Granato - Buffalo Hockey Beat

Bowen Byram, surging Sabres destroy Red Wings, move closer to playoff spot

BUFFALO – Imagine, if you will, a Sabres team capable of locking down defensively like it has over the past 10 weeks and possessing the offensive firepower of last season.

Since Jan. 1, thanks largely to the emergence of goalie Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, the Sabres have boasted the NHL’s third-stingiest defense.

Still, as they’ve focused on different areas of their game and matured this season, their offense has suffered. The fast pace they displayed a year ... Read the full article

Sabres’ Zemgus Girgensons sees future in Buffalo, glad trade deadline passed

BUFFALO – Prior to Friday’s trade deadline, Sabres general manager Kevyn Adams spoke to some teams interested in acquiring winger Zemgus Girgensons and likely could’ve received a late-round pick in exchange for the 11-year veteran.

But in Girgensons, Adams said he sees a player “so important within the fabric of this team.” After dealing captain Kyle Okposo and defenseman Erik Johnson, he couldn’t trade Girgensons simply because he has an expiring contract.

It sounds like ... Read the full article

Sabres’ Rasmus Dahlin sad to see Casey Mittelstadt leave in trade, excited by Bowen Byram’s arrival

BUFFALO – It stinks, Sabres defenseman Rasmus Dahlin said, using a stronger word to describe his feelings. His close friend, center Casey Mittelstadt, is gone, having been traded to the Colorado Avalanche on Wednesday.

Make no mistake, Dahlin likes the addition of Bowen Byram, his new defense partner, and is happy for Mittelstadt, who joined a legitimate Stanley Cup contender.

Still, it hasn’t been easy. On Monday, following the Sabres’ first practice without Mittelstadt, a ... Read the full article

Sabres respond after trades, beat Oilers in overtime and shootout

BUFFALO – The game ended dramatically, with Sabres defenseman Owen Power scoring with 2.0 seconds left in overtime as the capacity crowd implored him to shoot.

The giddy Sabres jumped over the boards to celebrate Saturday afternoon’s much-needed 3-2 triumph over the heavyweight Edmonton Oilers, saluted the fans in KeyBank Center and left the ice.

In the dressing room, players began taking off their equipment. Oilers general manager Ken Holland and some Sabres coaches left ... Read the full article

Sabres GM Kevyn Adams emotional after trading Kyle Okposo to Panthers: ‘An unbelievable person’

BUFFALO – Kevyn Adams processed the question, cleared his throat and stepped back from the podium for a moment to compose himself. When the Sabres general manager began talking about trading his captain, Kyle Okposo, he fought back tears.

“An unbelievable person,” an emotional Adams said Friday in KeyBank Center after dealing the veteran winger to the Florida Panthers hours before the 3 p.m. trade deadline. “I have a lot of respect for people that ... Read the full article

Following trade, Sabres’ Victor Olofsson earns another chance, scores goal

TORONTO – Prior to Wednesday’s game, Don Granato told Victor Olofsson to talk to him. The Sabres had just traded center Casey Mittelstadt. The coach needed to know if the seldom-used winger was ready to play.

Granato feared Olofsson, having last dressed for a game Feb. 15, could be put in a tough spot.

“He looked at me with 100 percent confidence and said, ‘I’m ready to go,’” Granato said after Olofsson scored the Sabres’ ... Read the full article

Sabres believe trade gives them special person, player in Bowen Byram

TORONTO – Over the years, Sabres center Dylan Cozens said he and his close friend, defenseman Bowen Byram, had talked about someday playing on the same team again.

Cozens, 23, and Byram, 22, go way back, having played Midget hockey together and represented Team Canada in four tournaments as teenagers.

During the recent NHL All-Star break, they vacationed in Cancun, and Cozens said Byram, who won the Stanley Cup with the Colorado Avalanche in 2022, ... Read the full article

Sabres sad, surprised Casey Mittelstadt traded, excited for Bowen Byram

TORONTO – Sooner or later, it was going to happen. Over the past few years, as the Sabres grew into a tight-knit group, their young core remained intact. But as the team evolved and needs materialized and the salary cap became a factor again, someone would have to leave Buffalo.

On Wednesday, two days before the trade deadline, it happened. The Sabres dealt center Casey Mittelstadt, a beloved teammate and their leading scorer, to the ... Read the full article

Erik Johnson set to join list of notable veterans traded by Sabres

TORONTO – By Friday’s trade deadline, Sabres defenseman Erik Johnson will likely earn a spot on a short list of decorated, high-profile veterans who recently spent less than one season in Buffalo.

Johnson, like winger Taylor Hall and center Eric Staal in 2020-21, will almost certainly come and go in a matter of months before being dealt to a contender.

The Sabres began scratching Johnson, 35, last week to protect their asset. He will sit ... Read the full article

Sabres captain Kyle Okposo quiet on future as trade deadline nears

TORONTO – Sabres captain Kyle Okposo chose his words carefully, only revealing that he has spoken to general manager Kevyn Adams about his future, and they’re on the same page as Friday’s trade deadline approaches.

“We’ll keep the rest of those talks private,” Okposo, 35, said following Tuesday’s practice in LECOM Harborcenter.

In answering other questions, however, Okposo essentially acknowledged the obvious: that after eight years in Buffalo, he seems prepared for a possible trade ... Read the full article