Buffalo Sabres 75 Bold Predictions for 2023-24: Prediction #13

Victor Olofsson is back with the Buffalo Sabres for the foreseeable future, and perhaps he can surprise us as being more than a scoring specialist.

To claim Victor Olofsson is a curious case for the Buffalo Sabres is the understatement of the century. It’s true, because Olofsson may be the most curious case in the NHL, thanks to his stellar 28-goal season, but, um, it’s really tough to find anything else worth mentioning.

Yet, things can always change, and in the wake of Jack Quinn’s Achilles injury and rehab that will continue into the regular season, perhaps Olofsson surprises us. Naturally, this opens the door for plenty of bold predictions for one of the league’s better scorers but also one of their most fringe overall players.

Buffalo Sabres winger scores a career high in points…but not by much

So far, Olofsson’s career high is 49, which occurred in 2021-22. And Olofsson, who at this point I would project to play on the third line, will once again get plenty of chances to score. However, he will surprise all of us on the power play by helping others find twine.

With more projected ice time early in the year to compensate for Quinn’s injury, an ultra-motivated Olofsson will show he’s more than just a scorer. Sure, this prediction is once again indicating he’s still the all-out offensive type, but it’s also projecting more than 12 measly assists.

Instead, look for the Victor Olofsson of 2021-22 to return, but without the three-month drought in offensive production. This will give him a chance not only to do this thing and score from the circle at both even strength and on the power play, but to also rack up points via assists.

It also puts him ahead of the eight-ball heading into midseason, when Quinn should be back. Overall, I can see Olofsson once again scoring between 25 and 30 goals, only this year when he sees more ice time early on, he will also rack up the assists, putting him in the 50 point range by the end of the year.

(Statistics provided by Hockey-Reference)