Pressure on Housley with Revamped Roster

It’s no secret that Phil Housley’s inaugural season as head coach of the Buffalo Sabres did not go as planned. For the third time in five years, the team finished dead-last in the NHL standings and entered the offseason with more questions than answers.

In a series of events that matriculated as a result of tactful transactions and lottery luck, his squad has gone through an upheaval of sorts, appearing much more formidable than they did at this time a year ago. After a 2016-17 campaign that the franchise would like to quickly forget, he must now put his squad in a position to execute his system.

Though the Sabres certainly underachieved last season, it’s tough to put much of the blame…