Division 7th Atlantic 2015–16 record 35–36–11 Road record 19–17–5 | Conference 14th Eastern Home record 16–19–6 Goals for 201 | |
The 2015–16 Buffalo Sabres season was the 46th season for the National Hockey League franchise that was established on May 22, 1970. The season began its regular games on October 8, 2015 against the Ottawa Senators with a 3–1 loss.
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This was originally to be the final season in which Rick Jeanneret serves as the team's play-by-play announcer; he has been in that position since the team's second season in 1971. As in recent years, he will rotate with Dan Dunleavy in the position. However, Jeanneret agreed to continue indefinitely as part-time announcer as long as his health allows it.
Off-season
The Sabres fired head coach Ted Nolan on April 12, 2015, amid poor on-ice record and disagreements with general manager Tim Murray. The team then made overtures to Mike Babcock, the most prominent head coach on the free agent market; despite a record-setting offer, Babcock instead sought (and received) the head coaching position for the Sabres' division and regional rivals, the Toronto Maple Leafs. With the Sabres failing to land Babcock, the team's second choice, Dan Bylsma, was subsequently hired on May 28. Bylsma had spent the 2014-15 season out of professional hockey after spending the previous five seasons with the Pittsburgh Penguins.
The Sabres held the second overall pick in the 2015 NHL Entry Draft after finishing last in the league in 2014-15 and losing the draft lottery to the Edmonton Oilers. The Sabres selected Jack Eichel with their pick.
The Sabres fired President Ted Black on July 27, 2015, and replaced him with Russ Brandon. Brandon also serves as President of the Buffalo Bills of the National Football League and will continue in that capacity in addition to his duties with the Sabres.
Training camp
As in previous years, the Sabres held a summer development camp from July 6–11, 2015. The highlight of the camp was the "blue and gold" scrimmage on July 10; the scrimmage, which pit a "gold" team led by 2015 second overall pick Jack Eichel against a "blue" team led by 2014 second overall pick Sam Reinhart, drew 17,115 paying fans, nearly double the crowd that attended the 2014 event. An additional 1,500 fans attended the less-publicized 3-on-3 scrimmage, which closed out the camp on July 11.
The Sabres did not participate in the Detroit Red Wings' annual prospect tournament in Traverse City, Michigan as they have in recent years and instead launched their own "Prospect Challenge" beginning this season. For the first year, the Sabres, New Jersey Devils and Boston Bruins prospects faced each other in a single round-robin mini-tournament. Buffalo won both of their games and the tournament.
Player stats
Final stats
Goaltenders
†Denotes player spent time with another team before joining the Sabres. Stats reflect time with the Sabres only.
‡Denotes player was traded mid-season. Stats reflect time with the Sabres only.
Bold/italics denotes franchise record.
Roster
Updated January 15, 2017.
Transactions
The Sabres have been involved in the following transactions during the 2015–16 season: