1972–73 Buffalo Sabres season

The 1972–73 Buffalo Sabres season was the Sabres' third season of operation in the National Hockey League. The team made it to the playoffs for the first time, but lost in the first round to Montreal, four games to two.

1972–73 Buffalo Sabres
Division	4th East
1972–73 record	37–27–14
Home record	30–6–3
Road record	7–21–11
Goals for	257
Goals against	219
Team information
General manager	Punch Imlach
Coach	Joe Crozier
Captain	Gerry Meehan
Arena	Buffalo Memorial Auditorium
Average attendance	15,632
Team leaders
Goals	Rene Robert (40)
Assists	Gilbert Perreault (60)
Points	Gilbert Perreault (88)
Penalty minutes	Jim Schoenfeld (178)
Wins	Roger Crozier (23)
Goals against average	Dave Dryden (2.65)
← 1971–72 1973–74 →

Offseason

The Sabres added future Hall of Fame defenseman Tim Horton in the intra-league draft. In the Amateur Draft, the Sabres picked defenseman Jim Schoenfeld as their first-round pick, fifth over-all.

Regular season

Final standings

East Division^[1]

• v
• t
• e

		GP	W	L	T	GF	GA	DIFF	Pts
1	Montreal Canadiens	78	52	10	16	329	184	+145	120
2	Boston Bruins	78	51	22	5	330	235	+95	107
3	New York Rangers	78	47	23	8	297	208	+89	102
4	Buffalo Sabres	78	37	27	14	257	219	+38	88
5	Detroit Red Wings	78	37	29	12	265	243	+22	86
6	Toronto Maple Leafs	78	27	41	10	247	279	−32	64
7	Vancouver Canucks	78	22	47	9	233	339	−106	53
8	New York Islanders	78	12	60	6	170	347	−177	30

Record vs. opponents

Vs. East Division 1972–73 NHL records^[2] Team BOS BUF DET MTL NYI NYR TOR VAN Total Boston — 4–1–1 3–2 1–3–1 5–1 3–3 4–1 4–1 24–12–2 Buffalo 1–4–1 — 1–4 1–2–2 5–0–1 5–1 4–1 3–2 20–14–4 Detroit 2–3 4–1 — 2–3–1 4–1 1–3–1 4–2 3–0–3 20–13–5 Montreal 3–1–1 2–1–2 3–2–1 — 5–0 3–0–2 5–0–1 6–0 27–4–7 N.Y. Islanders 1–5 0–5–1 1–4 0–5 — 0–6 1–4 1–3–1 4–32–2 N.Y. Rangers 3–3 1–5 3–1–1 0–3–2 6–0 — 4–1 3–2 20–15–3 Toronto 1–4 1–4 2–4 0–5–1 4–1 1–4 — 2–3–1 11–25–2 Vancouver 1–4 2–3 0–3–3 0–6 3–1–1 2–3 3–2–1 — 11–22–5

Vs. West Division 1972–73 NHL records Team ATL CAL CHI LAK MIN PHI PIT STL Total Boston 5–0 4–0–1 2–3 3–2 3–1–1 4–0–1 4–1 2–3 27–10–3 Buffalo 2–1–2 1–2–2 2–3 2–1–2 3–2 2–3 3–0–2 2–1–2 17–13–10 Detroit 3–2 2–2–1 2–3 2–2–1 1–3–1 3–1–1 2–0–3 2–3 17–16–7 Montreal 3–0–2 3–0–2 2–3 4–0–1 3–1–1 2–2–1 5–0 3–0–2 25–6–9 N.Y. Islanders 0–4–1 4–1 0–4–1 1–4 1–4 1–4 0–4–1 1–3–1 8–28–4 N.Y. Rangers 4–1 3–1–1 2–2–1 3–0–2 3–2 4–0–1 3–2 5–0 27–8–5 Toronto 1–2–2 3–1–1 1–2–2 3–2 2–2–1 1–3–1 2–2–1 3–2 16–16–8 Vancouver 1–4 4–1 1–3–1 2–3 0–3–2 0–4–1 2–3 1–4 11–25–4

Schedule and results

Regular season results
No.	R	Date	Score	Opponent	Record
1	W	October 8, 1972	5–3	Atlanta Flames (1972–73)	1–0–0
2	W	October 11, 1972	7–3	Los Angeles Kings (1972–73)	2–0–0
3	T	October 14, 1972	1–1	@ Atlanta Flames (1972–73)	2–0–1
4	W	October 15, 1972	3–2	Toronto Maple Leafs (1972–73)	3–0–1
5	W	October 19, 1972	6–0	Vancouver Canucks (1972–73)	4–0–1
6	T	October 21, 1972	1–1	@ St. Louis Blues (1972–73)	4–0–2
7	W	October 22, 1972	7–2	Atlanta Flames (1972–73)	5–0–2
8	T	October 25, 1972	2–2	Boston Bruins (1972–73)	5–0–3
9	T	October 28, 1972	3–3	@ Montreal Canadiens (1972–73)	5–0–4
10	W	October 29, 1972	2–1	Minnesota North Stars (1972–73)	6–0–4
11	L	November 1, 1972	1–7	@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1972–73)	6–1–4
12	L	November 4, 1972	3–5	@ Philadelphia Flyers (1972–73)	6–2–4
13	T	November 5, 1972	1–1	St. Louis Blues (1972–73)	6–2–5
14	T	November 9, 1972	0–0	California Golden Seals (1972–73)	6–2–6
15	L	November 11, 1972	1–3	@ Philadelphia Flyers (1972–73)	6–3–6
16	W	November 12, 1972	1–0	Pittsburgh Penguins (1972–73)	7–3–6
17	T	November 15, 1972	3–3	@ Los Angeles Kings (1972–73)	7–3–7
18	L	November 17, 1972	1–5	@ California Golden Seals (1972–73)	7–4–7
19	L	November 19, 1972	5–9	@ Vancouver Canucks (1972–73)	7–5–7
20	L	November 22, 1972	2–6	@ Detroit Red Wings (1972–73)	7–6–7
21	W	November 23, 1972	5–3	New York Rangers (1972–73)	8–6–7
22	W	November 26, 1972	9–2	New York Islanders (1972–73)	9–6–7
23	W	November 28, 1972	7–2	@ New York Islanders (1972–73)	10–6–7
24	L	November 30, 1972	4–5	@ Boston Bruins (1972–73)	10–7–7
25	L	December 2, 1972	6–8	@ Minnesota North Stars (1972–73)	10–8–7
26	W	December 3, 1972	7–4	Minnesota North Stars (1972–73)	11–8–7
27	W	December 6, 1972	3–2	@ New York Rangers (1972–73)	12–8–7
28	W	December 7, 1972	6–1	Detroit Red Wings (1972–73)	13–8–7
29	W	December 10, 1972	4–2	Montreal Canadiens (1972–73)	14–8–7
30	W	December 13, 1972	7–3	Boston Bruins (1972–73)	15–8–7
31	W	December 16, 1972	4–3	@ St. Louis Blues (1972–73)	16–8–7
32	W	December 17, 1972	4–0	Toronto Maple Leafs (1972–73)	17–8–7
33	W	December 20, 1972	6–3	Vancouver Canucks (1972–73)	18–8–7
34	L	December 22, 1972	2–4	@ California Golden Seals (1972–73)	18–9–7
35	L	December 23, 1972	0–2	@ Los Angeles Kings (1972–73)	18–10–7
36	W	December 27, 1972	4–1	@ New York Rangers (1972–73)	19–10–7
37	W	December 28, 1972	8–2	Chicago Black Hawks (1972–73)	20–10–7
38	L	December 31, 1972	2–4	@ Chicago Black Hawks (1972–73)	20–11–7
39	W	January 3, 1973	4–1	New York Islanders (1972–73)	21–11–7
40	L	January 4, 1973	2–4	@ Detroit Red Wings (1972–73)	21–12–7
41	W	January 6, 1973	4–1	@ New York Rangers (1972–73)	22–12–7
42	W	January 7, 1973	2–0	Philadelphia Flyers (1972–73)	23–12–7
43	L	January 11, 1973	2–4	New York Rangers (1972–73)	23–13–7
44	L	January 14, 1973	0–6	@ Boston Bruins (1972–73)	23–14–7
45	W	January 18, 1973	5–1	Chicago Black Hawks (1972–73)	24–14–7
46	L	January 20, 1973	2–4	@ Detroit Red Wings (1972–73)	24–15–7
47	L	January 21, 1973	3–4	Philadelphia Flyers (1972–73)	24–16–7
48	W	January 25, 1973	5–2	Minnesota North Stars (1972–73)	25–16–7
49	L	January 28, 1973	5–8	Atlanta Flames (1972–73)	25–17–7
50	W	February 1, 1973	5–3	Los Angeles Kings (1972–73)	26–17–7
51	T	February 3, 1973	1–1	@ New York Islanders (1972–73)	26–17–8
52	W	February 4, 1973	5–1	New York Islanders (1972–73)	27–17–8
53	L	February 7, 1973	1–2	@ Chicago Black Hawks (1972–73)	27–18–8
54	W	February 8, 1973	4–0	California Golden Seals (1972–73)	28–18–8
55	L	February 10, 1973	1–2	@ Montreal Canadiens (1972–73)	28–19–8
56	L	February 11, 1973	2–5	Detroit Red Wings (1972–73)	28–20–8
57	W	February 14, 1973	3–2	@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1972–73)	29–20–8
58	W	February 15, 1973	4–1	New York Rangers (1972–73)	30–20–8
59	T	February 17, 1973	3–3	@ Pittsburgh Penguins (1972–73)	30–20–9
60	W	February 18, 1973	4–1	Pittsburgh Penguins (1972–73)	31–20–9
61	W	February 22, 1973	3–1	Vancouver Canucks (1972–73)	32–20–9
62	L	February 24, 1973	2–4	@ Minnesota North Stars (1972–73)	32–21–9
63	W	February 25, 1973	2–1	Pittsburgh Penguins (1972–73)	33–21–9
64	T	March 1, 1973	4–4	@ Atlanta Flames (1972–73)	33–21–10
65	L	March 4, 1973	2–4	Montreal Canadiens (1972–73)	33–22–10
66	T	March 6, 1973	2–2	@ Los Angeles Kings (1972–73)	33–22–11
67	T	March 7, 1973	2–2	@ California Golden Seals (1972–73)	33–22–12
68	L	March 9, 1973	2–5	@ Vancouver Canucks (1972–73)	33–23–12
69	L	March 13, 1973	0–2	@ St. Louis Blues (1972–73)	33–24–12
70	L	March 15, 1973	1–4	Boston Bruins (1972–73)	33–25–12
71	T	March 17, 1973	3–3	@ Montreal Canadiens (1972–73)	33–25–13
72	W	March 18, 1973	5–1	Toronto Maple Leafs (1972–73)	34–25–13
73	L	March 21, 1973	2–6	@ Chicago Black Hawks (1972–73)	34–26–13
74	T	March 24, 1973	4–4	@ Pittsburgh Penguins (1972–73)	34–26–14
75	L	March 25, 1973	1–6	@ Boston Bruins (1972–73)	34–27–14
76	W	March 27, 1973	3–2	@ New York Islanders (1972–73)	35–27–14
77	W	March 28, 1973	6–3	Philadelphia Flyers (1972–73)	36–27–14
78	W	April 1, 1973	3–1	St. Louis Blues (1972–73)	37–27–14

Playoffs

The 1972–73 season saw the Sabres qualify for the Stanley Cup playoffs for the first time. The team would ultimately lose to the eventual Stanley Cup Champion Montreal Canadiens in 6 games. After falling behind three games to none the Sabres won two straight to earn a final home game that was memorable for the "Thank you Sabres" chant from the end of the game.^[3]

1973 Stanley Cup playoffs
#	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	OT	Montreal goals	Buffalo goals	Decision	Attendance	Series	Recap
1	April 4	Buffalo Sabres	1–2	Montreal Canadiens						0–1
2	April 5	Buffalo Sabres	3–7	Montreal Canadiens						0–2
3	April 7	Montreal Canadiens	5–2	Buffalo Sabres						0–3
4	April 8	Montreal Canadiens	1–5	Buffalo Sabres						1–3
5	April 10	Buffalo Sabres	3–2	Montreal Canadiens	9:18					2–3
6	April 12	Montreal Canadiens	4–2	Buffalo Sabres						2–4

• Scorer of game-winning goal in italics
• *Denotes if necessary

Player statistics

Regular season
Scoring
Player Pos GP G A Pts PIM +/- PPG SHG GWG Gilbert Perreault C 78 28 60 88 10 11 8 0 7 Rene Robert RW 75 40 43 83 83 16 9 0 6 Rick Martin LW 75 37 36 73 79 4 11 0 4 Jim Lorentz C/RW 78 27 35 62 30 6 11 0 5 Gerry Meehan C 77 31 29 60 21 4 3 1 6 Don Luce C 78 18 25 43 32 7 0 3 2 Hugh Harris C 60 12 26 38 17 9 0 0 0 Larry Hillman D 78 5 24 29 56 −3 2 0 0 Craig Ramsay LW 76 11 17 28 15 13 0 1 1 Larry Mickey RW 77 15 9 24 47 −6 1 0 2 Mike Robitaille D 65 4 17 21 40 9 0 0 0 Jim Schoenfeld D 66 4 15 19 178 12 1 0 0 Steve Atkinson RW 61 9 9 18 36 −5 2 0 1 Tim Horton D 69 1 16 17 56 12 0 0 0 Tracy Pratt D 74 1 15 16 116 9 0 0 0 Norm Gratton LW 21 6 5 11 12 0 2 0 1 Larry Carriere D 40 2 8 10 52 −1 1 0 0 Paul Terbenche D 42 0 7 7 8 7 0 0 0 Randy Wyrozub C 45 3 3 6 4 −1 0 0 2 Doug Rombough C 5 2 0 2 0 2 0 0 0 Butch Deadmarsh LW 34 1 1 2 26 −3 1 0 0 Rick Dudley LW 6 0 1 1 7 −2 0 0 0 John Gould RW 8 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 Ron Busniuk RW 1 0 0 0 9 0 0 0 0 Roger Crozier G 49 0 0 0 4 0 0 0 0 Dave Dryden G 37 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Rocky Farr G 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Ray McKay D 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Bob Richer C 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Goaltending
Player MIN GP W L T GA GAA SO Roger Crozier 2633 49 23 13 7 121 2.76 3 Dave Dryden 2018 37 14 13 7 89 2.65 3 Rocky Farr 29 1 0 1 0 3 6.21 0 Team: 4680 78 37 27 14 213 2.73 6

Playoffs
Scoring
Player Pos GP G A Pts PIM PPG SHG GWG Gilbert Perreault C 6 3 7 10 2 1 0 1 Rene Robert RW 6 5 3 8 2 1 0 1 Rick Martin LW 6 3 2 5 12 2 0 0 Jim Schoenfeld D 6 2 1 3 4 0 0 0 Jim Lorentz C/RW 6 0 3 3 2 0 0 0 Don Luce C 6 1 1 2 2 0 0 0 Craig Ramsay LW 6 1 1 2 0 0 0 0 Larry Mickey RW 6 1 0 1 5 0 0 0 Larry Carriere D 6 0 1 1 8 0 0 0 Roger Crozier G 4 0 1 1 2 0 0 0 Norm Gratton LW 6 0 1 1 2 0 0 0 Tim Horton D 6 0 1 1 4 0 0 0 Gerry Meehan C 6 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 Steve Atkinson RW 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Dave Dryden G 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Hugh Harris C 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Larry Hillman D 6 0 0 0 8 0 0 0 Tracy Pratt D 6 0 0 0 6 0 0 0 Mike Robitaille D 6 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Paul Terbenche D 6 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Goaltending
Player MIN GP W L GA GAA SO Roger Crozier 249 4 2 2 11 2.65 0 Dave Dryden 120 2 0 2 9 4.50 0 Team: 369 6 2 4 20 3.25 0

^[4]

Note: Pos = Position; GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; +/- = plus/minus; PIM = Penalty minutes; PPG = Power-play goals; SHG = Short-handed goals; GWG = Game-winning goals
      MIN = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; GA = Goals-against; GAA = Goals-against average; SO = Shutouts;

Awards and records

Lady Byng Memorial Trophy: Gilbert Perreault

Transactions

Trades

Date	Details
June 6, 1972	To New York Islanders 7th-round pick in 1972 (Don McLaughlin) 8th-round pick in 1972 (Rene Levasseur) 9th-round pick in 1972 (Bill Ennos) 10th-round pick in 1972 (Rene Lambert)	To Buffalo Sabres Islanders promised to not draft certain players in the 1972 NHL Expansion Draft
June 8, 1972	To Montreal Canadiens Cash	To Buffalo Sabres Ron Busniuk
February 14, 1973	To Atlanta Flames Butch Deadmarsh	To Buffalo Sabres Norm Gratton

Lost via retirement

Player

Dick Duff

Claimed via Waivers Player Former team Date claimed off waivers

Lost via Waivers Player New team Date claimed off waivers Kevin O'Shea St. Louis Blues March 3, 1972

Lost in the Expansion Draft

See also: 1972 NHL Expansion Draft

June 6, 1972	To New York Islanders Tom Miller
June 6, 1972	To New York Islanders Ken Murray
June 6, 1972	To Atlanta Flames Rod Zaine

1972 NHL Intraleague Draft

June 5, 1972

From Pittsburgh Penguins Tim Horton

Draft picks

NHL draft

See also: 1972 NHL Amateur Draft

Round	#	Player	Nationality	College/Junior/Club team
1	5	Jim Schoenfeld	Canada	Niagara Falls Flyers (OHA)
2	25	Larry Carriere	Canada	Loyola University (CIAU)
3	37	Jim McMasters	Canada	Calgary Centennials (WCHL)
4	53	Rychard Campeau	Canada	Sorel Black Hawks (QMJHL)
5	69	Gilles Gratton	Canada	Oshawa Generals (OHA)
6	85	Peter McNab	Canada	U. of Denver (WCHA)

Farm teams

The 1972–73 AHL season was a successful one for the Sabres' AHL affiliate, the Cincinnati Swords. The Swords would finish first overall in the regular season with a 54–17–5 record. They would go on to win the Calder Cup in the playoffs losing only 3 games in the 3 round best-of-7 event. It would be the only championship won by the team in its short existence.

See also

• 1972–73 NHL season

References

1. "1972–1973 Division Standings Standings - NHL.com - Standings". National Hockey League.
2. "All-Time NHL Results". NHL.com. Retrieved August 25, 2023.
3. "1972–73". The 40th Anniversary Site of the Buffalo Sabres. Archived from the original on July 16, 2012. Retrieved April 15, 2011.
4. "1972-73 Buffalo Sabres Statistics - Hockey-Reference.com". hockey-reference.com. Retrieved July 13, 2009.