WNY and Buffalo NY Hockey Coverage
October Edition
Kyle Okposo believes the Sabres must “grow organically.” ©2021, Micheline Veluvolu
BUFFALO – The COVID-19 protocols the NHL implemented this season have stymied off-ice activities.
Wanna grab a bite to eat or check out a museum on the road? Wanna stop over after practice and play Xbox? Forget about it. Socializing is kept to the bare minimum.
The Sabres added eight new faces this season, so enjoying a team dinner or group outing would’ve helped the players become familiar with each other.
“You can’t go get ... Read the full article
Casey Mittelstadt has played two games this season. ©2021, Micheline Veluvolu
BUFFALO – Having spent the entire game skating on the fourth line, Casey Mittelstadt hardly seemed like a forward Sabres coach Ralph Krueger would utilize in the waning seconds of a one-goal game.
Mittelstadt, 22, was only making his second appearance this season in Sunday afternoon’s 5-3 loss to the New Jersey Devils. The Sabres had just elevated him from the taxi squad earlier in the day.
Krueger had two former 40-goal scorers – Jeff ... Read the full article
Rasmus Dahlin played one shift in Friday’s third period. ©2021, Micheline Veluvolu
In Friday’s 4-3 shootout loss, Sabres coach Ralph Krueger benched Rasmus Dahlin, playing the struggling defenseman just one 73-second shift over the game’s final 32 minutes.
Dahlin, 20, looked lost around Buffalo’s net, allowing the Capitals to convert two easy chances he could’ve nullified. After Jakub Vrana scored 13:07 into the second period, a frustrated Dahlin smashed his stick into the ice.
His night was just about done. He only played one more ... Read the full article
The Sabres elevated Jonas Johansson from the taxi squad earlier this week. ©2021, Micheline Veluvolu
BUFFALO – After allowing five goals on opening night, Sabres goalie Carter Hutton settled down, letting in just two over the next 100 minutes.
Fresh off a 10-month break, Hutton looked sharp and appeared poised to keep earning playing time. But Hutton left Tuesday’s 3-0 road loss to the Philadelphia Flyers early after getting hit in the head.
Hutton, 35, is day to day, coach Ralph Krueger said, and did not accompany the Sabres to ... Read the full article
Arttu Ruotsalainen could spent time in Buffalo on the taxi squad and in Rochester. ©2021, Micheline Veluvolu
In the COVID-19 world, the Sabres start each day by having a logistics meeting.
NHL teams can utilize a four- to-six man taxi squad this season, meaning in addition to figuring out the big league and AHL rosters, the Sabres have another group they must prepare to handle.
“This is so much a new world, trying to figure out exactly how we’re going to integrate the taxi squad,” Sabres coach Ralph Krueger said on a ... Read the full article
Dan Girardi played his final two seasons with Tampa Bay. ©2020, Dan Hickling, Hickling Images
The Buffalo Sabres have hired former NHL defenseman Dan Girardi, who played 927 games, for a player development role, according to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman.
Girardi, 36, grew up in Welland, Ontario, with Matt Ellis, the Sabres’ new director of player development. The two are close friends.
Despite going undrafted, Girardi, who began his career in the ECHL, played 13 seasons in the NHL. He spent 11 years with the New York Rangers before playing ... Read the full article
J-J Peterka has played eight games with Salzburg. ©2020, GEPA, Red Bull
It was just a small gathering at the rink. J-J Peterka’s family, agent and some personnel from EC Red Bull Salzburg gathered in the early-morning hours to watch the first round of the NHL Draft.
In NHL history, only five Germans had been first-round picks. But Germany has started producing elite talent, and this year, three forward prospects – Peterka, Tim Stutzle and Lukas Reichel – possessed the potential to be taken among the first ... Read the full article
Matteo Costantini is living with Hall of Famer Scott Niedermayer this season. ©2020, Jack Murray, Penticton Vees
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
Matt Ellis instructs Sabres propsects at development camp. ©2020, Micheline Veluvolu, Rochester Americans
During his playing days, former Buffalo Sabres forward Matt Ellis embraced what he calls the “art of preparation.”
Ellis, the Sabres’ new director of player development, kept a training notebook he still consults. He constantly searched for ways to evolve and maximize his potential.
“I was always a chronic explorer,” Ellis said by phone Wednesday.
In the 2009 offseason, for example, Ellis, then 27, overhauled his shot, changing it so he could create more ... Read the full article
Matt Ellis captained Rochester during his playing days. ©2020, Micheline Veluvolu, Rochester Americans
General manager Kevyn Adams has turned to an old friend, Matt Ellis, to be the Buffalo Sabres’ new director of player development.
The Sabres today named Ellis, 39, to his first NHL front office post.
Ellis played 356 NHL games over nine seasons, including 286 contests with the Sabres, after going undrafted. Following his retirement in 2016, Adams hired Ellis as a development coach at the Academy of Hockey at Harborcenter.... Read the full article