WNY and Buffalo NY Hockey Coverage
Post-Deadline Edition
Zach Bogosian mostly played with Rasmus Dahlin on Saturday afternoon. ©2019, Hickling Images
BUFFALO – For Sabres defenseman Zach Bogosian, sitting out four straight games, the first healthy scratches of his 12-year NHL career, wasn’t easy.
“Anytime you don’t get a chance to be in there to be a part of the team and do what you want to do and do what you love, I mean, it’s tough,” Bogosian said after skating just over 18 minutes in his return in Saturday afternoon’s 3-2 win over the ... Read the full article
Carter Hutton hasn’t won a game in nearly two months. ©2019, Micheline Veluvolu
TORONTO – Whether he’s starting regularly or riding the bench, Buffalo Sabres goalie Carter Hutton doesn’t change his behavior, according to coach Ralph Krueger.
“That makes him really unique,” Krueger said. “Like, even on a game day, he’s always there still giving to the team and supporting, whereas often goalies will check out. … But he’s exactly the same guy. Like, you don’t notice a change at all.”
So for the last month, as Hutton ... Read the full article
Rasmus Dahlin has missed the last eight games. ©2019, Micheline Veluvolu
BUFFALO – Sabres defenseman Rasmus Dahlin, out the last eight games with a concussion, practiced today on a regular pairing and also manned a point on the top power play.
So, could Dahlin, 19, return Thursday against the Nashville Predators?
“There’s a definitely a step in the right direction,” Krueger said inside KeyBank Center. “We’re just going to assess him and wanted to see him in his customary role and see how he looks. ... Read the full article
Carter Hutton has endured a rough stretch. ©2019, Micheline Veluvolu
BUFFALO – If Carter Hutton were performing close to his usual standards, the Sabres goalie would likely start tonight’s home game against the St. Louis Blues.
Hutton, 33, spent two seasons with the Blues, playing 61 games before signing a three-year, $8.25 million contract with the Sabres.
The veteran, of course, probably wants to face the Blues, the defending Stanley Cup champions, badly.
But for the for the ninth time in the last 12 games, ... Read the full article
Jack Eichel has been scorching. ©2019, Micheline Veluvolu
A league-best seven points in four games helped Buffalo Sabres captain Jack Eichel earn the NHL’s third star for the week ending Dec. 8.
Eichel, 23, compiled two goals and five assists to extend his career-best point streak to 13 games (10 goals, 23 points). Meanwhile, a 2-1-1 mark moved the Sabres into third place in the Atlantic Division.
Right now, Eichel is enjoying the best stretch of his five-year career.
The center had a ... Read the full article
Colin Miller has been scratched six times this season. ©2019, Micheline Veluvolu
TORONTO – Who expected Buffalo Sabres defenseman Colin Miller would be a healthy scratch once this season, let alone six times before December?
But a crowded blue line – the Sabres have seven healthy defensemen, including five right-handed shots – forced them to bench one in eight recent games.
Miller, 27, was usually the odd man out.
“I’m not getting many bounces lately,” Miller said prior to Saturday’s 2-1 overtime loss to the Maple Leafs ... Read the full article
Casey Mittelstadt has scored four goals this season. ©2019, Micheline Veluvolu
BUFFALO – Like most elite prospects, Casey Mittelstadt was a dynamic scorer in junior and college. So struggling for weeks sometimes in the NHL has been a new experience for the Sabres winger.
“It’s not easy, I’m not going to lie,” Mittelstadt said after scoring in Friday afternoon’s 6-4 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs inside KeyBank Center, his first goal in 17 games. “But at the same time, I’ve scored pretty much my whole ... Read the full article
Rasmus Dahlin was injured Monday. ©2019, Janet Schultz
BUFFALO – The two-game suspension the NHL laid on Erik Cernak for elbowing Sabres defenseman Rasmus Dahlin in the face and concussing him seems light.
Cernak, who wasn’t penalized for the hit, can return to the Tampa Bay Lightning’s lineup Saturday. Dahlin, meanwhile, is out indefinitely, the Sabres announced prior to Wednesday’s 3-2 overtime loss to the Calgary Flames.
“We’re just going to accept the result as it is,” coach Ralph Krueger said inside KeyBank ... Read the full article
Rasmus Dahlin has recorded 16 points this season. ©2019, Hickling Images
BUFFALO – Defenseman Rasmus Dahlin often struggled in the Sabres’ first 24 games this season, looking like a youngster in need of a confidence boost.
Still, Dahlin, who suffered a concussion in Monday’s 5-2 road loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning when Erik Cernak elbowed him in the face, is a dynamic talent. The reeling Sabres sorely need him in the lineup.
Update: Dahlin is out indefinitely, according to the Sabres.
The Sabres haven’t given ... Read the full article
John Gilmour has played four games this season. ©2019, Hickling Images
BUFFALO – In the end, instead of recalling a forward or trading for one, the Sabres simply utilized defenseman John Gilmour as a winger for Tuesday’s 4-1 loss to the Minnesota Wild.
Sabres coach Ralph Krueger, who has five injured forwards, said Monday the Sabres could dress seven defensemen and 11 forwards.
The other option likely would’ve been recalling someone from the Rochester Americans. The AHL club, however, only has two healthy forwards on NHL ... Read the full article