Heading into Tuesday night’s game, Buffalo had tried 28 pairings. I will use “tried” as having played at least 10 minutes of even strength hockey together, which is at least a couple of games. And if we put more definition around that and only looked at regular pairings (say, having played at least 50 minutes of even strength hockey together), Buffalo has 16 pairings and counting.
If those numbers seem high, it is because they are. The league average is about 22 and 11, respectively – and only the Detroit Red Wings have tried more with their makeshift blue line than Buffalo this season.
What makes matters even more remarkable is that just one pairing – one out of 28, mind you – has posted favorable 5-on-5 results in their respective minutes.
How they can keep up with this bullshit is beyond me. No one has a steady partner. They rotate situationally, let alone game to game. It's f***ing stupid, one of the most brain-dead things they have done consistently so far, which is saying something.