By BILL HOPPE

Special to the Herald

OTTAWA – In the midst of a career-best stretch, fresh off consecutive three-point outings, Buffalo Sabres winger Jack Quinn’s disappointment is still evident.

Quinn, 23, entered Tuesday’s game against the Senators at the Canadian Tire Centre on a tear, having scored four goals and eight points in his last four outings.

But in what was expected to be a breakout season, he has struggled at both ends of the ice – he began Tuesday’s game having registered 14 goals, 34 points and a team-worst minus-18 rating in 65 games – and occasionally been scratched.

“It’s been pretty brutal, to be honest,” Quinn told the Times Herald prior to Tuesday’s game. “Not happy with how the season’s gone at all, but (the) last five games have been a lot better.”

While he went pointless in that fifth game he referenced, he returned to the lineup that day after Sabres coach Lindy Ruff benched him one game for being late to a meeting.

It’s been that kind of season for Quinn, the eighth overall pick in 2020.

Still, Quinn, who created captain Rasmus Dahlin’s goal early in Tuesday’s game by winning a battle, has refused to mope. Throughout the year, he has embraced Ruff’s advice and had some difficult conversations with him.

“It can be tough,” Quinn said. “I mean, I think he’s been hard on me and been trying to challenge me to work on my game. I’m not sitting here not wanting to get challenged. I’m not happy with where I’m at, either, so, obviously, I have to do something better.

“So I appreciate him giving me what he thinks will help. And to be honest, I think some of the stuff he’s given me to work on has gone a long way for my game.”

Quinn, for example, has improved his skating at Ruff’s urging, becoming quicker.

“He’s bought in where the game needs to go and where he’s trying to get it to, and he’s working hard at it,” Ruff said.

Different factors have contributed to Quinn’s hot streak.

“Confidence is growing, so that’s one,” Quinn said. “I think I’m skating better than I was in the beginning of the year, which has gone a long way. And then I’m playing with two great players, and we seem to be making a lot of plays out there together.”

He has recently been showcasing terrific chemistry playing right wing alongside center Ryan McLeod and JJ Peterka.

McLeod, who entered Tuesday’s game having scored 18 goals and 47 points, both career highs, forces his linemates to play a certain style.

“He kind of elevates his wingers because of the pace he brings, right?” Quinn said. “He’s always skating, he’s always looking for the puck with speed. I think he just pushes the tempo of the game when he’s on the ice. I think you end up creating more offense because … the tempo’s always being pushed.”

Ruff said McLeod’s speed makes the opposition back off.

“Which opens up a little bit of ice,” he said. “And really all JJ and Quinner need is that little bit of ice and little bit of extra time to make a better play. So it’s been a good fit.”

Quinn has also regularly been utilizing his terrific shot. In Sunday afternoon’s 8-5 win over the Washington Capitals, he pumped three shots on goal, scoring on a breakaway a day after a two-goal performance. He attempted seven shots against the Capitals.

– Sabres center prospect Noah Ostlund has been named the AHL’s Rookie of the Month for March after scoring nine goals and 14 points in 11 games for the Rochester Americans.

On Monday, Ostlund, 21, was also named the league’s Rookie of the Week.

Meanwhile, Williamsville native Andrew Poturalski, a center for the San Jose Barracuda, has been named the AHL’s Player of the Month for March after scoring nine goals and a league-high 22 points in 12 games.

Notes: The Sabres scratched defenseman Jacob Bryson (healthy) and winger Isak Rosen (healthy). … Ruff said injured forwards Jordan Greenway (lower body, five games) and Josh Norris (mid-body, 10 games) are rehabbing. … Senators captain Brady Tkachuk (upper body) missed the game. The Senators also scratched Dennis Gilbert, a defenseman the Sabres packaged in the trade on March 7 that sent center Dylan Cozens to Ottawa. … The Senators honored Sabres defenseman Jacob Bernard-Docker, a part of the Cozens deal, with a tribute video in his first game back. … Sabres prospect Scott Ratzlaff, a goalie with the Seattle Thunderbirds, has been named to the Western Hockey League’s Western Conference First Team All-Star Team. Ratzlaff compiled a 23-19-4 record with a 3.16 goals-against average and a .910 save percentage in 49 games this season.