Housley - Buffalo Hockey Beat

Sabres notes: Brendan Guhle returns to NHL confident

BUFFALO – During the second intermission Saturday in Cleveland, defenseman Brendan Guhle was informed the Sabres needed his services the next day more than 600 miles away in Boston.

So instead of finishing the Rochester Americans’ 2-1 victory against the Monsters, Guhle, who scored earlier in the game, spent all of the third period and overtime watching from the bench.

“It was pretty weird,” Guhle said prior to Tuesday’s 5-2 loss to the Florida Panthers ... Read the full article

Sabres’ Jake McCabe close to returning; Phil Housley mixes up centers

BUFFALO – After skating with his teammates for the first time this morning since suffering an upper-body injury Nov. 29, Sabres defenseman Jake McCabe figures he can return by the weekend.

McCabe, who will miss his ninth game tonight, has skated eight of the last nine days, only taking Monday off.

While McCabe only has one team session under his belt – a light morning skate as the Sabres prepared for the Florida Panthers – ... Read the full article

Jack Eichel enjoying one of greatest seasons in Sabres history

BUFFALO – Thirty-four games into his fourth NHL campaign, Sabres captain Jack Eichel is enjoying more than just a career year; the ultra-talented center is putting together one of the greatest seasons in franchise history.

Fresh off a four-goal, nine-point week, Eichel is up to 14 goals and 45 points entering tonight’s tilt against the Florida Panthers inside KeyBank Center. At his current pace, he would compile 34 goals and a whopping 109 points over ... Read the full article

Sabres defensemen Brendan Guhle, Matt Hunwick to make season debuts

Buffalo Sabres defensemen Brendan Guhle and Matt Hunwick will make their season debuts in this afternoon’s tilt against the Bruins, coach Phil Housley told reporters in Boston.

With defenseman Nathan Beaulieu day-to-day with an upper-body injury, according to Housley, the Sabres recalled Guhle, 21, from the Rochester Americans this afternoon.

To make room, the Sabres placed defenseman Lawrence Pilut (lower body) on injured reserve.

Hunwick, meanwhile, just completed an AHL conditioning stint after suffering a ... Read the full article

Sabres suspend Patrik Berglund indefinitely for failure to report to team

The Buffalo Sabres have suspended newcomer Patrik Berglund indefinitely for failure to report to the team.

Berglund, 30, missed two games and wasn’t seen around the team this week. Sabres coach Phil Housley said then the forward had the flu.

“From my knowledge, talking to the medical staff, he was ill,” Housley told reporters prior to tonight’s road tilt against the Washington Capitals. “So we handled it that way. Obviously, it developed it into something ... Read the full article

Goalie Carter Hutton’s puck-handling skills key asset for Sabres

BUFFALO – As soon as Carter Hutton grabbed the puck, the entire Sabres bench stood up. His teammates knew their goalie was eyeing the empty net about 175 feet away.

And for an oh-so-brief second, it appeared Hutton would shoot it down the ice and cap off Thursday’s victory in the craziest of fashions by scoring his first NHL goal.

“My first thought was he was 100 percent going to get it,” winger Evan Rodrigues ... Read the full article

Sabres’ Zach Bogosian ‘looked like a man possessed’ against Coyotes

BUFFALO – Zach Bogosian certainly earned his maintenance day today. In the third period of Thursday’s 3-1 win over the Arizona Coyotes, the Sabres defenseman played a whopping 11 minutes, 13 seconds.

Bogosian stayed on the ice for the final 2:42 of the tilt as the Coyotes pulled goalie Darcy Kuemper and pushed to tie the game. Overall, Bogosian played 25 minutes, 10 seconds in the Sabres’ second consecutive victory.

“He looked like a man ... Read the full article

Sabres pounce on Coyotes early, win second straight

BUFFALO – Less than a minute into Thursday’s 3-1 win over the Arizona Coyotes, Sabres winger Conor Sheary intercepted an ill-advised pass defenseman Alex Goligoski telegraphed up the middle of the ice.

A few seconds later, center Casey Mittelstadt scored from the slot, putting the Sabres up at the 48-second mark. Barely six minutes after the rookie registered his first goal in nine games, winger Jeff Skinner easily converted captain Jack Eichel’s pass on a ... Read the full article

Sabres notes: Carter Hutton still out to prove himself

BUFFALO – Even in a new role as an NHL starter, Sabres goalie Carter Hutton’s mentality hasn’t changed. The popular veteran still acts like he’s trying to crack the big leagues.

“He’s just trying to prove himself every day, whether (it was) earlier in his career, when he was a backup, (or) now he’s in the No. 1 position where he’s played a lot of hockey,” said Sabres coach Phil Housley, who knows Hutton from ... Read the full article

Sabres goalie Carter Hutton to start against Coyotes

BUFFALO – Five years into his NHL career and 21 games into his new gig as the Sabres’ starter, goalie Carter Hutton’s mentality hasn’t changed.