Luukkonen - Buffalo Hockey Beat

Sabres goalie Colten Ellis healthy; Conor Timmins to be game-time decision

BUFFALO – The Sabres have three healthy goalies again.

Rookie Colten Ellis rejoined his teammates for this morning’s pregame skate after clearing concussion protocol.

“He’s back at it,” Sabres coach Lindy Ruff said this morning in KeyBank Center. “So he’ll get some practices in him and make sure he feels good.”

Ellis, 25, left the Sabres’ 4-3 overtime win Dec. 9 in Edmonton in the first period when Oilers forward David Tomasek drove to the ... Read the full article

Sabres notes: Jarmo Kekalainen to ‘take charge’ of Alex Tuch’s contract talks; Buffalo could go down to two goalies

BUFFALO – In his first days on the job, Sabres general manager Jarmo Kekalainen said he plans to “take charge” of contract negotiations with winger Alex Tuch’s representatives.

Tuch, one of former GM Kevyn Adams’ biggest trade acquisitions, expressed his desire earlier this season to sign an extension with the Sabres.

But has another difficult campaign changed Tuch’s mind? The Baldwinsville native can become an unrestricted free agent following the season.... Read the full article

More change likely coming after Jarmo Kekalainen replaces Kevyn Adams as Sabres GM

What happens next? General manager Kevyn Adams, having been fired on Monday by owner Terry Pegula and replaced by Jarmo Kekalainen, is gone after a five-and-a-half-year run in which he failed to build the Buffalo Sabres into a playoff team.

Adams, a Clarence native Pegula and his wife, Kim, a co-owner, hired as GM despite having never worked in an NHL hockey department, came oh-so-close to delivering that elusive playoff berth in 2022-23, when the ... Read the full article

Sabres lose Josh Norris, Colten Ellis to injuries before and during OT win

Shortly before Tuesday’s opening faceoff, the Buffalo Sabres pulled center Josh Norris from the lineup after he skated in the pregame warm-up.

What happened?

Coach Lindy Ruff told reporters in Edmonton following the Sabres’ 4-3 overtime win that the oft-injured Norris, who felt ill, tweaked something warming up.

At that point, the Sabres yanked Norris, who had played four straight games after an upper-body injury he suffered opening night sidelined him 24 contests.... Read the full article

Josh Norris wows in return as Sabres beat Jets: ‘He was unbelievable’

BUFFALO – In his first action in almost eight weeks, center Josh Norris needed less than three minutes to give the Sabres a taste of what they had been missing for the last 24 games.

During a power play, Norris, who hadn’t played since suffering an upper-body injury opening night, skated into the right circle and adroitly fed winger Josh Doan the puck at the top of the crease.

A second later, winger Jason Zucker ... Read the full article

With Josh Norris ready to play, Sabres must make lineup change, roster move

BUFFALO – The night before his first game in 53 days, Sabres center Josh Norris acknowledged he couldn’t sleep well – “I was a little anxious,” he said – and woke up early.

The oft-injured Norris, 26, hasn’t played since Oct. 9, opening night, when he suffered an upper-body injury in just his fourth appearance with the Sabres.

After missing the last 24 games, he’s ready to face the Winnipeg Jets tonight. Norris pivoted Zach ... Read the full article

Sabres notes: Colten Ellis likely to start again; Noah Ostlund uses ‘sick’ move

BUFFALO – Following a four-game break, goalie Colten Ellis looked sharp throughout Saturday’s 3-2 shootout victory in Minnesota, stopping 22 shots, including the last 14 he faced, as the Sabres ended the Wild’s seven-game winning streak.

Ellis, 25, received an early taste of Minnesota’s firepower, stopping superstar Kirill Kaprizov’s wraparound attempt barely a minute into the contest.

In overtime, the rookie calmly denied two shots from Brock Faber in close.... Read the full article

Tage Thompson fights Stefan Noesen in Sabres’ shutout loss to Devils; Mattias Samuelsson leaves injured

BUFFALO – Before their first game against the New Jersey Devils since the Sabres let winger Stefan Noesen get away with hitting Tage Thompson in the head and concussing him last season, some of the center’s teammates volunteered to fight.

“There was a lot of guys in the room asking, but I said I wanted to do it,” Thompson said following Friday afternoon’s 5-0 loss to New Jersey in KeyBank Center.

Thompson appreciates his teammates’ ... Read the full article

Sabres fall apart late, lose to Penguins; Jack Quinn continues hot stretch

PITTSBURGH – The dagger came just 31 seconds after Buffalo Sabres winger Jack Quinn’s goal tied Wednesday’s game against the Penguins.

After seemingly seizing the momentum at the 7:20 mark of the third period, Sabres goalie Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen lost his stick as the Penguins buzzed around him.

When Bryan Rust maneuvered into the right circle holding the puck, Luukkonen faced a shot he would routinely stop. But without his stick, Rust’s shot slid through his ... Read the full article

As UPL, Colten Ellis earn starts, Sabres’ Alex Lyon has positive mindset: ‘I want the team success’

PITTSBURGH – Alex Lyon hasn’t always been this welcoming to his crease mates. No way. Early in his career, the Buffalo Sabres goalie had zero interest in sharing the net.

“Until the time I was 23 years old, I started every single game – college, junior, high school,” Lyon said prior to Wednesday’s game against the Penguins in PPG Paints Arena. “Like, I was the man, and so it took me a long time to ... Read the full article