Bill Hoppe - Buffalo Hockey Beat

Sabres’ Marcus Foligno utilizing talents beside Jack Eichel

BUFFALO – Considering Marcus Foligno just scored his first goal in 11 games, his target number might seem a little high. After all, the Sabres winger endured an offensive drought following a promotion to a scoring line beside slick center Jack Eichel and Sam Reinhart.

But Foligno, who has nine goals, one short of his career high set last season, wants to score 15 times this campaign.

“With 31 games left, it’s doable, very ... Read the full article

Sabres’ Zach Bogosian out Monday; Predators waive Derek Grant

BUFFALO – Some quick updates from KeyBank Center, where the Sabres practiced this morning following Saturday’s 4-0 win against Ottawa:

– Defenseman Zach Bogosian, day-to-day with a muscle/rib injury, won’t accompany the team to New Jersey for Monday’s tilt against the Devils, Sabres coach Dan Bylsma said. Bogosian hasn’t skated since getting injured Thursday.

– Rookie winger William Carrier, out with knee injury, has a bone bruise, Bylsma said.

“It’s a wear-and-tear injury ... Read the full article

Sabres goalie Robin Lehner shuts out Senators

BUFFALO – Robin Lehner, of course, always downplays it. Still, it’s hardly a secret the Sabres goalie loves facing his former team, the Ottawa Senators.

Sabres coach Dan Bylsma has mentioned the twinkle Lehner gets in his eye. And the Swede’s statistics against the Senators illustrate the tilts mean a little more.

Clearly, Lehner, who was traded to the Sabres for a first-round pick in 2015, wants to prove the Senators made a ... Read the full article

Sabres notes: Josh Gorges returns; Nick Deslauriers stays at center

BUFFALO – The badgering has finally stopped. Josh Gorges is healthy, back playing after a hip injury cost him 12 games. So Sabres coach Dan Bylsma can walk by the defenseman again without getting an earful.

“Josh has been one miserable guy to be around,” Bylsma said Saturday morning. “I don’t walk by him without him saying he’s ready to play, and that was about 15 days ago.”

Gorges, 32, played in Saturday’s 4-0 win ... Read the full article

Sabres’ Nick Deslauriers willing to play anywhere

BUFFALO – After playing center for the first time in Thursday’s 2-1 overtime loss, defenseman-turned-winger Nick Deslauriers is ready to tackle another position for the Sabres.

“I’m waiting to see if I need to stack the pads in practice soon, just to have that on my resume,” the versatile Deslauriers joked this morning inside KeyBank Center. “Sometimes it’s good, sometimes it’s bad to be like that.”

Deslauriers became a winger in 2013-14 after starting his ... Read the full article

Sabres’ Josh Gorges finally healthy

BUFFALO – The badgering has finally stopped. Josh Gorges is healthy, ready to return from a hip injury that cost him the last 12 games. So Sabres coach Dan Bylsma can walk by the defenseman again without getting an earful.

“Josh has been one miserable guy to be around,” Bylsma, who has called Gorges “crusty,” said this morning inside KeyBank Center. “I don’t walk by him without him saying he’s ready to play, and that ... Read the full article

Sabres’ Josh Gorges, Jake McCabe set to return; Justin Bailey recalled

BUFFALO – For weeks, Sabres coach Dan Bylsma said, defenseman Josh Gorges “has been one miserable guy to be around.”

“I don’t walk by him without him saying he’s ready to play, and that was about 15 days ago,” Bylsma said this morning inside KeyBank Center.

Gorges, out the last 12 games with a hip injury, can finally stop badgering Bylsma. He will return tonight against the Ottawa Senators. So will defenseman Jake McCabe, ... Read the full article

Justin Falk grateful for time with Sabres

BUFFALO – On Wednesday, after almost three months of commuting back and forth to Rochester, Sabres defenseman Justin Falk moved his family into an extended-stay hotel here.

For Falk, who has shuttled between the NHL and minors for years, having his wife and two children close by, of course, offers some comfort.

“That helps … just to have a little sense of feeling at home,” said Falk, who said he sometimes made the 75-mile drive ... Read the full article

Sabres tie game late, lose to Rangers in OT

BUFFALO – The scoreboard read zero goals, but in reality, the Sabres could’ve had five or six by late in the third period of Thursday’s 2-1 overtime loss to the New York Rangers.

The Sabres, studs at home in recent weeks, zoomed around Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist all night, generating chance after chance. But with six minutes left in regulation and their shot total approaching 40, the Sabres hadn’t scored yet.

Finally, Sabres defenseman Cody ... Read the full article

Overcoming back injury tough for Sabres’ Dmitry Kulikov

BUFFALO – These days, Sabres defenseman Dmitry Kulikov, a young veteran at just 26 years old, said he feels like an old man when he wakes up.

A lower-back bruise has been dogging the Russian for four months, forcing him out of the lineup three times and costing him 26 games.

Kulikov has dealt with the pain through a daily treatment regimen, and Thursday’s 2-1 overtime loss against New York Rangers was his fourth ... Read the full article