September Edition
The friendship between Buffalo Sabres newcomer Eric Staal and general manager Kevyn Adams dates back 17 years, to their days as teammates on the Carolina Hurricanes.
Back then, Adams, a veteran, often invited the budding superstar to his family’s house for dinner.
“He was very good to me as a young player in Carolina,” Staal said on a Zoom call Friday “I was at his house numerous times as a young guy. We just got ... Read the full article
Kevyn Adams made his first trade as Buffalo Sabres general manager today, sending forward Marcus Johansson to the Minnesota Wild in exchange for center Eric Staal.
Staal will likely be utilized as the No. 2 center, a position the Sabres have struggled to fill since dealing Ryan O’Reilly to the St. Louis Blues in 2018.
Johansson, a winger most of his NHL career, centered the second line much of the 2019-20 season, his first in ... Read the full article
During his playing days, former Buffalo Sabres forward Matt Ellis embraced what he calls the “art of preparation.”
Ellis, the Sabres’ new director of player development, kept a training notebook he still consults. He constantly searched for ways to evolve and maximize his potential.
“I was always a chronic explorer,” Ellis said by phone Wednesday.
In the 2009 offseason, for example, Ellis, then 27, overhauled his shot, changing it so he could create more ... Read the full article
The Buffalo Sabres have just 6.5% odds to nab the top pick in tonight’s NHL Draft Lottery, so they likely won’t win the right to select winger Alexis Lafreniere, the ultra-talented prospect who has been projected to go first overall for two years.
Lafreniere is such a dynamic threat he began dominating the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League as a 16-year-old rookie, scoring a career-high 42 goals in only 60 games for Rimouski Oceanic, ... Read the full article
A dynamic junior season in which Buffalo Sabres prospect Dylan Cozens scored 38 goals and 85 points in 51 games has earned him Western Hockey League Eastern Conference Player of the Year honors.
Cozens, a Lethbridge Hurricanes center, is a finalist for the Four Broncos Memorial Trophy, an award given annually to the player who enjoyed the WHL’s best regular season. The winner will be named May 20.
Sabres winger Sam Reinhart won the trophy ... Read the full article
BUFFALO – Seven years ago, Sabres defenseman Jake McCabe had no idea he would be named captain of Team USA’s entry at the World Junior Championship.
The team, after all, had some returning players. McCabe, then 19, was participating in his first tournament.
“It was one I was surprised about because I was a first-year player,” McCabe said prior to Friday’s 3-0 loss to the Boston Bruins at KeyBank Center. “But I took it with ... Read the full article
BUFFALO – Right away, Kyle Okposo knew something was wrong. Having suffered at least three concussions earlier in his Sabres career, the winger understands the symptoms well.
“I just knew right away that the neck wasn’t good,” said Okposo, who suffered his fourth concussion Nov. 16 when he collided with Ottawa Senators defenseman Ron Hainsey leaving the bench.
Right now, Okposo feels good again. The affable veteran smiled and was upbeat Monday morning after skating ... Read the full article
BUFFALO – In the end, instead of recalling a forward or trading for one, the Sabres simply utilized defenseman John Gilmour as a winger for Tuesday’s 4-1 loss to the Minnesota Wild.
Sabres coach Ralph Krueger, who has five injured forwards, said Monday the Sabres could dress seven defensemen and 11 forwards.
The other option likely would’ve been recalling someone from the Rochester Americans. The AHL club, however, only has two healthy forwards on NHL ... Read the full article
BUFFALO – General manager Jason Botterill said before tonight’s game he’s “actively looking” to find a forward to help the injury-depleted Sabres.
“But we also are very happy with how our players have come up from Rochester and played so far,” said Botterill, whose team played without five forwards against the Minnesota Wild.
The Sabres had lost a forward to injury in five straight games entering Tuesday. The organization is so depleted – three Rochester ... Read the full article
BUFFALO – Having lost five forwards in the last five games, a stunning run of injuries, the reeling Sabres have two options for tonight’s game against the Minnesota Wild.
The Sabres can either dress seven defensemen and only 11 forwards, coach Ralph Krueger said, or they can recall a forward from the Rochester Americans.
They stayed remarkably healthy over the first month of the season, utilizing the same lineup most games. But the injuries have ... Read the full article
