, it’s leading to dashed hopes and doubts across the board.

“I think it’s time to look at everything,” Sabres captain Kyle Okposo said. “There’s a lot of different conversations that go on behind closed doors, things that are said. But it’s probably time to look at a few different things. Sometimes it’s going back to basics. Sometimes it’s tweaking a thing or two here and there to try to get a spark. That’s something we got to figure out and we got to do it with the coaching staff and try to turn this thing around.”