Happy Holidays
BUFFALO – Throughout his career, Ralph Krueger has refused to number lines. The Sabres coach said it’s one of his core philosophies.
Krueger believes everyone, no matter how small the role, contributes to a team’s success. Ranking forward trios or defense pairs would take away from that.
“I just (have) the respect for the depth that teams need to be successful and the role players that I need,” Krueger said after the 2-0 Sabres prepared ... Read the full article
BUFFALO – By the middle of the winter, Linus Ullmark was beginning to steal games from Carter Hutton and supplant him as the Sabres’ starting goalie.
Ullmark, 25, began this season splendidly, compiling a sterling 9-1-3 record in his first 14 outings. He didn’t suffer a regulation loss until Dec. 8.
After Hutton and the Sabres started slumping, Ullmark remained a reliable presence most nights. It looked like he would become the undisputed No. 1 ... Read the full article
BUFFALO – The Sabres’ beleaguered blue line received a much-needed addition Sunday, as Jake McCabe returned after missing 13 games.
Did it help? Well, no. The Columbus Jackets throttled the Sabres 4-0 inside KeyBank Center.
McCabe hadn’t played since suffering an upper-body injury March 2.
Defenseman Marco Scandella, who blocked a shot in Saturday’s ugly 5-1 road loss to the New York Islanders, missed Sunday’s contest. Housley said the Sabres will know more about Scandella’s ... Read the full article
BUFFALO – The Sabres’ beleaguered blue line will receive a much-needed addition tonight.
Sabres coach Phil Housley said defenseman Jake McCabe, sidelined the last 13 games with an upper-body injury, will return against the Columbus Blue Jackets inside KeyBank Center.
Defenseman Marco Scandella, who blocked a shot in Saturday’s ugly 5-1 road loss to the New York Islanders, will sit out tonight. Housley said the Sabres will know more on Scandella on Monday.... Read the full article
BUFFALO – Doing extra work on and off the ice to stay sharp for your next opportunity is the easy part for healthy scratches.
“It’s not so much my body, my hands, my legs,” said Sabres defenseman Nathan Beaulieu, who has been scratched 12 out of the last 15 games. “It’s more the mental part of it. The game’s really fast. You step in the position you’re in, a lot is on the line, ... Read the full article
BUFFALO – With just under seven minutes left in Thursday’s 4-3 win, Sabres defenseman Jake McCabe made eye contact with winger Conor Sheary and took off for the left circle.
As Sheary skated back to the right point, he dished the puck through traffic to a streaking McCabe, who corralled the pass and quickly fed winger Sam Reinhart for the tying goal against the Montreal Canadiens.
The aggressiveness McCabe, 25, showcased on that play ... Read the full article
CLINTON – This village of about 1,900 has some hockey history, you know.
In the late 1950s and 1960s, long before Tuesday’s Kraft Hockeyville NHL preseason tilt between the Buffalo Sabres and Columbus Blue Jackets, the 2,000-seat Clinton Arena housed a pro team in the Eastern Hockey League called the Clinton Comets.
Eddie Giacomin, a Hall of Fame goalie, played for the Comets prior to his days starring for the New York Rangers.... Read the full article
CLINTON – When center Casey Mittelstadt told some of his teammates skating this morning inside tiny Clinton Arena this felt like high school, he said they starting making fun of him.
But Mittelstadt, 19, is less than two years removed from playing high school hockey. Memories of skating in old rinks like the 65-year-old barn where the Sabres will face the Columbus Blue Jackets in tonight are fresh.... Read the full article
BUFFALO – Twenty years ago, diminutive players like Brian Gionta – the ones teams list at, say, 5-foot-9 but are clearly much smaller – rarely received a chance in the NHL.
Sure, once in a while an undersized talent would break through. But for the most part, the league coveted size.
Then in the early 2000s, a few small forwards – Gionta, Daniel Briere and Martin St. Louis – started seizing their chances and morphing ... Read the full article
BUFFALO – Instead of talking about Johan Larsson’s rough season, Sabres coach Phil Housley chose to praise the Swedish center for the transformations he has made.
Larsson struggled mightily in 2017-18, enduring his worst NHL campaign. How bad was he? His wretched minus-30 was the fourth-worst rating among NHL forwards. He scored two of his career-low four goals into empty nets.
But Larsson, 26, accepted Housley and general manager Jason Botterill’s challenge to change ... Read the full article
