Evander Kane (9) was injured Oct. 24. ©2015, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald

Sabres’ Evander Kane wants to play Thursday

BUFFALO – Why shouldn’t he play, Sabres winger Evander Kane asked? He doesn’t have any MCL pain and feels comfortable wearing a large brace on his left knee.

“I think you’ll have a pretty good chance to see me tomorrow night in the lineup,” Kane, out since Oct. 24, said today after practicing with his teammates inside the First Niagara Center.

Sabres coach Dan Bylsma labeled Kane “a possibility” for the road contest against the ... Read the full article

Ryan O’Reilly scored the Sabres’ only goal Saturday. ©2015, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald

Sabres rally late, fall to Sharks in overtime

BUFFALO – Somehow, some way, the Sabres have been finding ways to win recently, and when Ryan O’Reilly tied Saturday’s tilt early in the third period, it looked like they might do it again.

Heck, they had to, right? They were playing the San Jose Sharks, a team that had won here once in its 24-year existence.

But the upstart Sabres, who reached .500 for the first time in three seasons on Thursday, couldn’t convert ... Read the full article

Nick Deslauriers (44) battles Tampa Bay’s Ondrej Palat on Nov. 5. ©2015, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald

Sabres’ Nick Deslauriers needs to showcase more physicality

BUFFALO – Without his gritty, sandpaper style, Nick Deslauriers morphs from a strong fourth-line winger into a journeyman the Sabres are willing to scratch.

Sure, the popular 24-year-old possesses a strong shot, chips in the odd goal and even occasionally earns fill-in duty on a scoring line.

But physicality, something Deslauriers’ game has been lacking recently, is his bread and butter.

So on Thursday following the pregame warm-up in Florida, Sabres coach Dan Bylsma told ... Read the full article

Tyler Ennis has three goals and seven points this season. ©2015, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald

Sabres’ Tyler Ennis knows he can improve

BUFFALO – When Dan Bylsma and Tyler Ennis discuss the speedy Sabres winger’s play, the coach rarely has to give the young veteran his opinion.

That’s because Ennis, who can often be critical of his own game, usually beats Bylsma to the punch.

“He tells me the same thing he’s told you,” Bylsma said Monday following practice inside the First Niagara Center. “I know (he’s) probably been a little hard on himself a handful of ... Read the full article

Ramsus Ristolaine (55) scored twice Saturday afternoon. ©2015, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald

Rasmus Ristolainen’s late goal pushes Sabres past Canucks

BUFFALO – There were still 16.8 seconds left on the clock, but Rasmus Ristolainen figured what the heck, his second goal of the game, the winner in the Sabres’ exciting 3-2 victory against goalie Ryan Miller’s Vancouver Canucks, needed to be celebrated wildly.

So the defenseman skated to center ice, slid down on his knees and yelled out as the capacity crowd of 19,070 fans roared Saturday afternoon. Tyler Ennis, whose dynamic effort created the ... Read the full article

Ryan O’Reilly (90) will have a different winger today. ©2015, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald

Sabres’ Ryan O’Reilly and Tyler Ennis to be broken up

BUFFALO – Ryan O’Reilly and Tyler Ennis, the Sabres’ top center-wing duo all season, will be broken up to start this afternoon’s game against the Vancouver Canucks, coach Dan Bylsma said.

“There’s not a lot to it,” Bylsma said this morning. “Tyler’s pressing a little bit in certain circumstances, certain situations. I think maybe just a different look for our line in terms of possibly playing a team that has one line that’s their top ... Read the full article

Jamie McGinn was the first of three brothers to make the NHL. ©2015, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald

Sabres’ Jamie McGinn proud of brothers

BUFFALO – Growing up in Fergus, Ont., a community of almost 20,000 about two hours west of Toronto, the McGinn boys made everything into a competition.

Forget about hockey or lacrosse, the sports they played regularly. Sabres winger Jamie McGinn and his brothers, Tye, a Tampa Bay Lightning winger, and Brock, a Carolina Hurricanes winger, competed over trivial things like who had the best hair or even a Frisbee toss.

“I think it even started ... Read the full article

Ryan O’Reilly (90) and Nick Deslauriers celebrate a goal Thursday. ©2015, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald

Nick Deslauriers and Marcus Foligno thriving on Sabres’ No. 1 line

BUFFALO – These days, Sabres coach Dan Bylsma’s options are limited. His top two wingers, Tyler Ennis and Evander Kane, are injured. So under normal circumstances, Nick Deslauriers and Marcus Foligno wouldn’t be flanking No. 1 center Ryan O’Reilly.

The big bodies are known more for their grit than their goal scoring.

“You don’t see Deslauriers and Foligno and call it a first line,” coach Dan Bylsma said Saturday inside HarborCenter after the ... Read the full article

Ryan O’Reilly (90) battles Philadelphia’s Claude Giroux on Friday. ©2015, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald

Sabres’ Josh Gorges knows hit looks ugly; Ryan O’Reilly earns day off

BUFFALO – Some quick updates from HarborCenter, where the Sabres practiced today before catching a flight to New York for Sunday’s tilt against the Islanders:

– Defenseman Josh Gorges won’t face any supplemental discipline for hitting Philadelphia’s Matt Read head-first into the corner boards late Friday, according to the Buffalo News.

Gorges was given a five-minute boarding major and ejected from the Sabres’ 3-1 win.

“From a couple of angles it doesn’t look great,” Gorges ... Read the full article

Sabres goalie Linus Ullmark makes a save in his NHL debut. ©2015, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald

Sabres’ Tyler Ennis out against Flyers

BUFFALO – Some quick updates from the First Niagara Center, where the Sabres host the Philadelphia Flyers tonight:

– A lower-body injury will sideline Sabres winger Tyler Ennis, whose three goals are tied for the team lead, for a second straight game, coach Dan Bylsma said. Ennis missed the Sabres’ 4-3 loss in Pittsburgh on Thursday. He skated briefly this morning. Marcus Foligno subbed on the right wing beside center Ryan O’Reilly and Nick Deslaurier ... Read the full article