NHL EDGE stats highlight Senators–Sabres matchup on Prime “Wednesday Night Hockey”

By Vancouver Television Sports Desk

Every Wednesday during NHL on Prime “Wednesday Night Hockey” in Canada, NHL.com publishes five NHL EDGE advanced metrics to frame the week’s matchup with key shot-speed, skating, and chance-quality storylines. For the upcoming game between the Ottawa Senators and Buffalo Sabres, scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET, the EDGE focus centres on how both teams generate high-end volume, while individual players shape the game through shooting and skating profile measurements.

Buffalo forward Tage Thompson is presented as the most notable shot-speed driver on the league’s current data baseline. NHL.com says Thompson has the second-hardest shot attempt across the NHL this season at 100.17 mph on Oct. 10, behind only Cale Makar’s 101.90 mph blast on Oct. 7. The EDGE metrics also credit Thompson with elite shot-speed distribution, ranking him in the 97th percentile among forwards in average shot speed at 67.87 mph, and noting he leads his position in 90-plus mph shots since the start of last season.

In the same NHL EDGE breakdown, the NHL.com post lists the most 90-plus mph shots among forwards since the start of last season. Thompson leads that table with 46, followed by Alex Ovechkin of the Washington Capitals with 37 and Morgan Geekie of the Boston Bruins with 31. The list then ties Mika Zibanejad of the New York Rangers and Egor Chinakhov of the Pittsburgh Penguins at 16 each, under the next tier.

NHL.com also highlights team-level shot quality through high-speed attempts. It says the Ottawa Senators are the only team with two players in the NHL’s top-eight for 90-plus mph shots, with defencemen Tyler Kleven and Carter Yakemchuk tied for sixth with seven each. In terms of volume, the Senators lead the league with 107 shots at 80-plus mph, while the Buffalo Sabres rank fourth in that category.

Beyond shot speed, the NHL EDGE metrics focus on chance danger and scoring locations. NHL.com reports that Buffalo forward Zach Benson leads all Sabres skaters and ranks in the 96th percentile among NHL forwards in high-danger shots on goal, with 20. The EDGE post adds that both of Benson’s goals this season have come from high-danger areas, and that 10 of his 13 goals last season also originated from that same zone.

Ottawa’s top EDGE subject in skating and chance conversion is Tim Stützle, who NHL.com says is tied for ninth in the NHL in 20-plus mph speed bursts with 63. The metrics also list Stützle among the upper echelon at the forward position in additional skating categories, including 22-plus mph bursts with five (95th percentile) and a max skating speed of 22.83 mph (89th percentile).

The NHL.com EDGE post ties Stützle’s skating output to high-danger finishing trends. It says Stützle is tied for seventh in the league in high-danger goals with six, placing him at the 90th percentile or higher among forwards in each of the past three seasons. The publication then provides the high-danger goal totals by season since 2024-25: 6 in 2026-27 (99th percentile, tied for seventh in the NHL), 20 in 2025-26 (97th percentile), and 15 in 2024-25 (90th percentile).

On the defensive scoring dimension, NHL.com reports Buffalo is tied for fourth in overall goals scored by defensemen with 10 this season. The EDGE metrics also add nuance about where those goals come from: while the Sabres have not yet had a high-danger goal scored by a defenseman, they still rank among the top 10 in both midrange goals by defensemen (seven, second) and long-range goals by defensemen (three, tied for fifth).

To contextualize those defensive scoring categories, NHL.com includes a league team comparison for midrange goals by defensemen this season: Seattle Kraken have eight, Buffalo has seven, and three teams are tied with five—New Jersey Devils, Tampa Bay Lightning, and Washington Capitals. Together with the individual shot-speed and skating highlights, the NHL EDGE package is designed to show how the Senators–Sabres matchup could hinge on high-velocity attempts, high-danger shot locations, and the timing of burst skating and chance generation.

The NHL EDGE update is part of NHL.com’s Wednesday “Wednesday Night Hockey” programming for Canada, using NHL EDGE Player & Puck Tracking technology and daily infographics that compare players and teams. NHL.com’s current post frames the next game’s key storylines through the metrics listed above, without adding additional gameplay outcomes or independent reporting beyond the published statistical measures.

For viewers planning for puck drop, the central EDGE takeaways from NHL.com’s matchup preview are clear: Buffalo’s Tage Thompson stands out for extreme shot speed and 90-plus mph volume, Zach Benson leads the Sabres in high-danger shot volume from the area of the ice linked to his scoring, and Ottawa’s Tim Stützle combines elite speed bursts with a high-danger goal profile that has been consistent across multiple seasons. Meanwhile, the teams’ shot-velocity volume at 80-plus mph and Buffalo’s defensemen scoring split between midrange and long-range categories round out the statistical storylines for the scheduled 7:30 p.m. ET game.

NHL.com also notes that NHL EDGE materials include zone maps, player and team comparisons, and deep-dive details drawn from its Player & Puck Tracking technology, presented as infographics tied to “Wednesday Night Hockey” coverage.