November Edition
BUFFALO – Few figured coach Ralph Krueger could transform the Sabres so quickly that – gasp – a playoff berth would feel possible this season.
Players need time to understand new messages and systems. Besides, Krueger inherited a hapless team that won just two games last March.
It would take time – maybe months, even a season – before the Sabres showed real progress, right?
Well, six games into Krueger’s tenure, the Sabres are still ... Read the full article
BUFFALO – In the first period Monday afternoon, Sabres coach Ralph Krueger tapped winger Vladimir Sobotka for two defensive-zone draws.
“He went right out there and cleanly won them and took us out of our end,” Krueger said following the Sabres’ 4-0 victory over the Dallas Stars inside KeyBank Center.
Then 4:20 into the third period, Sobotka’s nifty pass past a sliding defender created linemate Jeff Skinner’s goal.
The Czech’s first point this season put ... Read the full article
BUFFALO – Other than switching to goalie Carter Hutton this afternoon against the Dallas Stars, the Sabres will utilize the same lineup as the past two games inside KeyBank Center.
That means forward Curtis Lazar, who was recalled from Rochester Americans on Sunday, will be scratched.
Despite the Stars’ sorry 1-4-1 record, they possess a lot of talent.
“They’re a much, much better team that their record,” said coach Ralph Krueger, whose Sabres have ... Read the full article
BUFFALO – Having already produced seven points through five games, Rasmus Dahlin could be in the early stages of the greatest offensive season ever enjoyed by a Sabres defenseman.
Dahlin, of course, will likely cool off. At his current pace entering this afternoon’s home game against the Dallas Stars, he would score 115 points over an 82-game campaign.
Only five NHL defensemen have ever recorded a 100-point season. The last one, Brian Leetch, hit the ... Read the full article
BUFFALO – Right now, it feels like the Sabres might not win another game this season.
Sure, they made progress in Tuesday’s 2-0 loss, pumping 35 shots on goal and attempting 61 overall. Five-on-five, they probably outplayed the Dallas Stars.
Of course, any effort would’ve looked better than their last one, Saturday afternoon’s miserable 3-0 loss in Colorado. In a downright terrible offensive display, the Sabres produced only nine shots in the opening 50 minutes ... Read the full article
BUFFALO – For years and years, the cycle repeated itself. Taylor Fedun would earn a recall to the NHL as an injury replacement and eventually return to the AHL.
“Normally every opportunity I’ve had at this level, once guys get healthy, it’s just kind of the way it’s gone,” said Fedun, a Dallas Stars defenseman who played two full seasons in the Sabres organization. “I’m the guy that got sent back down.”
Despite compiling some ... Read the full article
BUFFALO – For years and years, the cycle repeated itself. Taylor Fedun would earn a recall to the NHL as an injury replacement and eventually return to the AHL.
“Normally every opportunity I’ve had at this level, once guys get healthy, it’s just kind of the way it’s gone,” said Fedun, a Dallas Stars defenseman who played two full seasons in the Sabres organization. “I’m the guy that got sent back down.”
Despite compiling some ... Read the full article
BUFFALO – After playing three straight games, Sabres defenseman Casey Nelson will sit out tonight’s contest against the Dallas Stars as a healthy scratch.
Why? Well, Sabres coach Phil Housley said Nelson will be scratched mainly because his play “has dipped the last couple games.”
“We’ve got some other guys there available and we haven’t had a lot of success, so we’ve made some changes,” Housley said this morning inside KeyBank Center.... Read the full article
BUFFALO – On Feb. 27, Sabres prospect Alexander Nylander played his 13th straight game without scoring a goal. At that point, nearly five months into his third AHL campaign, the chances of the slick winger earning a recall looked slim.
Nylander, 21, enjoyed a strong training camp this season, nearly forcing the Sabres to keep him. The Swede parlayed that into a terrific start with the Rochester Americans, scoring six goals and 17 points ... Read the full article
BUFFALO – Phil Housley wouldn’t go there. The Sabres coach simply said he disagreed with the two-game suspension the NHL slapped on center Jack Eichel, his captain and leading scorer, and left it at that.
But an aggravated Eichel offered a detailed description of the illegal check to the head he laid on Avalanche forward Carl Soderberg in Saturday afternoon’s 3-0 loss in Colorado.
The hit, Eichel said Monday, was legal and he shouldn’t ... Read the full article
