Bill Hoppe - Buffalo Hockey Beat

Sabres want Jack Eichel to shoot more

BUFFALO – Early in Tuesday’s 3-1 win, slick Sabres center Jack Eichel found himself with an odd two-on-one partner, fourth-liner Jordan Nolan.

Nolan, a two-time Stanley Cup champion, possesses some notable assets. Soft hands, however, aren’t among them. Nolan has scored 20 times in his 305-game career.

So Eichel shot the puck, right? Well, not exactly.... Read the full article

Sabres trying to ignite struggling power play

BUFFALO – In an otherwise glum season, the Sabres’ power play emerged as the NHL’s best a year ago, converting 24.5 percent of its opportunities.

Considering the Sabres kept their key personnel and hired coach Phil Housley, it wasn’t crazy to think they could become even more potent this year.

After all, few players in NHL history have performed better. Housley amassed 609 of his 1,232 points on the power play during his 21-year career ... Read the full article

Sabres slowly getting healthier

BUFFALO – Nathan Beaulieu knows a visit to Montreal, his first since the Canadiens traded him to the Sabres almost five months ago, is coming up.

“I’ve had that circled for a while,” the defenseman said of Saturday’s road tilt.

The game, of course, would be meaningful to Beaulieu, who played 225 games with the Canadiens after they drafted him 17th overall in 2011.... Read the full article

Benoit Pouliot shines in Sabres’ win over Capitals

BUFFALO – Barely three minutes into the third period Tuesday, Sabres winger Benoit Pouliot grabbed the puck deep in his own zone and started creating a nifty-game winning goal.

In his 10-year career, Pouliot, 31, has scored 122 times. His latest, which sealed the Sabres’ 3-1 victory against the Washington Capitals, might be the prettiest.

“It isn’t the type of goal I usually get a chance to do, but it ended up good,” Pouliot said ... Read the full article

Former Sabres captain Brian Gionta excited to represent Team USA

BUFFALO – Before Brian Gionta caught his afternoon flight to Germany to represent Team USA at the Deutschland Cup, the former Sabres captain wanted one last on-ice workout.

Since Gionta couldn’t make it to Rochester, where he has been practicing with the AHL Americans, he called Matt Ellis, his friend and former Sabres teammate.

So for an hour Monday inside HarborCenter, Ellis and Nick Tuzzolino, two coaches at the Academy of Hockey, put Gionta, ... Read the full article

Sabres recall Zach Redmond for hobbled Matt Tennyson

BUFFALO – For four seasons, Sabres defenseman Zach Redmond shuttled between the St. John’s IceCaps and the NHL, first as a Winnipeg Jets prospect and later as a Montreal Canadiens depth veteran.

When the NHL called, Redmond, 29, couldn’t simply drive an hour or so down the thruway. Winnipeg, for example, is about 3,000 miles away. Redmond had limited flights to chose from and sometimes a five- or six-hour travel time from Newfoundland.... Read the full article

Phil Housley complimentary, critical of Sabres in opening month

BUFFALO – Instead of tearing into the Sabres following Saturday’s embarrassing 5-1 loss in Dallas, to the shock of some observers, coach Phil Housley praised his struggling team.

“When I evaluate the game, I think we played well,” Housley told reporters. “The score tells you differently and there’s probably going to be a lot of people that disagree with me. But I think we got the start that we wanted.”... Read the full article

Sabres’ Nick Baptiste likely to make season debut Tuesday

BUFFALO – After failing to earn a significant look during NHL training camp, Sabres prospect Nick Baptiste started his AHL season slowly, going pointless in his first five outings.

Finally, Baptiste, who potted 25 goals in 59 AHL contests last season, scored in his sixth game. The winger followed up by scoring twice in the final 2:25 of the Rochester Americans’ 4-3 come-from-behind overtime win against the Laval Rocket on Oct. 27.... Read the full article

Sabres’ Rasmus Ristolainen out tonight

Rasmus Ristolainen will miss tonight’s road tilt against the Dallas Stars with an upper-body injury, meaning four of the Buffalo Sabres’ top defensemen are now injured.

Ristolainen, the NHL’s leader in ice time with 27 minutes, 10 seconds a game, is day-to-day, Sabres coach Phil Housley told reporters in Dallas. The Finn was hurt in Thursday’s 5-4 road win against the Arizona Coyotes.... Read the full article

Jack Eichel line producing most of Sabres’ offense

BUFFALO – In their first weeks as Sabres linemates, Jack Eichel, Evander Kane and Jason Pominville have quickly morphed into one of the NHL’s most lethal trios.

Each player has a team-leading 12 points. Kane and Pominville both have a team-high six goals, while Eichel, whose eight assists tops the Sabres, has four goals.

“They have a big impact on our team,” Sabres coach Phil Housley said Wednesday.... Read the full article