Johnson - Buffalo Hockey Beat

Erik Johnson excited to be in Buffalo, give Sabres missing element

BUFFALO – Erik Johnson knows his time here could be short. The defenseman joined the Sabres on a one-year contract. At 35, he has entered perhaps the final phase of his terrific career.

Right now, the 17-year veteran might be more coveted for his experience and leadership than his skill.

Johnson’s still an asset on the ice, mind you. He averaged more than 17 minutes on it each game last season. In the first two ... Read the full article

Sabres begin training camp with Devon Levi, prospects and Victor Olofsson in spotlight

BUFFALO – The deepest and most talented Sabres team since the rollicking post-lockout days of the mid-2000s will hit the ice today shouldering the expectation it can end the franchise’s embarrassing 12-year playoff drought.

Coming off a season in which they fell one win short of the postseason, the Sabres begin training camp with three sessions at KeyBank Center.

They have a whopping 64 players on their camp roster: seven goalies, 21 defensemen and 36 ... Read the full article

Sabres prospect Nikita Novikov turns heads in first games in Buffalo

BUFFALO – The Sabres’ leading scorer in the Prospects Challenge wasn’t Zach Benson, Jiri Kulich, Isak Rosen, Matt Savoie or another talented young forward.

No, try defenseman Nikita Novikov, who registered five assists, including three in Friday’s 6-3 win over the Montreal Canadiens in LECOM Harborcenter.

The Russian, 20, compiled three assists and five points in 62 games with the Kontinental Hockey League’s Moscow Dynamo all of last season.

The 6-foot-4, ... Read the full article

Sabres’ 2023 Prospects Challenge roster features five first-round picks

Five first-round picks, including forwards Jiri Kulich and Matt Savoie, are among the 25 youngsters listed on the Buffalo Sabres’ roster for the upcoming Prospects Challenge rookie tournament.

Kulich and Savoie, two of the Sabres’ three first-round selections in 2022, are expected to compete for NHL spots during training camp.

The roster, released Tuesday, also features three other first-round picks: wingers Zach Benson and Isak Rosen and defenseman Ryan Johnson.... Read the full article

Sabres trade Ilya Lyubushkin to Ducks

The Buffalo Sabres trimmed their defense corps Friday night, trading Ilya Lyubushkin to the Anaheim Ducks in exchange for a fourth-round pick in 2025.

The Sabres had nine defensemen on one-way contracts prior to dealing Lyubushkin, who’s entering the final season of a two-year, $5.5 million contract.

While Sabres general manager Kevyn Adams has said he would be comfortable having a surfeit of defensemen in training camp, it wasn’t surprising the Sabres made a move.... Read the full article

New Amerks assistant coaches Vinny Prospal, Nathan Paetsch offer Sabres prospects notable experience

About six years ago, a mutual friend put Seth Appert and Vaclav “Vinny” Prospal in contact with each other.

Appert, now the Rochester Americans’ coach, was working at the U.S. National Team Development Program. Prospal, a veteran of 1,108 NHL games as a player, was coaching in the Tampa Scorpions youth organization.

As they chatted about hockey and player development, Appert realized how Prospal, who on Monday was named one of Rochester’s assistant coaches, embraced ... Read the full article

Sabres notes: Don Granato believes Erik Johnson will help Rasmus Dahlin, other defensemen

BUFFALO – If Sabres coach Don Granato puts Erik Johnson on the top defense pairing, he believes the veteran can help Rasmus Dahlin reset from the mental pressure he often puts on himself.

Granato said Johnson, having been a first overall pick like Dahlin, has “walked that walk.”

Of course, Granato thinks Johnson, 35, would have a similar effect on Owen Power, the No. 1 selection in 2021. And if Johnson skates with Mattias ... Read the full article

Veteran Erik Johnson believes Sabres will ‘contend for a long time’

BUFFALO – After defenseman Erik Johnson learned the Colorado Avalanche wouldn’t be re-signing him, he said five or six teams emerged as suitors in free agency.

The Sabres, a team he said reminds him of the Avalanche not long ago, quickly moved to the top of his list.

Johnson, 35, called some old teammates and bounced the interested clubs off them.

“All of them really said Buffalo’s a team on the rise,” said Johnson, who ... Read the full article

Sabres sign defensemen Erik Johnson, Connor Clifton in free agency, bring back Tyson Jost

The Buffalo Sabres today made three moves in the opening hour of free agency, signing right-shot defensemen Erik Johnson and Connor Clifton and re-signing center Tyson Jost.

General manager Kevyn Adams said leading up to free agency he wanted to add to his blue line this offseason, and in Johnson and Clifton he addressed the Sabres’ most glaring need.

Johnson, 35, signed a $3.25 million contract. Meanwhile, Clifton, 28, inked a three-year deal with an ... Read the full article

After run with Amerks, Lawrence Pilut leaves Sabres organization again

For the second time in three years, defenseman Lawrence Pilut has left the Buffalo Sabres organization.

This time, however, it might be for good.

Pilut, who could’ve become an unrestricted free agent July 1, has signed a two-year contract with Lausanne HC in the Swiss National League, the team announced Tuesday.... Read the full article