Eichel - Buffalo Hockey Beat

Jeff Skinner, Eric Staal excited to team up as duo with Sabres

During the six years Jeff Skinner and Eric Staal spent together as teammates with the Carolina Hurricanes, they usually skated on separate lines.

Back then, the Hurricanes were in the midst of a marathon 14-year playoff drought. As one of the NHL’s bottom-feeders, they possessed little depth up front. So the coaches would often play their top scorers on different lines.

“We were pretty thin,” said Staal, who joined Skinner and the Buffalo Sabres in ... Read the full article

Sabres assessing Victor Olofsson after crash into goalpost

Coach Ralph Krueger said the Buffalo Sabres are assessing winger Victor Olofsson, who left today’s practice after crashing into the goalpost.

“We do not have an update,” Krueger said on a Zoom call this afternoon.

Olofsson briefly left the KeyBank Center ice favoring his right arm and wrist before returning to practice, according to The Buffalo News’ Mike Harrington. But Olofsson departed for good when the Sabres took a break to watch video.

Update:... Read the full article

Sabres notes: Jack Eichel misses first practice

Buffalo Sabres coach Ralph Krueger prefaced his update on the statuses of captain Jack Eichel and goalie Linus Ullmark with four words to alleviate any concern.

“All is under control,” Krueger said on a Zoom call Friday after both players missed the first session of training camp inside KeyBank Center.

Shortly before the Sabres’ first practice in almost 10 months, they announced Eichel, their MVP, would be sidelined Friday. The center suffered an upper-body injury ... Read the full article

Sabres’ Jack Eichel day-to-day with upper-body injury

Buffalo Sabres captain Jack Eichel will miss the first practice of training camp today and is day-to-day after sustaining an upper-body injury while training, the team announced this morning.

Center Casey Mittelstadt is subbing for Eichel between newcomer Taylor Hall and Victor Olofsson on the top line, according to The Buffalo News’ Lance Lysowski.

Meanwhile, goalie Linus Ullmark will miss the session because he’s quarantining because of an immigration issue, according to the team. Ullmark ... Read the full article

Sabres prepared for unexpected as training camp opens during pandemic

Short training camps are nothing new for Ralph Krueger.

Krueger spent 13 years leading Team Switzerland at major international tournaments. He coached Team Europe to the final of the 2016 World Cup of Hockey, a gig that helped him land in Buffalo. Prior to joining the Sabres, his only season as an NHL head coach, 2012-13, began in January following a lockout.

Krueger had about a week to begin putting his mark on the ... Read the full article

Sabres’ Jack Eichel impressed with Kevyn Adams, excited for Bills’ success

Over the past few months, Buffalo Sabres captain Jack Eichel has sat down with Kevyn Adams a few times and began to build a relationship with his new general manager.

Getting to know Adams, the third GM of Eichel’s six-year career, has been an enjoyable experience. Eichel said on a Zoom call Wednesday he has found him easy to connect with and enjoyed “a lot of really, really productive conversations with him.”

Through their chats, ... Read the full article

Sabres release training camp roster, schedule; 37 players to participate

On Friday, the Buffalo Sabres will touch the KeyBank Center ice for the first time in 296 days and begin preparing for the most unusual of seasons.

The NHL will be attempting to play during the COVID-19 pandemic, and it will likely experience problems – positive tests, postponements or even cancellations – as the schedule unfolds.

But those potential roadblocks can be examined another day. The Sabres’ 10-month break is nearly over. Training camp officially ... Read the full article

Sabres’ 2020-21 schedule features 25 two-game series in same city

When the Buffalo Sabres open their 2020-21 schedule on Jan. 14 at home against the Washington Capitals, it will start a trend for the abbreviated 56-game season.

The COVID-19 pandemic has forced the NHL to limit travel, meaning teams will be staying in cities for multiple days and playing series against one opponent.

The Sabres’ opener kicks off a two-game set at KeyBank Center. They also host Washington the next night.

Their schedule, which the ... Read the full article

Datsyuk-style game earning Sabres prospect Matteo Costantini notice

After completing their work at the rink Oct. 7, Matteo Costantini and four of his Penticton Vees teammates gathered in his billet family’s basement to watch the final rounds of the NHL Draft.

Having starred for the Buffalo Jr. Sabres and developed in the Academy of Hockey at LECOM Harborcenter, Costantini knew the Sabres were interested in him.

Sabres GM Kevyn Adams ran both organizations until last year. Matt Ellis, Buffalo’s new director of ... Read the full article

Sam Reinhart excited about Sabres’ moves, fine with one-year contract

For the first time since Sam Reinhart played for the Vancouver NW Giants in 2010-11, the Buffalo Sabres winger is spending the fall at home.

Normally, Reinhart, who turns 25 on Friday, would be one month into a new hockey season. Since leaving home in 2011, he has spent his Octobers and Novembers in Kootenay, British Columbia, where he played junior, or Buffalo.

But the COVID-19 pandemic has forced the NHL to push back the ... Read the full article