Bill Hoppe - Buffalo Hockey Beat

Sabres recall Rasmus Asplund from taxi squad

The Buffalo Sabres have recalled forward Rasmus Asplund from the taxi squad, the team announced this afternoon.

It’s unclear why Asplund, 23, is needed. The Sabres close a two-game road series against the Philadelphia Flyers tonight. After beating the Flyers 6-1 on Monday, they did not skate as a full team this morning.

Update: Asplund will replace winger Tage Thompson.

Asplund played 14 games earlier this season on loan with Västerås IK, a ... Read the full article

Sabres coach Ralph Krueger wanted suspension for hit on Rasmus Dahlin

Buffalo Sabres defenseman Rasmus Dahlin, who left Monday’s 6-1 win over the Flyers after Nicolas Aube-Kubel hit him in the head, will play tonight in Philadelphia, coach Ralph Krueger said.

Still, Krueger isn’t pleased. The NHL Department of Player Safety did not suspend Aube-Kubel for what Krueger called a “deliberate hit to the head.”

Instead, the department fined the winger $4,633.62, the maximum amount the collective bargaining agreement allows.

“We were hoping for a ... Read the full article

Curtis Lazar, fourth line help Sabres annihilate Flyers, earn first win

Late in the first period Monday, Buffalo Sabres center Curtis Lazar grabbed the puck at the blue line, skated into the left circle and backhanded a shot underneath the crossbar.

Then after the Sabres grabbed a commanding 3-0 lead over the Philadelphia Flyers, Lazar sealed the Sabres’ first win in the second period, connecting on a nifty pass from linemate Riley Sheahan in front of the net.

When the Sabres, NHL lightweights for nearly a ... Read the full article

Sabres recall goalie Jonas Johansson; Linus Ullmark out against Flyers

The Buffalo Sabres have recalled goalie Jonas Johansson from the taxi squad because Linus Ullmark is unavailable tonight for personal reasons, the team announced.

Carter Hutton will likely start tonight’s game against the Philadelphia Flyers.

Ullmark left the ice first this morning, according to The Buffalo News, a sign he would possibly start tonight. The Sabres also play the Flyers on Tuesday.

The Swede played in Friday’s 2-1 loss to the Washington Capitals. Hutton started ... Read the full article

Sabres’ Sam Reinhart to be game-time decision against Flyers

Buffalo Sabres winger Sam Reinhart is questionable for tonight’s road game against the Philadelphia Flyers with the lower-body injury, coach Ralph Krueger said.

Reinhart skated this morning beside top center Jack Eichel and Taylor Hall inside Wells Fargo Center, according to The Buffalo News’ Lance Lysowski, a sign he could play.

If Reinhart can’t play, Krueger said Casey Mittelstadt, who’s on the taxi squad, would replace him.

Reinhart was injured in a collision behind ... Read the full article

Amerks sign Buffalo native Dylan Blujus to AHL contract

The Rochester Americans have signed Buffalo native Dylan Blujus to a one-year AHL contract, the team announced today.

Blujus, a defenseman, has spent most of the past six seasons in the AHL, compiling 20 goals and 82 points 274 games. He played the last three seasons for the Utica Comets.

The Tampa Bay Lightning drafted Blujus, 26, in the second round in 2012, 40th overall. After playing playing junior with the Ontario Hockey League’s North ... Read the full article

Sabres rookie Dylan Cozens earns fast promotion to Eric Staal’s line

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

Sabres’ Ralph Krueger on Bills’ win, INT return: ‘The whole city just exploded’

BUFFALO – Sabres coach Ralph Krueger said he heard horns honking outside his home in the Elmwood Village into the middle of the night after the Bills advanced to AFC Championship Game on Saturday.

“Lots of sound, lots of people running around with flags in the village,” Krueger said on a Zoom call following this afternoon’s practice at KeyBank Center. “So that buzz was terrific to feel.”

Krueger and his coaching staff wanted to share ... Read the full article

Sam Reinhart misses practice with lower-body injury

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

Sabres goalie prospect Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen to join Amerks

Top Buffalo Sabres goalie prospect Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen will be joining the Rochester Americans, his Finnish team announced today.

The Sabres loaned Luukkonen, 21, to HC TPS, a Liiga team, in August and had extended the loan agreement throughout the season.

The Amerks, the Sabres’ AHL affiliate, opened training camp Friday. The AHL season is scheduled to start Feb. 5.

In 13 games with HC TPS, Luukkonen compiled a 6-3-4 record with a 2.52 ... Read the full article