WNY and Buffalo NY Hockey Coverage
January Edition
Jack Eichel broke out of his short slump Tuesday. ©2016, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
BUFFALO – Long after Sabres center Jack Eichel leaves the rink, his struggles still weigh heavy in his mind.
“I take it home,” Eichel said Wednesday after the Sabres prepared for tonight’s tilt against the Boston Bruins at KeyBank Center.
So naturally, Eichel’s frustration was visible as his career-long five-game pointless streak hit as the Sabres lost four straight contests before their Christmas break.
“You could see it in his body language,” Sabres coach Dan ... Read the full article
Ryan O’Reilly missed time with an abdomenal injury earlier this season. ©2016, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
The reeling, last-place Buffalo Sabres will be without Ryan O’Reilly indefinitely after the center underwent an emergency appendectomy over the three-day Christmas break, the team announced this morning.
Update: Sabres coach Dan Bylsma told reporters in Detroit O’Reilly could miss two to three weeks.
The absence of O’Reilly, the Sabres’ top all-around forward and lone NHL All-Star last season, could doom a team dangerously close to falling out of the playoff hunt. The Sabres have ... Read the full article
Marcus Foligno has been utilizing his big frame. ©2016, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
BUFFALO – Sabres winger Marcus Foligno has a simple explanation why he fixed his hair at a bizarre time – during a heavyweight scrap against Shawn Thornton, the NHL’s dean of fighters – in Tuesday’s 4-3 shootout loss to the Florida Panthers.
“Just try to get readjusted and get ready for round two,” a smiling Foligno said Thursday prior to the Sabres’ 3-1 loss to the Carolina Hurricanes inside KeyBank Center.
The bout was a ... Read the full article
Rasmus Ristolainen has been logging big minutes. ©2016, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
BUFFALO – The significance of defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen’s recent exploits shouldn’t be overshadowed by the Sabres’ disappointing season.
In the near future, if Ristolainen becomes an NHL All-Star or garners serious Norris Trophy consideration, remember the torrid run he is enjoying entering tonight’s tilt against the Carolina Hurricanes at KeyBank Center.
Ristolainen has three goals, two overtime winners and 14 points while averaging a whopping 27 minutes, 41 seconds of ice time over the last ... Read the full article
Kyle Okposo played nine seasons with the Islanders. ©2016, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
BUFFALO – Months ago, coach Dan Bylsma and Kyle Okposo talked about different scenarios for the Sabres’ big offseason acquisition in the upcoming season.
Bylsma said he wanted Okposo, 28, to understand he didn’t have to carry the load after signing a seven-year, $42 million contract.
During that conversation, Bylsma said Okposo only talked about one game on the 2016-17 schedule – Friday’s tilt against the New York Islanders, the winger’s first meeting against ... Read the full article
Ryan O’Reilly tries to score on Washington goalie Philipp Grubauer last Friday. ©2016, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
BUFFALO – Sabres center Ryan O’Reilly averages more ice time than any NHL forward – 21 minutes, 50 seconds a game – but the workhorse skated a season-low 17:08 in Tuesday’s 6-3 win against Los Angeles.
Defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen, meanwhile, averages a team-high 26:39 a game, yet only skated 22:04 on Tuesday, his second-lowest total this season.
What happened? A few things.
For starters, the Sabres didn’t kill any penalties and has only one ... Read the full article
Jack Eichel (15) stickhandles past Los Angeles’ Kyle Clifford on Tuesday. ©2016, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
BUFFALO – For almost 30 minutes Tuesday, KeyBank Center felt like, well, just about every other Sabres home game this season.
The 18,375 fans barely made a peep as the home team, as it often does, generated little offense and fell behind 2-0 to the Los Angeles Kings.
Those goals irked Ryan O’Reilly, especially the first one, a nifty score in which Kings star Anze Kopitar blew by the Sabres center.
“I was just getting ... Read the full article
Jordan Nolan understands he’s a role model. ©2016, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
BUFFALO – As a two-time Stanley Cup winner with the Los Angeles Kings, Jordan Nolan’s hockey fame has brought him some influence in the First Nations community.
“We’re in a position where a lot of young Native men look up to us,” Nolan said Tuesday prior to the Sabres’ 6-3 win against the Kings inside KeyBank Center. “We’re role models, so I think we have to take that pretty seriously.”
So Nolan, 27, and teammate ... Read the full article
Zach Bogosian has missed 18 games. ©2016, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
BUFFALO – It was just an innocent play. Early in the Sabres’ 2-1 loss to Minnesota on Nov. 1, defenseman Zach Bogosian said he pinched down in the offensive zone.
“I just caught a rut and my knee just kind of went in,” Bogosian said this morning inside KeyBank Center. “It was kind of a freak thing. … Sometimes the ice will get you. Unfortunately, my knee kind of went the wrong way.”
Bogosian, who ... Read the full article
William Carrier (48) celebrates his first NHL goal Nov. 19. ©2016, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
BUFFALO – When William Carrier earns ice time flanking center Ryan O’Reilly and a top winger, the Sabres rookie has a straightforward assignment to help his talented linemates.
“He’s just going, head down, bruising the way for those guys to get pucks and play with that puck,” Sabres coach Dan Bylsma said.
That means goals haven’t been priority for the 6-foot-2, 212-pound Carrier, who has scored just once in his first 17 NHL games.
“That’s ... Read the full article