WNY and Buffalo NY Hockey Coverage
Offseason Edition
Owen Power played significant minutes as a rookie. ©2023, Micheline Veluvolu
BUFFALO – Scan through each NHL roster and try to pick out every so-called franchise defenseman. Most teams don’t have one.
In Owen Power and Rasmus Dahlin, the Sabres possess two.
This week, Power and Dahlin each signed long-term contract extensions, ensuring two foundational pieces can remain teammates through the 2030-31 season.... Read the full article
Vaclav “Vinny” Prospal played for seven NHL teams, including the New York Rangers. ©2023, Micheline Veluvolu
About six years ago, a mutual friend put Seth Appert and Vaclav “Vinny” Prospal in contact with each other.
Appert, now the Rochester Americans’ coach, was working at the U.S. National Team Development Program. Prospal, a veteran of 1,108 NHL games as a player, was coaching in the Tampa Scorpions youth organization.
As they chatted about hockey and player development, Appert realized how Prospal, who on Monday was named one of Rochester’s assistant coaches, embraced ... Read the full article
Nathan Paetsch smiles last week during development camp. ©2023, Micheline Veluvolu
The Buffalo Sabres today named former NHL players Nathan Paetsch and Vinny Prospal as assistant coaches on Seth Appert’s staff with the Rochester Americans.
They replace Mike Weber and Michael Peca, both of whom recently left the AHL team to take assistant coaching jobs in the NHL.
The Sabres also announced the coaching staffs in Buffalo and Rochester have received contract extensions. Sabres coach Don Granato earned an extension prior to last season.
Paetsch, 40, ... Read the full article
Coach Seth Appert shakes hands with Toronto assistant coach coach John Snowden on May 17 following Rochester’s series-clinching win. ©2023, Micheline Veluvolu, Rochester Americans
BUFFALO – Instead of getting into a deep discussion of Xs and Os with job candidates or having them diagram plays, Rochester Americans coach Seth Appert prefers to conduct more personal interviews.
“I’m a people-oriented, relationship-oriented person,” the loquacious Appert said Sunday following the first session of Sabres development camp at LECOM Harborcenter.
Appert, whose two assistant coaches, Michael Peca and Mike Weber, both recently left for NHL jobs, said he wants to talk to ... Read the full article
Victor Olofsson scored 28 goals last season. ©2023, Micheline Veluvolu
NASHVILLE – In the case of Sabres winger Victor Olofsson, both sides are willing to accept blame for his disappointing season.
Despite scoring a career-high 28 goals, Olofsson sat out seven late-season games as a healthy scratch, including five critical contests down the stretch.
“He knows he could’ve maybe performed at certain times,” Adams said Tuesday in the Renaissance Nashville Hotel.
On the other hand, Adams said “maybe we need to make sure that we’re ... Read the full article
Joseph Ceconni joined Rochester in December. ©2023, Rochester Americans
The Buffalo Sabres on Friday re-signed defenseman Joseph Cecconi, a Youngstown native, to a one-year, two-way contract worth $775,000 in the NHL.
Cecconi, 26, became a mainstay on the Rochester Americans’ blue line following his arrival in a trade Dec. 15, giving them a more defensive defender to complement some of their offensive threats.
In the regular season, the 6-foot-3, 210-pound Cecconi registered three goals and eight points in 41 games. In the ... Read the full article
Michael Peca spent two seasons with Rochester. ©2023, Micheline Veluvolu, Rochester Americans
The Rochester Americans must find two new assistant coaches.
Michael Peca, who has been instrumental in developing JJ Peterka, Jack Quinn and some of the Buffalo Sabres’ other forward prospects, has taken a job on coach Peter Laviolette’s staff with the New York Rangers, according to Sportsnet’s Jeff Marek.
Peca, a popular former Sabres captain and center, has strong ties to Laviolette, who was named the Rangers’ new coach last week.
Rochester coach Seth Appert, shown here standing behind center Mason Jobst, knows his players will benefit from a long playoff run. ©2023, Micheline Veluvolu, Rochester Americans
ROCHESTER – Before the Americans staved off elimination by defeating the Hershey Bears on Wednesday, coach Seth Appert asked his assistants and some veterans how many times they had competed in a conference finals or championship.
Michael Peca, who played 13 seasons and captained the Buffalo Sabres to the Stanley Cup final in 1999, told him three. Mike Weber, who played 10 years, said he never advanced that far. Defenseman Matt Bartkowski, a ... Read the full article
Rookie Devon Levi talks to the media Monday. ©2023
BUFFALO – No. 1, which Sabres newcomer Devon Levi sported during his decorated college career at Northeastern, is worn by Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, another rookie goalie.
So Levi, who signed his entry-level contract Friday, chose No. 27, digits that hold special meaning.
“(It) was my number of choice because growing up, it was my favorite number,” an excited Levi said Monday in KeyBank Center. “I feel like little me would be happy that I chose ... Read the full article
Jiri Kulich recently returned to Rochester after representing Czechia at the World Junior Championship. ©2023, Micheline Veluvolu, Rochester Americans
ROCHESTER – The silver medal Buffalo Sabres prospect Jiri Kulich recently earned at the World Junior Championship hasn’t changed his life much.
Of course, Kulich, 18, is proud to have scored the overtime goal against Sweden to send Czechia to its first gold medal game since 2001. But following what he called an “unbelievable” experience, he simply resumed his rookie season with the Americans.
If he had returned home earlier this month, he might’ve been ... Read the full article
