Brendan Guhle played three NHL games last season. ©2017, Hickling Images, Olean Times Herald

Sabres send Hudson Fasching, Brendan Guhle to Amerks

BUFFALO – The Sabres sent winger Hudson Fasching and defenseman Brendan Guhle, two prospects expected to fight for NHL spots, to the Rochester Americans this morning.

The team also assigned forwards Kyle Criscuolo and C.J. Smith to its AHL affiliate.

Fasching, 22, made the Sabres out of training camp a year ago before a groin injury slowed his rookie season. He scored in Saturday’s 3-1 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs, his lone point ... Read the full article

Matt Moulson scored 14 goals last season. ©2017, Hickling Images, Olean Times Herald

Matt Moulson upbeat about Sabres’ future, new regime

BUFFALO – In his 11 NHL seasons, winger Matt Moulson has played for nine coaches, including four with the Sabres.

There have been Stanley Cup winners (Marc Crawford and Dan Bylsma), rookies (Scott Gordon, Ron Rolston and others) and old school veterans (Terry Murray and Ted Nolan).

Moulson, 33, has experienced the NHL coaching gamut. So when the three-time 30-goal scorer says new Sabres coach Phil Housley’s sessions “are some of the best practices I’ve ... Read the full article

Justin Bailey knows he must stand out. ©2017, Hickling Images, Olean Times Herald

Sabres get another opportunity to impress against Leafs

BUFFALO – The Rochester Americans open their training camp Monday, so a for a slew of Sabres, tonight’s preseason tilt against the Toronto Maple Leafs inside KeyBank Center is a final chance to impress coach Phil Housley and the team’s brass.

The Sabres will almost certainly assign some players to their AHL affiliate in the near future.

“If you want to separate yourself from other people on the team or the totem pole, you got ... Read the full article

Jacob Josefson has scored on more than half of his shootout attempts. ©2017, Hickling Images, Olean Times Herald

Sabres’ Jacob Josefson shootout star

TORONTO – Try figuring this out. In 276 NHL games, Buffalo Sabres center Jacob Josefson has scored only 18 goals. In three of his seven seasons, the Swede has recorded just a single goal.

Offensively, Josefson, 26, ranks among the league’s least productive forwards.

But Josefson, having scored 11 goals in 21 attempts, is a shootout stud. His 52.4 shooting percentage ranks fourth among active players, according to sportingcharts.com, trailing only Brandon Pirri, T.J. ... Read the full article

Auston Matthews scored 40 goals as a rookie last season. ©2017, Hickling Images, Olean Times Herald

Sabres won’t see Leafs for months after weekend set

BUFFALO – How’s this for a scheduling quirk? After this weekend’s home-and-home preseason set with the Maple Leafs – the Sabres play tonight in Toronto – the fierce rivals don’t meet again until March 5.

“It’s crazy,” Sabres coach Phil Housley said this morning inside KeyBank Center. “When I looked at the schedule, here’s one of the rivals in our division, we’re not going to see them until March. Hopefully, they’re going to be real ... Read the full article

Chad Johnson signed a one-year contract July 1. ©2017, Hickling Images, Olean Times Herald

Goalie Chad Johnson happy with Sabres

BUFFALO – Instead of getting a new paint job this year, goalie Chad Johnson simply dusted off the popular blue Sabres mask he sported two years ago throughout his best NHL season.

“It was one of my favorites,” Johnson said Wednesday following practice inside HarborCenter. “I had a lot of good feedback on it. … Some people wanted me to bring it back. I couldn’t come up with anything better, so I stuck with it.”... Read the full article

Cliff Pu’s work ethic has impressed the Sabres. ©2017, Hickling Images, Olean Times Herald

Sabres prospect Cliff Pu impressing

BUFFALO – Sabres forward prospect Cliff Pu has embraced a simple philosophy for his second NHL training camp.

“I’m just trying to work as hard as I can, keep my mouth shut and keep my ears open … and hopefully earn a couple more days here,” Pu said this morning following practice inside HarborCenter.... Read the full article

Zemgus Girgensons joined the Sabres in 2013. ©2017, Hickling Images, Olean Times Herald

Zemgus Girgensons Sabres’ mainstay through upheaval

BUFFALO – Sabres winger Zemgus Girgensons laughed before wondering aloud, just four years into his career, exactly how many teammates he has played with here.

“It’s a lot,” Girgensons said Wednesday following practice inside HarborCenter.

No kidding. Girgensons has experienced every bit of the Sabres’ recent turmoil: two tank seasons, two 30th-place finishes, last season’s regression, three regime changes and more.

“I’ve seen so many coaches (four), multiple GMs (three),” he said. “I’ve been on ... Read the full article

The Sabres acquired Marco Scandella on June 30. ©2017, Hickling Images, Olean Times Herald

Sabres resting Marco Scandella after offseason hip surgery

BUFFALO – Through six days of training camp, the Sabres have handled newcomer Marco Scandella carefully, resting the defenseman after tough workouts.

After scrimmaging the last two days, Scandella, who underwent offseason hip surgery, sat out again today.... Read the full article

Stevie Moses has an AHL contract this season. ©2017, Hickling Images, Olean Times Herald

Former European star Stevie Moses pursuing NHL dream with Sabres

BUFFALO – In the spring, shortly after Stevie Moses finished his fifth season in Europe, watching the Stanley Cup playoffs forced the high-scoring winger to think long and hard about his career.

Seeing the Nashville Predators, whose organization Moses briefly joined in 2015, dismantle three opponents to reach the Cup final “was hard to watch,” he said. The Predators featured a slew of Moses’ former AHL teammates with the Milwaukee Admirals.... Read the full article