Bill Hoppe - Buffalo Hockey Beat

Sabres prospect Justin Bailey struggling to score after ankle injury

BUFFALO – Chris Taylor knows winger Justin Bailey better than anyone in the Sabres organization.

Before the Americans coach left Rochester for a year, he was an assistant with the AHL club, helping the Williamsville native earn his first NHL recall as a rookie two seasons ago.

Taylor mentored Bailey, 22, watching him develop from a raw prospect into a youngster the Sabres have played 47 times over the last three seasons.

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Sabres’ Casey Nelson earning regular duty on blue line

BUFFALO – Earlier this season, if you had asked Casey Nelson if he could play 20 minutes a night in the NHL, often against the opposition’s top line, the Sabres defenseman would’ve given you a straightforward answer.

“I’d say there’s no chance, there’s no way,” Nelson said Wednesday inside KeyBank Center.

But in tonight’s tilt in Detroit, Nelson, 25, will likely play big minutes on the second defense pair, meaning he’ll face some of the ... Read the full article

Sabres Jake McCabe wanted to address shoulder problem later

BUFFALO – After undergoing thumb surgery earlier this month, Sabres defenseman Jake McCabe planned on returning when he healed.

But with the Sabres far out of the playoff race, general manager Jason Botterill decided McCabe, 24, should undergo surgery to fix a shoulder injury that has been bothering him.

The Sabres announced the decision Tuesday. Four to six months of recovery time accompanies the surgery.

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Former Sabres star Pierre Turgeon enjoying coaching gig

BUFFALO – For 19 seasons, as Pierre Turgeon moved around the NHL, piling up points in a prolific career that could someday land him in the Hall of Fame, everything revolved around him. So when the former Sabres center retired, he devoted himself to his family.

“When you play hockey, it’s all about your career, you’re moving,” Turgeon, a first-year assistant coach with the Los Angeles Kings, told the Times Herald on Friday. “Next thing ... Read the full article

Sabres’ Jake McCabe to undergo season-ending shoulder surgery

BUFFALO – Sabres defenseman Jake McCabe will undergo season-ending surgery to repair his injured shoulder, the team announced this afternoon.

McCabe, 24, hasn’t played since he underwent thumb surgery after blocking a shot Feb. 6.

“Jake has been progressing well in his recovery from his previous injury, but we decided that this was a good opportunity to take care of a problem that he has been dealing with for a while,” Sabres general manager Jason ... Read the full article

Sabres goalie Robin Lehner needed injection for hip injury

BUFFALO – Sabres goalie Robin Lehner said a hip injury forced him to miss Monday afternoon’s 3-2 loss to the Washington Capitals.

Lehner, who took shots this morning while most of the Sabres stayed off the KeyBank Center ice, said he had a hip injection and feels “pretty good.”

“I just needed a day,” said Lehner, who expects to be ready for Thursday’s game in Detroit.

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Sabres fall to Capitals after late surge

BUFFALO – With 26 seconds left in Monday afternoon’s 3-2 loss to the Washington Capitals and the Sabres readying for one last rush with goalie Chad Johnson pulled, Rasmus Ristolainen tried leaving a drop pass for Evan Rodrigues.

Ristolainen, however, fanned and Rodrigues overskated the puck, allowing Evgeny Kuznetsov to score an easy empty-net goal.

With the Sabres’ third straight loss cemented, Ristolainen lost his cool, swinging his stick into the corner boards – it ... Read the full article

Barry Trotz believes Phil Housley has plan for Sabres

BUFFALO – Barry Trotz was working late Sunday, so the Washington Capitals coach sent a trainer to see if Phil Housley, a former assistant, was still in his office inside KeyBank Center.

Housley was there, so Trotz and his old friend caught up for a little while.

Trotz, a mentor to Housley, is the NHL’s dean of coaches, having continuously led a team since 1998-99, when he took over the expansion Nashville Predators.

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Sabres goalie Robin Lehner day-to-day with lower-body injury

BUFFALO –With Sabres goalie Robin Lehner day-to-day with a lower-body injury, Chad Johnson will start this afternoon’s tilt against the Washington Capitals and Linus Ullmark has been recalled, coach Phil Housley said.

Housley said Lehner’s injury built up over time. The Swede wasn’t hurt in Saturday afternoon’s 4-2 loss to the Los Angeles Kings.

The injury, of course, could hurt Lehner’s trade value. The Sabres likely want to deal Lehner, who has an expiring contract, ... Read the full article

Sabres’ Josh Gorges wondering about uncertain future

BUFFALO – Josh Gorges said he wonders if this is it, if he has just about reached the end of his NHL career. Right now, the graying 13-year veteran can’t even keep a regular spot on the Sabres’ weak defense corps.

Gorges, 33, has become a spare part on the league’s second-worst team, sitting out 10 of the last 13 games as a healthy scratch entering this afternoon’s tilt against the Washington Capitals.... Read the full article