Arizona Coyotes - Buffalo Hockey Beat

Sabres’ goalie rotation has helped boost early-season success

BUFFALO – After watching Linus Ullmark’s 41-save shutout Friday, Sabres goalie Carter Hutton will start again tonight, his eighth nod this season.

Thanks to their two-game trip to Sweden next week, the Sabres’ schedule is jam-packed.

So through 12 games, Sabres coach Ralph Krueger has mostly rotated the netminders, trying to balance their workload. Krueger even sticks to the goalie plan he and assistant coach Mike Bales have devised following shutouts.

“It’s something that ... Read the full article

Phil Housley happy for Sabres’ success, doesn’t want to dwell on past

BUFFALO – After the Sabres fired Phil Housley on April 7, he wasn’t sure if he wanted to coach again.

Housley’s dismissal after two losing seasons hit him hard. The Sabres, a team he starred for in the 1980s, and Buffalo are close to his heart.

The Hall of Fame defenseman desperately wanted to lead the Sabres back to glory.

“It’s funny, because you sort of think of what you could’ve done differently,” Housley said ... Read the full article

Phil Housley excited to be with Coyotes, happy for Sabres’ success

BUFFALO – After the Sabres fired Phil Housley on April 7, he wasn’t sure if he wanted to coach again.

Housley’s dismissal after two losing seasons hit him hard. The Sabres, a team he starred for in the 1980s, and Buffalo are close to his heart.

He desperately wanted to lead the team back to glory.

“It’s funny, because you sort of think of what you could’ve done differently,” Housley said this morning inside KeyBank ... Read the full article

Coyotes hire former Sabres coach Phil Housley as assistant

Former Buffalo Sabres head coach Phil Housley has found a new job.

The Arizona Coyotes have hired Housley, 55, as an assistant coach on Rick Tocchet’s staff, the Western Conference club announced today. Housley, who signed a multi-year contract, will run the Coyotes’ blue line.

The Sabres fired Housley on April 7 after a season in which they dropped from first overall in late November to sixth in the Atlantic Division.

From Jan. 1 until ... Read the full article

Sabres pounce on Coyotes early, win second straight

BUFFALO – Less than a minute into Thursday’s 3-1 win over the Arizona Coyotes, Sabres winger Conor Sheary intercepted an ill-advised pass defenseman Alex Goligoski telegraphed up the middle of the ice.

A few seconds later, center Casey Mittelstadt scored from the slot, putting the Sabres up at the 48-second mark. Barely six minutes after the rookie registered his first goal in nine games, winger Jeff Skinner easily converted captain Jack Eichel’s pass on a ... Read the full article

Sabres notes: Carter Hutton still out to prove himself

BUFFALO – Even in a new role as an NHL starter, Sabres goalie Carter Hutton’s mentality hasn’t changed. The popular veteran still acts like he’s trying to crack the big leagues.

“He’s just trying to prove himself every day, whether (it was) earlier in his career, when he was a backup, (or) now he’s in the No. 1 position where he’s played a lot of hockey,” said Sabres coach Phil Housley, who knows Hutton from ... Read the full article

Sabres goalie Carter Hutton to start against Coyotes

BUFFALO – Five years into his NHL career and 21 games into his new gig as the Sabres’ starter, goalie Carter Hutton’s mentality hasn’t changed.

Sabres’ Zemgus Girgensons bounces back after getting scratched

BUFFALO – One play was a highlight-reel goal. Sabres winger Zemgus Girgensons didn’t just steal the puck and outmuscle any ordinary defenseman to score a first-period goal Tuesday; he made former Norris Trophy winner Drew Doughty look silly.

The other play, while not as memorable, was just as critical to the Sabres’ 4-3 overtime victory against the Los Angeles Kings. In the third period, Girgensons outraced Jeff Carter to negate an icing.

“It’s little details ... Read the full article

Sabres rookie Rasmus Dahlin scores first NHL goal

It should surprise no one Rasmus Dahlin scored his first goal because he zoomed to the net. In his early days in the NHL, the slick Buffalo Sabres rookie already showcases an aggressiveness few defensemen possess.

Dahlin, 18, joins the rush so much he often looks like a forward.

So it was fitting 2:45 into Saturday’s 3-0 road win, Dahlin, who was trailing the play, moved in from the slot and buried winger Jeff Skinner’s ... Read the full article

Sabres goalie Linus Ullmark quietly waiting to play

BUFFALO – Sitting on the bench patiently waiting for an opportunity to play is a new experience for Linus Ullmark. Since coming to North America three years ago, the Sabres goalie has averaged 51 outings a season.

The Swede is used to being the guy.

But this season, Ullmark, 25, graduated to the Sabres following a three-year AHL apprenticeship. While he certainly showcased the qualities of a No. 1 NHL goalie with the ... Read the full article