Buffalo Sabres Rank 60th In ESPN 2016 Ultimate Standings, 16th Among All NHL Teams
The Buffalo Sabres improve slightly on last year’s fan-based rankings.
The other day, someone on Twitter complained that I am too negative in my coverage of the Buffalo Sabres.
My optimistic piece on Sam Reinhart today would argue otherwise, and with the way the Sabres have been playing to start this season, I’m not sure you can classify conversations of the Sabres as being negative; the team just stinks right now, and that’s a fact!
Still, no one wants to read nothing but negative crap, and I appreciate that, so here’s a fun fact:
Among the 166 professional sports franchises that exist in North America, the Buffalo Sabres rank 60th in ESPN’s 2016 Ultimate Standings, two positions better than last year.
Ultimate Standings: Sabres creeping up in the rankings https://t.co/NQkn0ksqU5
— SabreNoise (@sabrenoise) October 24, 2016
The ESPN Ultimate Standings are in their 14th year, and they ask fans to rank each professional sports team based on a number of criteria, such as ownership, coaching, affordability, bang for the buck, and so on. Based on how each team rates in nine categories, ESPN then crowns an annual winner – this year, the Tampa Bay Lightning.
If you are interested, you can read the piece that breaks down how the Sabres rank here. Buffalo’s highest rankings come courtesy of affordability (18) and ownership (29) – thank you, Terry Pegula! Sadly, the Sabres dropped 36 spots in fan relations, ranking 90th overall in this area.
And yes, in case you are wondering: the Buffalo Sabres (60) ranked higher than the Buffalo Bills (76), although that might change if the Bills manage to make it to the playoffs this season . . . .
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