Antipin - Buffalo Hockey Beat

Sabres’ Victor Antipin ‘doing good’ after scary hit from behind

Buffalo Sabres defenseman Victor Antipin is “doing good” after being transported to a Nashville hospital following a scary hit from behind in Saturday’s 7-4 win against the Predators, coach Phil Housley said.

Update: Antipin has been released from the hospital, according to the Sabres. The team will provide more information later today.

At the 14:09 mark of the second period, Predators forward Scott Hartnell hit Antipin in the back at the end boards, knocking the ... Read the full article

Sabres’ Ryan O’Reilly roaring toward NHL faceoff record

BUFFALO – Ryan O’Reilly’s faceoff skills are so dynamic he takes and wins more than any NHL player. Yet the Sabres center thinks draws are, well, overrated.

Overrated?

Sabres coach Phil Housley constantly relies on O’Reilly’s faceoff prowess, utilizing him an average of 26 times a game. Through 75 appearances entering Thursday’s 6-3 loss to the Detroit Red Wings inside KeyBank Center, O’Reilly had won 1,181 of the 1,949 draws he had taken, a healthy ... Read the full article

Sabres prospect Casey Mittelstadt ready for NHL debut

BUFFALO – As puck drop approaches, Sabres rookie Casey Mittelstadt said he might experience some nerves.

“It might be a bit of a long day,” the speedy center said this morning after preparing for his NHL debut, tonight’s tilt against the Detroit Red Wings.

Still, hours before the game, the Sabres’ top prospect seemed unfazed by the life-changing day and all the attention being paid to him.... Read the full article

Jack Eichel scores twice as Sabres end Maple Leafs’ home winning streak

TORONTO – By Jack Eichel’s standards, he hadn’t scored in an eternity.

Thanks to the Buffalo Sabres center’s short slump and a high ankle sprain that cost him 15 games, he went 46 days and six games without scoring before his nifty two-goal effort in Monday’s 3-2 come-from-behind victory.

“I hadn’t scored in a month and a half, it’s not a little bit,” Eichel said after the Sabres ended the Maple Leafs’ 13-game home winning ... Read the full article

Casey Mittelstadt’s arrival gives Sabres one of hockey’s best youngsters

TORONTO – Even among the established NHL talent on the ice during those morning skates last summer in Minnesota, Buffalo Sabres prospect Casey Mittelstadt’s skills stood out, even turned heads.

“We skated Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at different rinks, five-on-five,” Sabres winger Kyle Okposo said this afternoon, shortly after the center signed a three-year, entry-level contract. “That pace, that’s the highest pace that I’ve played in the summer and he was really impressive there. I ... Read the full article

Sabres notes: Nick Deslauriers thriving with Canadiens

BUFFALO – Six months ago, Nick Deslauriers’ future in the NHL looked iffy. Following a career-worst season in which he scored zero goals for the Sabres, it became apparent the popular winger wasn’t part of the new regime’s plans.

On Sept. 30, the Sabres waived Deslauriers. Four days later, they traded him to the Montreal Canadiens, who promptly assigned him to the Laval Rocket.

Deslauriers, 27, hadn’t played in the AHL since 2013-14.... Read the full article

Sabres’ Nathan Beaulieu to sit out against Canadiens

BUFFALO – Sabres defenseman Nathan Beaulieu is a “little sore” and will miss tonight’s tilt against his old team, the Montreal Canadiens, coach Phil Housley said.

But if Beaulieu, 25, hadn’t taken a puck to his upper body last game, he would still be scratched.

“He was not playing in this game tonight,” Housley said this morning.

Defenseman Josh Gorges, a Canadiens regular for eight seasons, will return tonight. Gorges, 33, has sat out ... Read the full article

Sabres notes: Scott Wilson wants to showcase offense

BUFFALO – A year ago, Sabres winger Scott Wilson compiled eight goals and 26 points in 78 games often skating short minutes on one of the Pittsburgh Penguins’ bottom lines.

The numbers, of course, don’t exactly wow you. But in a low-scoring era, most fourth-liners don’t push 10 goals or 30 points.

So what could the speedy Wilson do if, say, he earned more ice time on a scoring line?

In recent weeks, Sabres coach ... Read the full article

Sabres notes: Predators’ Ryan Ellis grew close to Phil Housley

BUFFALO – In good times or bad, on or off the ice, Nashville Predators defenseman Ryan Ellis could always turn to Sabres coach Phil Housley.

“He was always kind of there,” Ellis said prior to Monday’s 4-0 win against the Sabres, Housley’s first meeting against his old team. “He was like the calming influence.”

Ellis, 27, morphed into one of the NHL’s highest-scoring defensemen over Housley’s four years as an assistant coach in Nashville. ... Read the full article

Sabres goalie Linus Ullmark to start against scorching Predators

BUFFALO – When Sabres coach Phil Housley said last week he planned to give goalie Linus Ullmark some starts, you figured he might ease the prospect in early.

Remember, while Ullmark has played 22 NHL contests, 20 of his appearances came as a rookie in 2015-16. The Swede has spent most of the last two seasons in the AHL.

But Housley will throw Ullmark, 24, into the fray against the scorching Nashville Predators tonight ... Read the full article