"Sabres live and breath losing" "Scary good team": NHL fans react as New Jersey Devils complete Global Series sweep over Buffalo  

On Saturday morning in North America, fans tuned in to watch the New Jersey Devils and Buffalo Sabres compete in a highly-anticipated rematch. The two teams opened the 2024-25 NHL season at the O2 Arena in Prague on Friday.

After picking up a win in their season opener the day before, the Devils completed the sweep over the Sabres.

While Friday's game saw New Jersey jump out to an early lead as the Sabres struggled to find their rhythm, it was Buffalo who briefly had an early lead in Saturday's game. In the second period, Tage Thompson buried a puck deep on Devils netminder Jake Allen.

Despite that, the New Jersey Devils were able to fire back, evening the score before intermission. In the third, the Devils were able to find the back of the net twice more, with Paul Cotter notching the second goal of the game. Timo Meier scored the insurance goal after a wraparound attempt from Jesper Bratt.

Following the conclusion of the two-game series, NHL fans took to social media to react:

"Devils stock rising. This is a scary good team." - One wrote.

"Sabres live and breath losing" - Another added.

"The devils are the team to beat this year. Trust me" - Another wrote.

Others weighed in on the game as well:

"as long as they stay healthy from here on out they should win their division" - One predicted.

"Buffalo Sabres fan base is amongst the best in the NHL. They deserve better" - One wrote.

"Different team than last year for sure. Goaltending and toughness were addressed. Need to get lucky along the way, stay healthy and they are as good as anyone in the league" - One fan wrote when reflecting on the New Jersey Devils' offseason.

Looking at the season ahead for the New Jersey Devils and the Buffalo Sabres

After back-to-back wins in Prague for the New Jersey Devils, the team seems to be sitting in a good position. Heading into the season, the Devils were ranked among the best on most US-based sportsbooks when it came to winning the Eastern Conference.

With a new coach behind the bench in Sheldon Keefe, the team seems to be poised for a big year. This is after missing the Stanley Cup Playoffs last year following a seventh-place finish in the Metropolitan Division.

As Keefe explained to his players in the dressing room after their win on Friday, the team was firing on all cylinders. From Jacob Markstrom in goal to the team's Penalty Kill unit, the Devils started the season off strong.

Then, on Saturday, the team managed to keep the momentum rolling with Jake Allen in the net, sending a clear message to the NHL that they are poised to make waves this season.

On the flip side, the Buffalo Sabres, who finished last season sixth in the Atlantic Division with a 39-37-6 record, have now started their 2024-25 campaign off with two straight losses.

For a team that is looking to return to the playoffs for the first time since the 2011 season, there is room for improvement after their back-to-back losses in Prague.

GM Kevyn Adams went to work overhauling the third and fourth forward lines this summer. But the starting forward line of Tage Thompson, Alex Tuch and JJ Peterka has struggled to find their rhythm to start the year.

Both teams will be back in action again on Thursday, with the Sabres hosting the Los Angeles Kings, while on the flip side, the New Jersey Devils will host the Toronto Maple Leafs.