Cozens - Buffalo Hockey Beat

Sabres sign top pick Dylan Cozens to entry-level contract

BUFFALO – The Sabres have signed top draft pick Dylan Cozens to a three-year, entry-level contract, the team announced today.

Cozens could miss rookie camp or training camp in September after undergoing successful surgery on his left thumb earlier this month.

The center, according to the Sabres, needs two to three months to recover.

The 6-foot-3, 180-pound Cozens hurt his thumb when defenseman Brandon Hickey hip-checked him during a development camp tournament.... Read the full article

Trading Alexander Nylander was inevitable for Sabres

BUFFALO – Following another underwhelming season, it felt like only a matter of time before the Sabres cut their losses and traded winger Alexander Nylander.

Through three years as a pro, Nylander, the eighth overall pick by the Sabres’ old regime in 2016, has mostly been a bust.

Sure, the Swede has occasionally showcased his slick skills. Still, he hasn’t consistently displayed the tenacity to match them.

Nylander, 21, couldn’t develop into a dominant ... Read the full article

Sabres’ Dylan Cozens undergoes thumb surgery, could miss training camp

BUFFALO – Top Sabres draft pick Dylan Cozens underwent successful surgery on his left thumb earlier this week and needs two to three months to recover, the team announced this afternoon.

That means Cozens, the seventh overall pick last month, could miss rookie camp or training camp in September.

Cozens hurt his thumb when defenseman Brandon Hickey hip-checked him during Saturday’s development camp three-on-three tournament inside Harborcenter.... Read the full article

Sabres prospect Dylan Cozens to have procedure on thumb

BUFFALO – Top Sabres draft pick Dylan Cozens will undergo a procedure Wednesday on the thumb he injured during development camp, the team announced today.

The Sabres will provide an estimated recovery time later this week.

Cozens, the seventh overall selection last month, hurt his left thumb when defenseman Brandon Hickey hip-checked him during Saturday’s three-on-three tournament inside Harborcenter.

After Cozens, 18, got up from the ice, he removed his glove and examined his thumb, ... Read the full article

Sabres prospect Dylan Cozens suffers thumb injury

BUFFALO – Sabres prospect Dylan Cozens left this morning’s development camp three-on-three tournament with a thumb injury after defenseman Brandon Hickey hip-checked him at the blue line.

After Cozens got up from the ice, he removed his left glove and examined his thumb, which was bent awkwardly. He then skated off the ice.

Update: Cozens said he’s “not concerned” about his thumb, which isn’t broken.

“It’s good,” he said. “I saw the videos and stuff. ... Read the full article

Sabres notes: Sean Malone signs AHL contract with Amerks

BUFFALO – Center Sean Malone’s 2018-19 season started ominously. After some impressive performances early in his second NHL training camp, the West Seneca native injured his knee in the Sabres’ preseason opener.

So instead of competing for a spot on the big club, Malone, 24, didn’t play his first game until Nov. 7 with the Rochester Americans.

Injuries limited Malone to only 38 appearances during a frustrating campaign. The Harvard product never seemed to ... Read the full article

Sabres prospect Ryan Johnson learned game from NHL father

BUFFALO – For 11 years, Craig Johnson coached his son, Ryan, staying with the youngster from his first strides on the ice through high school.

So when Ryan, the 31st overall pick by the Sabres on Friday, left California for the junior Sioux Falls Stampede last year, it marked the first time he had been away from his father, who played 557 games as an NHL forward.

“It wasn’t hard to let him go,” Craig ... Read the full article

Jason Botterill believes Sabres’ young talent terrific selling point

VANCOUVER – Shortly before the Sabres’ higher-ups traveled to the NHL Draft, Sam Reinhart told Jason Botterill he wanted to join them during their stay in his hometown.

So one night, Reinhart met the general manager, coach Ralph Krueger and Terry and Kim Pegula for dinner.

Then on Friday, Reinhart, a winger the Sabres selected second overall in 2014, warmly greeted center Dylan Cozens after the team’s top pick left the draft floor inside Rogers ... Read the full article

Sabres believe they selected talented prospects at NHL Draft

VANCOUVER – Among the highlights of new Buffalo Sabres prospect Aaron Huglen on YouTube is a clip of what general manager Jason Botterill called “the Mike Legg goal.”

Last year at the Hlinka-Gretzky Cup, an under-18 tournament, Huglen pulled off one of hockey’s toughest moves, scoring a goal by quickly lifting the puck and wrapping it into the net.

Legg, Botterill’s teammate at Michigan, made the lacrosse-style goal famous in 1996.

“There’s a wow factor ... Read the full article

Yukon’s Dylan Cozens thrilled to be selected by Sabres at NHL Draft

VANCOUVER – Growing up in Whitehorse, Yukon, a city of about 25,000 in the northwestern Canadian territory, new Buffalo Sabres prospect Dylan Cozens said making the NHL seemed impossible.

“It always felt like a far-fetched dream and not really achievable, but I believed it and I believed in myself that I can make this happen one day,” an excited Cozens, 18, said shortly after the Sabres selected him seventh overall Friday at the NHL Draft. ... Read the full article