WNY and Buffalo NY Hockey Coverage
February Edition
Jason Pominville played 578 games with the Sabres. ©2013, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
BUFFALO – They became the rebuilding Sabres around 4 p.m. on April 3.
In trading versatile captain Jason Pominville to the Minnesota Wild for draft picks and prospects that day, the Sabres signaled they had given up on the present and started looking to the future.
Six months later, with the former franchise cornerstone returning tonight to the First Niagara Center, the winless Sabres (0-5-1) are a mess, probably the NHL’s worst team.
Another loss ... Read the full article
Mike Weber is going through a rough stretch. ©2013, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
BUFFALO – His coaches and the media have nothing on struggling Sabres defenseman Mike Weber, who calls himself his hardest critic.
Right now, the 25-year-old’s reeling, enduring arguably the roughest stretch of his 179-game career. His wretched minus-8 rating ranks dead last – 599th, to be exact – in the NHL. He was an ugly minus-4 in Thursday’s 4-1 loss to Columbus.
Following the game, a bearded Weber was visibly agitated, ... Read the full article
Patrick Kaleta (middle) battles Columbus’ Jack Johnson (7) and Sergei Bobrovsky (72) for the puck Thursday. ©2013, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
BUFFALO – Sabres agitator Patrick Kaleta has been suspended pending an in-person hearing Tuesday for an illegal check to Jack Johnson’s head, the NHL announced late Friday.
The Sabres play twice – tonight in Chicago and Monday at home against Minnesota – before Kaleta meets with the NHL Department of Player Safety. In-person hearings carry a minimum five-game suspension.
The 27-year-old Kaleta wasn’t penalized after zooming into the Buffalo zone and hitting Johnson high ... Read the full article
Mike Weber (6) lifts his stick on Columbus’ Cam Atkinson on Thursday. ©2013, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
BUFFALO – Not surprisingly, Sabres defenseman Mike Weber, an NHL-worst minus-8, could be benched for Saturday’s game in Chicago against the Blackhawks, the defending Stanley Cup champions.
Weber, a minus-4 in Thursday’s listless 4-1 loss to Columbus, skated with 18-year-old rookie Nikita Zadorov during this morning’s practice inside the First Niagara Center. Zadorov working his way back from a finger injury.
Meanwhile, defenseman Alexander Sulzer, a healthy scratch all season, skated beside Tyler Myers ... Read the full article
Patrick Kaleta has a long history of suspensions. ©2013, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
BUFFALO – Sabres winger Patrick Kaleta will have an in-person hearing with the NHL Department of Player Safety for hitting Columbus’ Jack Johnson early in Thursday’s 4-1 loss to the Blue Jackets.
The in-person hearing means Kaleta’s likely suspension could exceed more than five games.
At 3:10 of the first period, Kaleta hit Johnson just inside the Buffalo blue line, what the NHL may deem an illegal check to the head. Kaleta, who fought Jared ... Read the full article
Christian Ehrhoff (10) stickhandles around Cam Atkinson on Thursday. ©2013, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
BUFFALO – OK, five games is a big enough sample size to judge the winless Sabres. Yes, it’s still early, but Thursday’s ugly 4-1 loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets cemented their status as the NHL’s worst team.
The Sabres’ rebuild, commitment to youth and general manager Darcy Regier’s warning to expect “suffering” tempered expectations this season.
Still, did anyone really expect them to be this bad?
The Sabres (0-4-1) have five goals this season. ... Read the full article
Cody McCormick (8) blocks David Savard’s shot Thursday. ©2013, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
BUFFALO – As expected, the Sabres scratched struggling center Mikhail Grigorenko for Thursday’s 4-1 loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets inside the First Niagara Center.
Rookie Johan Larsson, a scratch Tuesday, pivoted Zemgus Girgensons and Brian Flynn in Grigorenko’s place.
The 19-year-old Grigorenko hasn’t showcased the competitiveness Sabres coach Ron Rolston wants to see.
“He’s got to continue consistency of his compete and his details away from the puck and then, offensively, some confidence there,” ... Read the full article
Johan Larsson has played two games this season. ©2013, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
BUFFALO – As expected, the Sabres will scratch 19-year-old center Mikhail Grigorenko tonight against the Columbus Blue Jackets.
Rookie Johan Larsson, a scratch Tuesday, will pivot Zemgus Girgensons and Brian Flynn inside the First Niagara Center.
Grigorenko, one of 17 pointless Sabres, hasn’t showcased the competitiveness coach Ron Rolston wants to see.
“He’s got to continue consistency of his compete and his details away from the puck and then, offensively, some confidence there,” said Rolston, ... Read the full article
Tyler Ennis is one of the Sabres’ most experienced forwards. ©2013, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
BUFFALO – Tyler Ennis spoke confidently. That missing offense, “It’s going to come,” the Sabres center said before repeating the words again.
“There’s always stretches,” the pointless Ennis said Wednesday after the Sabres prepared for tonight’s tilt against the Columbus Blue Jackets inside the First Niagara Center. “It’s only been four games.”
Of course, the 24-year-old’s hardly alone right now. Seventeen players on the winless Sabres (0-3-1) haven’t recorded a point yet. The team only ... Read the full article
Mikhail Grigorenko’s ice time dropped Tuesday. ©2013, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
BUFFALO – History is repeating itself. Just like last season, Sabres center Mikhail Grigorenko’s ice time dropped dramatically in his fourth appearance.
On Tuesday, the 19-year-old Russian played only 8:07, down from the 12:30 he had been averaging. The prospect even skated several shifts on the fourth line during the 3-2 overtime loss to Tampa Bay.
Why?
“Just putting the people in the right situations,” Sabres coach Ron Rolston said this afternoon following practice inside ... Read the full article