Jokiharju - Buffalo Hockey Beat

Sabres captain Jack Eichel traveled for ‘deeper assessment’ of injury

BUFFALO – Sabres captain Jack Eichel traveled out of state to seek a “deeper assessment” of his upper-body injury, coach Ralph Krueger said.

Krueger said Eichel will be sidelined at least another seven to 10 days.

“We hope to have a complete assessment here within the next couple of days,” Krueger said on a Zoom call this morning.

Eichel appeared to hurt his neck when Casey Cizikas hit him behind the net late in ... Read the full article

Sabres rookie Jacob Bryson quickly emerging as special talent

BUFFALO – In the second period of Tuesday’s 5-4 shootout loss, Sabres defenseman Jacob Bryson grabbed the puck along the left wall, skated behind his net and adroitly fed winger Victor Olofsson an outlet pass from the right circle.

A few seconds later, Bryson swooped into the Philadelphia Flyers zone, grabbed center Eric Staal’s pass high in the slot and backhanded the puck to Olofsson as he charged to the net.

While Olofsson did not ... Read the full article

Fast development earns Sabres’ Dylan Cozens promotion to No. 1 center

For almost two months, the Buffalo Sabres eased rookie Dylan Cozens into the NHL by playing him at right wing instead of center, his natural position.

Cozens, 20, kept seizing his opportunities, moving up the lineup and becoming one coach Ralph Krueger’s most trusted forwards just weeks into his career.

So when the upper-body injury captain Jack Eichel suffered Sunday afternoon kept him from playing Tuesday, instead of promoting a veteran, Krueger tabbed Cozens to ... Read the full article

‘Sophomore’ slump hurting Sabres’ Henri Jokiharju

Last season, his first in Buffalo, defenseman Henri Jokiharju morphed into the Sabres’ biggest surprise, showcasing a steady style that earned him coach Ralph Krueger’s trust.

So naturally, Jokiharju, 21, wants to advance his game this year and develop his offensive side.

“It’s part of the development for a young defenseman to come in and be very conservative and then try to build a more attacking, offensive game on top of that,” Krueger said on ... Read the full article

Sabres send Henri Jokiharju to taxi squad, recall two players

The reeling Buffalo Sabres this morning assigned defenseman Henri Jokiharju to the taxi squad and recalled forward Casey Mittelstadt and defenseman Brandon Davidson from the practice group.

The Sabres, who have lost six straight games, play a road contest this afternoon against the New York Islanders.

Jokiharju, 21, was perhaps the Sabres’ biggest surprise last season, playing all 69 games. But the Finn has struggled to regain that form this year. He sat out Saturday ... Read the full article

Sabres implode against Islanders, lose sixth straight: ‘Just mental toughness’

The Sabres’ sixth consecutive loss started well enough. Rookie defenseman Jacob Bryson scored his first NHL goal 33 seconds into the game, giving Buffalo a rare lead it would hold the remainder of the period.

But given the Sabres’ recent futility and fragileness, it felt like they would implode following any misstep against the New York Islanders. Sure enough, after Mathew Barzal’s between-the-legs goal tied the game 3:51 into the second period, they fell apart.... Read the full article

Sabres’ Will Borgen undergoes surgery on forearm, out six to eight weeks

Buffalo Sabres defenseman Will Borgen will be sidelined six to eight weeks after undergoing surgery to repair a fracture in his right forearm, the team announced this afternoon.

Borgen blocked a shot in Saturday afternoon’s 3-2 win over the New Jersey Devils. Sabres coach Ralph Krueger sounded optimistic before Monday’s 3-2 loss to the New York Islanders that Borgen, 24, could miss one game and return for tonight’s contest against the Devils.

But further evaluation ... Read the full article

Sabres’ Jeff Skinner to be healthy scratch versus Islanders

Buffalo Sabres winger Jeff Skinner will be a healthy scratch for the first time in his 11-year NHL career tonight against the New York Islanders, coach Ralph Krueger said.

Krueger said Casey Mittelstadt will replace the struggling Skinner, who has scored zero goals in 14 games this season.

“We don’t measure players only on statistics,” Krueger said on a Zoom call late this afternoon inside Nassau Coliseum. “It’s part of the mix. Really, it’s a ... Read the full article

Sabres’ Jeff Skinner could be healthy scratch against Islanders

Over his first nine NHL seasons, Buffalo Sabres winger Jeff Skinner produced one season of at least 31 goals for each of the four head coaches he played under.

Skinner scored 31 times as a rookie 10 years ago for Paul Maurice. He enjoyed a 33-goal campaign in 2013-14 under Kirk Muller and recorded 37 goals in 2016-17 for Bill Peters.

Following his arrival from the Carolina Hurricanes in 2018, Skinner scored a career-high 40 ... Read the full article

Sabres concerned about Jake McCabe’s injury; Buffalo recalls defensemen

Sabres defenseman Jake McCabe, who left Saturday afternoon’s 3-2 win against the New Jersey Devils after suffering a lower-body injury, has returned to Buffalo for an MRI, coach Ralph Krueger said.

Krueger said the Sabres will have an update on McCabe’s status prior to Monday’s road game against the New York Islanders.

“I’ll be honest with you, (I’m) not very optimistic about the diagnosis that’ll come out of this, but let the medical team ... Read the full article