Kekalainen - Buffalo Hockey Beat

If the Sabres sign Patrick Kane, would he fit into their identity?

Three weeks after free agency opened and long after the feeding frenzy ended, South Buffalo native Patrick Kane is reportedly considering joining the Sabres or returning to Chicago, where he became an icon while starring for 16 seasons and leading the Blackhawks to three Stanley Cup championships.

That info, courtesy of ESPN analyst Chris Chelios, makes sense. Following three seasons and zero playoff appearances with the Detroit Red Wings, Kane, 37, could take a run ... Read the full article

Sabres to open 2026-27 season Oct. 1 in Columbus, start home schedule Oct. 3 versus Chicago

The Buffalo Sabres will open the 2026-27 season Oct. 1 on the road against the Columbus Blue Jackets and hold their home opener Oct. 3 versus old friend Bowen Byram and the Chicago Blackhawks at KeyBank Center.

The NHL this morning announced the home openers for all 32 teams. The rest of the 84-game schedule will be released Thursday.

The Sabres, of course, recently traded Byram to Chicago in a blockbuster deal, so the home ... Read the full article

Bruins hire former Sabres GM Kevyn Adams as senior advisor

Former Buffalo Sabres general manager Kevyn Adams is back in the NHL.

The Boston Bruins on Tuesday named Adams, 51, a senior advisor to GM Don Sweeney.

The Sabres fired Adams on Dec. 15, almost halfway through his sixth season as GM, and replaced him with Jarmo Kekalainen, who had been serving as a senior advisor.... Read the full article

Sabres bring in John Davidson as senior advisor; Buffalo makes minor trade

The Buffalo Sabres have added to their front office by hiring John Davidson, a popular former goalie and broadcaster who has spent most of the past 20 years working as a president of hockey operations, as a senior advisor, the team announced Monday.

Sabres general manager Jarmo Kekalainen, 60, and Davidson, 73, know each other well, having worked closely together with the Columbus Blue Jackets and St. Louis Blues.

Shortly taking over as president of ... Read the full article

After trade, speedy Olen Zellweger sees opportunity with Sabres

When the Stanley Cup Playoffs began in April, Buffalo Sabres newcomer Olen Zellweger found himself watching in the press box as a healthy scratch after enjoying regular duty all season.

Naturally, Zellweger, a defenseman the Sabres acquired in a trade last Friday with the Anaheim Ducks after dealing Bowen Byram, initially felt frustrated. But he said getting benched taught him some lessons.

He started getting back to basics. From his seat high above the ice, ... Read the full article

Sabres make depth signings, trade after free agency opens; Jarmo Kekalainen open to making more moves

BUFFALO – After free agency opened Wednesday, the Sabres stayed pretty quiet, signing four depth players likely ticketed for the minors and trading goalie Devon Levi.

While more notable moves could materialize – “We’re still open for business,” general manager Jarmo Kekalainen said in LECOM Harborcenter – the roster might be pretty much set.

“By no means we’re desperate to add anything right now,” Kekalainen said. “It needs to be a perfect fit both from ... Read the full article

Sabres did ‘due diligence’ before hiring Milan Lucic for scouting job

BUFFALO – Before they hired former NHL winger Milan Lucic as a pro scout, general manager Jarmo Kekalainen said the Sabres did their “due diligence” on his arrest in 2023 on suspicion of assault and battery on a family member.

Prosecutors later dropped a domestic violence charge.

“We take all those things very seriously, but we have also seen and heard that he’s done a lot of personal growth,” Kekalainen said Wednesday in LECOM Harborcenter.... Read the full article

As free agency begins, trades look like best way for Sabres to improve

BUFFALO – Free agency, with its limited crop of talent and exorbitant asking prices, likely won’t help the Sabres much as general manager Jarmo Kekalainen works to improve a roster that has recently lost two of its best players.

The offseason kicks into high gear again today when the market opens at noon.

What could Kekalainen, who’s in his first summer as GM, do to keep the Sabres atop the ultra-competitive Atlantic Division?... Read the full article

Sabres announce six hires, including Milan Lucic as pro scout

BUFFALO – Former Boston Bruins winger Milan Lucic, whose ferocious open-ice hit in 2011 concussed goalie Ryan Miller and made him public enemy No. 1 in these parts, has joined the Sabres as a pro scout.

His hire was one of six the Sabres announced Tuesday. This is general manager Jarmo Kekalainen’s first offseason running the team.

Lucic, 38, recently retired from playing after spending last season with the Fife Devils, an Elite Ice Hockey ... Read the full article

Trading for Olen Zellweger gives Sabres defenseman with qualities similar to Bowen Byram

ORCHARD PARK – In Olen Zellweger, the Buffalo Sabres traded for a defenseman who Jarmo Kekalainen said possesses “a lot of the same qualities” of Bowen Byram.

“Really good skater, speed, puck play, the ability to move up the ice whether to pass or carry the puck out of the zone,” the general manager said Friday at One Bills Drive hours after trading for Zellweger. “We see a lot of potential in him.”... Read the full article