Levi - Buffalo Hockey Beat

Sabres send Devon Levi to Rochester, recall goalie

The Buffalo Sabres this morning loaned rookie goalie Devon Levi to the Rochester Americans.

Levi, 22, is expected to start his first game since Jan. 9 this afternoon when the Amerks host the Springfield Thunderbirds at Blue Cross Arena.

The Sabres also recalled goalie Eric Comrie from the Amerks to back up Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, who’s expected to make his fifth straight start this afternoon.... Read the full article

Devon Levi waiting for next chance; Sabres recall defenseman

BUFFALO – Rookie Devon Levi took a backseat to Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen again Thursday, backing up the new No. 1 goalie during the Sabres’ 3-0 win against the Chicago Blackhawks.

Levi, 22, has watched four straight contests, his last outing coming Jan. 9. Other than the time he spent recovering from a lower-body injury in October, it’s his longest stretch between outings this season (counting two games he played in the minors).

After Levi returned from ... Read the full article

Goalie Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen stars in shutout, emerging as Sabres’ starter

BUFFALO – Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen’s run as the Sabres’ starting goalie this season lasted about a week.

Shortly after he grabbed the No. 1 job, he got sick and missed about 10 days. When he returned, rookie Devon Levi had re-established himself following a brief trip to the minors, and the netminders mostly alternated starts about the next month.

But since Dec. 30, Luukkonen, who posted a 28-save shutout in Monday afternoon’s 3-0 win over the ... Read the full article

Injured Sabres center Tage Thompson ‘possibility’ to play against Canucks

BUFFALO – In the past, coach Don Granato said, the Sabres have experienced similar situations in which they wondered if center Tage Thompson would be able to play.

“You don’t know and, boom, he’s ready to go,” Granato said of other injuries Thompson has endured. “So he’s ultra-competitive. He’s played lots of games not at 100 percent and below.”

Granato there’s a “possibility” Thompson, 26, can play in this afternoon’s game against the Vancouver Canucks ... Read the full article

Defensive lapses doom Sabres in loss to Kraken: ‘It was the mistakes we made’

BUFFALO – The Seattle Kraken grabbed a commanding three-goal lead in the second period, and frustration immediately overwhelmed Sabres star Rasmus Dahlin.

Dahlin smashed his stick over the top of the net, looking more like a lumberjack than a defenseman, breaking it into two pieces.

The Sabres, having won two straight games for just the second time this season, began Tuesday feeling pretty good about themselves. As they started a six-game home stand, they had ... Read the full article

Sabres’ long home stand could decide playoff fate: ‘The time is now’

BUFFALO – Don Granato kept going, talking for two minutes on perhaps his least favorite topic, the Sabres’ dreary home record.

Discussing his team’s struggles at KeyBank Center clearly struck a nerve with the coach. Any explanation, he reasoned, could be taken as an excuse.

“I don’t even like talking about it,” Granato said after the Sabres prepared for Tuesday’s game against the Seattle Kraken, the start of a season-long six-game home stand.

Still, Granato ... Read the full article

Sabres’ Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen stars in win over Penguins: ‘Stood on his head’

PITTSBURGH – Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen calmly faced each breakaway, patiently waiting in position in his crease as Penguins roared toward him. Each time, the Buffalo Sabres goalie stymied his opponent, barely moving and making the stops look easy.

In Saturday’s first period, shortly after Sabres winger Alex Tuch scored 2:53 into the game, superstar Sidney Crosby became Luukkonen’s first victim. In the second period, the Finn thwarted Rickard Rackell’s attempt. Later in the second, he stoned ... Read the full article

Sabres rookie Devon Levi cherishes text message from Carey Price, childhood memories of Canadiens

BUFFALO – Once, when Sabres rookie Devon Levi was 10, he visited a restaurant in Montreal and had some pictures taken with his idol, Canadiens goalie Carey Price.

Another time, Levi’s girlfriend spotted Price at a basketball game and handed him the phone. The netminders ended up chatting on FaceTime for a bit.

Then prior to Levi’s fifth NHL start on April 10, Price texted him some words of advice before the Sabres beat the ... Read the full article

Sabres waive goalie Eric Comrie to create roster spot

The Buffalo Sabres on Sunday placed struggling goalie Eric Comrie on waivers to create a roster spot for winger Zemgus Girgensons, who was activated from injured reserve.

Girgensons, 29, has missed the last 17 games with a lower-body injury. He could return for Sunday’s road game against the Ottawa Senators.

The move leaves the Sabres with goalies Devon Levi and Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen.

Comrie, who signed a two-year, $3.8 million contract as a free agent in ... Read the full article

With roster move needed, Sabres goalie Eric Comrie has uncertain future

BUFFALO – Eric Comrie processed the question and searched for the right words. The normally loquacious Sabres goalie never found them.

“I don’t know,” he replied when asked about the Sabres’ roster crunch and how he has been focusing on himself. “That’s a tough question to answer.”

Comrie, having once been claimed off waivers four times in a 17-month stretch, has endured a lot of uncertainty in his career. But after signing a two-year contract ... Read the full article