September Edition
Jack Quinn played 15 games as a rookie with Rochester. ©2021, Micheline Veluvolu
BUFFALO – Jack Quinn acclimated to center right away as a rookie, recording two assists in his debut. Had the Sabres prospect not undergone season-ending hernia surgery in April, he would’ve closed the AHL campaign pivoting a line.
“He … was very, very good at it,” Rochester Americans coach Seth Appert said of Quinn’s two-game stint at center.
So Quinn, the eighth overall pick last year as a right wing, will be playing center during ... Read the full article
Buffalo’s Tim Connolly (left) and Pittsburgh Tim Connolly participated in the first Winter Classic in 2008. ©2021, Janet Schultz
The Buffalo Sabres are heading outdoors this season.
The NHL today announced they’ll be playing in a Heritage Classic game March 13, 2022 against the Toronto Maple Leafs at Tim Hortons Field in Hamilton, Ont. Word of the Sabres’ participation in the outdoor contest spread late last month.
Despite playing 63 miles from KeyBank Center, the Sabres will be considered the “home” team for the 3 p.m. game, which will be broadcast nationally on TNT. ... Read the full article
J-J Peterka arrived in Buffalo on Saturday. ©2021, Micheline Veluvolu
BUFFALO – Finally, after 10 months of waiting, Sabres prospect J-J Peterka was set to leave Germany and travel here to prepare for his first NHL training camp.
In normal times, of course, Peterka, 19, probably would’ve visited Buffalo two or three times over the last year. But the COVID-19 pandemic forced the winger to stay home.
“I was so curious about it, so excited the whole last year,” a smiling Peterka said following Wednesday’s ... Read the full article
Andrew Poturalski is one of the AHL’s most prolific scorers. ©2021, Micheline Veluvolu
Having established himself as one of the AHL’s premier forwards, Andrew Poturalski enjoyed some intriguing options as a free agent. European teams pursued the Williamsville native earlier in the summer, offering him hefty six-figure contracts.
Still, Poturalski refused to let money cloud his judgment. If he grabbed the fattest deal and bolted overseas to the Kotinental Hockey League, a circuit comprised mostly of Russian teams, he could effectively be ending his hopes of ever cracking ... Read the full article
Fred Stanfield skates in a Sabres Alumni game in 2004. ©2021, Janet Schultz
When Fred Stanfield joined the Buffalo Sabres midway through the 1974-75 season, Rick Dudley figured the accomplished veteran and two-time Stanley Cup winner with the Boston Bruins deserved to have the No. 17 he had worn throughout most of his NHL career.
So Dudley, who was in his third season, offered Stanfield the number. He graciously accepted and never forgot about the special gesture.
“He was so appreciative that I would give him that number,” ... Read the full article
Buffalo drafted Jack Quinn last year. ©2021, Micheline Veluvolu
The Buffalo Sabres will be hosting the Prospects Challenge rookie tournament again from Sept. 17 to 19 at LECOM Harborcenter, the team announced today.
Last year, of course, the COVID-19 pandemic forced the Sabres to cancel the tournament.
The Boston Bruins and New Jersey Devils will also be participating in the round-robin tournament. The Pittsburgh Penguins have dropped out.
Tickets for the games cost $10 and can be purchased at Sabres.com/Prospects.
Henri Jokiharju has played two seasons in Buffalo. ©2021, Micheline Veluvolu
The Buffalo Sabres on Thursday locked up two of their three restricted free agents, re-signing center Casey Mittelstadt and defenseman Henri Jokiharju to identical three-year, $7.5 million contracts.
Defenseman Rasmus Dahlin is now the Sabres’ only restricted free agent. Training camp is scheduled to begin later this month.
The Mittelstadt and Jokiharju deals, which carry $2.5 million salary cap hits, could look like bargains in the near future.
Casey Mittelstadt started unlocking his potential late last season. ©2021, Micheline Veluvolu
Early last season, Casey Mittelstadt toiled on the taxi squad and struggled to crack the Buffalo Sabres’ lineup as a winger. By the end of the year, however, he had morphed into the team’s No. 2 center.
The Sabres on Thursday rewarded Mittelstadt’s breakout stretch under new coach Don Granato, re-signing him to a three-year, $7.5 million contract.
Mittelstadt, 22, is the first key restricted free agent the Sabres have re-signed. Defensemen Rasmus ... Read the full article
Jason Payne played 14 pro seasons before becoming a coach. ©2021, Micheline Veluvolu, Rochester Americans
The Cincinnati Cyclones on Tuesday became North America’s only pro hockey team with a Black head coach after promoting Jason Payne to the position.
Payne, 45, has spent two seasons as an assistant with the Cyclones, the Buffalo Sabres’ ECHL affiliate. He replaces Matt Thomas, who recently left to become an assistant with the Providence Bruins, Boston’s AHL affiliate. Payne will also be the Cyclones’ director of hockey operations.
The Sabres started sending prospects to ... Read the full article
Pittsburgh’s Kris Letang faces Buffalo’s Ryan Miller during the first Winter Classic on Jan. 1, 2008. ©2021, Janet Schultz
The Buffalo Sabres could be participating in a Heritage Classic outdoor game this season against the Toronto Maple Leafs in Hamilton, Ont., according to the Buffalo News.
The game would take place March 13 at Tim Hortons Field, the home of the Canadian Football League’s Hamilton Tiger-Cats. The Sabres are scheduled to host Toronto that afternoon at KeyBank Center.
The Sabres did not offer that game in their two half-season ticket packages for the ... Read the full article
