Johnson - Buffalo Hockey Beat

Sabres treating Ducks like elite team

BUFFALO – The Anaheim Ducks, a chic preseason Stanley Cup pick this season after coming within a game of reaching the final a season ago, morphed into a mess earlier this year.

Still, after losing nine of their first 10 games and getting shut out five times, the Ducks have rebounded to a 11-13-5 record and won three of their last four contests entering tonight’s game against the Sabres.

“You look at that lineup, it’s ... Read the full article

Sabres’ offense explodes in win over Coyotes

BUFFALO – First, Sam Reinhart utilized his soft hands around the net Friday. Jamie McGinn followed with a wicked one-timer off a perfect feed from Jack Eichel. Evander Kane scored later on a short-handed breakaway.

Not only are the Sabres finally scoring goals these days, they’re generating pretty ones, a sure sign the offense is humming for the first time all season.

The Sabres’ third win in four games, an exciting 5-2 victory against the ... Read the full article

Sabres’ Zach Bogosian and Evander Kane questionable for Hurricanes

BUFFALO – Sabres defenseman Zach Bogosian and winger Evander Kane will be game-time decisions tonight against the Carolina Hurricanes inside the First Niagara Center, coach Dan Bylsma said this morning.

Bogosian is only five games into his season after missing two months with a lower-body injury. Kane, meanwhile, was questionable for Wednesday’s 3-2 loss to Nashville with a lower-body injury before scoring a goal.

Update: Kane is wearing a walking boot on his left foot.... Read the full article

Sabres start fast against Predators, lose sixth straight

BUFFALO – On Wednesday, against a reeling team that hadn’t scored a goal in more than three games, the Sabres pounced on the Nashville Predators early.

The Sabres held an 11-4 shot advantage after one period and widened it to 25-11 after two inside the First Niagara Center.

Still, it didn’t matter.

The Sabres trailed 1-0 after 20 minutes and 3-1 after 40 in their 3-2 loss to the Predators. After winning three consecutive ... Read the full article

Sabres goalie Linus Ullmark to start; Zemgus Girgensons to return

BUFFALO – In the Sabres’ 2-1 loss to St. Louis on Monday, coach Dan Bylsma felt goalie Linus Ullmark was playing so well his team would only need one goal to win.

The Sabres eventually broke down late, allowing the Blues to eke out a victory. But Ullmark’s 24-save performance convinced Bylsma, who had been alternating the Swede and Chad Johnson, to start the rookie again tonight against the Nashville Predators, his third nod in ... Read the full article

Sabres goalies Linus Ullmark and Chad Johnson willing to share net

BUFFALO – Linus Ullmark’s spirited celebration, which has quickly become a regular occurrence when the final horn signals another win for the Sabres goalie, wasn’t premeditated.

When Ullmark notched his first NHL victory Oct. 30, he excitedly got on one knee and pumped his arm low after a 27-save performance in a 3-1 win against Philadelphia. The Swede, 22, never really planned to do it again, but his next three wins were all ... Read the full article

Sabres rally late, fall to Sharks in overtime

BUFFALO – Somehow, some way, the Sabres have been finding ways to win recently, and when Ryan O’Reilly tied Saturday’s tilt early in the third period, it looked like they might do it again.

Heck, they had to, right? They were playing the San Jose Sharks, a team that had won here once in its 24-year existence.

But the upstart Sabres, who reached .500 for the first time in three seasons on Thursday, couldn’t convert ... Read the full article

Sabres goalie Chad Johnson earns start against Sharks

BUFFALO – In his sixth NHL start Thursday, rookie goalie Linus Ullmark dazzled again, stopping 38 shots in the Sabres’ 3-2 win in Florida. But two nights earlier in Tampa Bay, Chad Johnson looked sharp throughout the Sabres’ 4-1 win, making 31 stops.

So which netminder will Sabres coach Dan Bylsma use tonight against the San Jose Sharks inside the First Niagara Center? Johnson will make his 12^th appearance this season.

“I think for ... Read the full article

Sabres fall apart early, lose to Lightning

BUFFALO – Following a wretched first period Thursday in which the Sabres fell behind 3-0, coach Dan Bylsma, desperate for a spark, yanked goalie Linus Ullmark, a rookie whose fine performances had the upstart club gunning for its first three-game winning streak in 11 months.

“I don’t know how he’s going to handle it,” Bylsma said following the Sabres’ 4-1 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning, “but I made it pretty clear it wasn’t ... Read the full article

Rookie goalie Linus Ullmark impressing Sabres

BUFFALO – Three games, that’s it – just a blip in a marathon season. But in the what-have-you-done-for-me-lately NHL, Linus Ullmark’s small body of work is enough to convince some the rookie should be the Sabres’ new starting goalie.

Following a so-so debut, Ullmark dazzled in his second straight start Sunday, stopping 29 shots in the Sabres’ 2-1 road win against the New York Islanders. On Friday, the prospect made 27 saves in a 3-1 ... Read the full article