2021 Season Edition
Dylan Cozens has looked comfortable with the Sabres. ©2021, Micheline Veluvolu
BUFFALO – Seventeen years ago, Sabres center Eric Staal lived what Dylan Cozens, his new linemate, is experiencing right now as a teenage rookie.
“It’s scary to think I was him back in the day,” Staal said on Zoom call after the Sabres prepared for tonight’s road game against the Philadelphia Flyers. “Time goes fast.”
In 2003-04, Staal, now 36, was a neophyte learning the rigors of NHL life. To boost his development, the ... Read the full article
Sam Reinhart winces in pain after getting injured Friday. ©2021, Micheline Veluvolu
BUFFALO – Sabres winger Sam Reinhart, who briefly left Friday’s 2-1 loss to the Washington Capitals, is day to day with a lower-body injury, coach Ralph Krueger said.
Reinhart did not practice Sunday but accompanied the Sabres to Philadelphia, where they begin a two-game series Monday against the Flyers.
Krueger said Reinhart’s injury, which he suffered in a collision behind the net, “appears to be manageable.”
“We will do a pregame skate again tomorrow ... Read the full article
The Sabres acquired Eric Staal to center their second line. ©2021, Micheline Veluvolu
BUFFALO – Sabres center Eric Staal left Thursday’s 6-4 season-opening loss to the Washington Capitals after Nic Dowd elbowed him in the jaw.
Coach Ralph Krueger had no update following the game on Staal, who was acquired from the Minnesota Wild on Sept. 16 to center the second line.
“I saw what you saw,” Krueger said on a Zoom call. “We’re just assessing him. It’s one of those where it’s definitely in a day-to-day status ... Read the full article
Carter Hutton enjoyed a terrific training camp. ©2021, Micheline Veluvolu
BUFFALO – Sabres coach Ralph Krueger’s decision to award goalie Carter Hutton the opening night start against the Washington Capitals wasn’t surprising.
Yes, Hutton, 35, struggled most of last season, losing 12 straight decisions at one point. But his turnaround started at the end of 2019-20, when enjoyed a 6-2-0 run in February.
Hutton performed strongly throughout training camp this year, quickly morphing into one of the Sabres’ standouts. Meanwhile, goalie Linus Ullmark missed the ... Read the full article
Jack Quinn has impressed the Sabres. ©2021, Micheline Veluvolu
BUFFALO – On Wednesday morning, rookie Jack Quinn wasn’t among the five players the Sabres assigned to their new taxi squad.
But instead of practicing with the team’s main group at KeyBank Center, Quinn joined the taxi-squad players across the street inside LECOM Harborcenter.
Meanwhile, taxi-squad forward Rasmus Asplund skated with the Sabres’ main group.
Sabres coach Ralph Krueger said last week the practice groups would be adjusted every morning, so expect regular movement ... Read the full article
Tobias Rieder (pictured) has slid into Zemgus Girgensons’ spot on the third line. ©2021, Micheline Veluvolu
BUFFALO – In the not-so-distant past, losing a player who possessed Zemgus Girgensons’ talents could’ve created a massive hole in the Sabres’ lineup.
The Sabres’ weak depth has regularly contributed their annual struggles. But when Girgensons underwent season-ending hamstring surgery last week, coach Ralph Krueger simply promoted Tobias Rieder to the Latvian’s spot at left wing beside center Cody Eakin and Kyle Okposo.
In Rieder, a free agent the Sabres signed Oct. 9, the ... Read the full article
Dylan Cozens could make his NHL debut later this week. ©2021, Micheline Veluvolu
BUFFALO – The 27 players who participated in Tuesday’s practice will start the season on the Sabres’ roster or taxi squad, coach Ralph Krueger said.
That means 19-year-old forward prospects Dylan Cozens and Jack Quinn, Buffalo’s last two first-round picks, will remain in the NHL for now.
Of course, the Sabres must sort some things out before Thursday’s opener against the Washington Capitals at KeyBank Center.
Krueger said center Curtis Lazar (lower-body injury) and ... Read the full article
Zemgus Girgensons has been one of Buffalo’s few constants during a tumultuous era. ©2021, Micheline Veluvolu
As winger Zemgus Girgensons spends the next six months rehabbing after undergoing surgery to repair his hamstring, coach Ralph Krueger wants to keep him around the Sabres.
NHL teams often separate their injured players from the regular group. But Girgensons, 27, is such a popular teammate that Krueger feels the Latvian must have a presence during his long recovery.
“We’re going to keep Zemgus close, because (of) how important he is in the organization, what ... Read the full article
Zemgus Girgensons was injured Monday. ©2021, Micheline Veluvolu
Buffalo Sabres winger Zemgus Girgensons is likely out for the season after undergoing surgery today to repair a hamstring injury he suffered in Monday’s scrimmage.
In a statement, the Sabres said Girgensons’ recovery time is approximately six months.
In the second period of the scrimmage, Girgensons eyed up Steven Fogarty as he carried the puck and tried to hit him inside the blue line.... Read the full article
Casey Mittelstadt finished last season in Rochester. ©2021, Micheline Veluvolu
On the surface, Casey Mittelstadt’s 36-game run with the Rochester Americans last season looks a little underwhelming.
In his first stint in the minors, Mittelstadt, 22, never morphed into a dominant AHL presence or forced his way back to the Buffalo Sabres. The center compiled nine goals, 25 points and a poor minus-15 rating – hardly numbers you might expect from an eighth overall pick with 114 games of NHL experience.
But Mittelstadt, who was ... Read the full article
