Plante - Buffalo Hockey Beat

Sabres change up home routine before Game 7 versus Canadiens, stay in hotel

BUFFALO – Coach Lindy Ruff said he’s all for trying different things, so what the heck, he figured, why not put the Sabres in a hotel prior to Game 7 against the Montreal Canadiens?

The Sabres have lost four of their six home games in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, including Thursday’s ugly 6-3 setback in Game 5. With the a trip to the Eastern Conference final on the line tonight at KeyBank Center, Ruff wanted ... Read the full article

For Sabres, Game 7 against Canadiens will be special: ‘We’re the better team’

BUFFALO – Having cut his teeth as a member of the Vegas Golden Knights, Sabres winger Alex Tuch has experienced the craziness that often accompanies Game 7s in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

The memories of his first one in 2019 are seared in his mind.

“Oh yeah,” Tuch replied Sunday when asked if he has any crazy recollections of the three he has played.

Then Tuch, whose Sabres host Game 7 of their second-round series ... Read the full article

NHL Draft: Max Plante, son of ex-Sabres standout, possesses high hockey IQ

BUFFALO – In his first days in organized hockey, Max Plante showcased the IQ that makes him such an intriguing prospect for the 2024 NHL Draft.

Plante was just 4 or 5, yet he understood the sport so well he passed the puck to his teammates. At that age, if a kid gets the puck, they usually keep it. But Plante even distributed it around the net.

His father, Derek, a three-time 20-goal scorer for ... Read the full article

‘No Goal’ at 25: Former Sabres standout Derek Plante learned special lessons during Stars’ 1999 Stanley Cup run

In the moments after Brett Hull scored, as Derek Plante celebrated the Dallas Stars’ Stanley Cup victory, on the other side of the ice, he saw his former Buffalo Sabres teammates trying to process the most gut-wrenching loss of their lives.

Twenty-five years ago Wednesday – June 19, 1999 – Brett Hull scored his controversial “No Goal” 14:51 into the third overtime of Game 6, clinching the Stars’ first championship. Plante watched the disputed goal ... Read the full article

The quiet superstar: Sabres remember Dale Hawerchuk for humility, greatness

Earlier this week, word began spreading among Dale Hawerchuk’s friends that the Hockey Hall of Famer, whose stomach cancer returned in July, wasn’t doing well.

So around 8:30 a.m. Tuesday, Pat LaFontaine said he texted his former Buffalo Sabres teammate to say he was thinking about him and praying for him. About a minute later, Hawerchuk messaged LaFontaine, thanking him.

LaFontaine took Hawerchuk’s quick reply as positive news.

But later in the day, as LaFontaine ... Read the full article

Five ‘Sabres Classics’ against rivals, including ‘May Day’ game, to air

Five more “Sabres Classics” – this time games featuring Buffalo’s fiercest rivals, including the wild “May Day” playoff win over the Boston Bruins – will be rebroadcast on MSG next week.

The games are being aired because the COVID-19 pandemic forced the NHL to suspend its season indefinitely March 12.... Read the full article

Former Sabres Tyler Myers, Drew Stafford happy with Jets

BUFFALO – Drew Stafford called it a “healthy separation.” The Winnipeg Jets winger said he has no ill will toward anyone here. He enjoyed his nine-year Sabres career.

As a struggling veteran months away from free agency last year, Stafford knew the rebuilding Sabres would trade him. Sure enough, Stafford, 30, was dealt with defenseman Tyler Myers on Feb. 11, 2015 in the blockbuster that brought defenseman Zach Bogosian and winger Evander Kane to the ... Read the full article

Sabres rookie Jack Eichel in Calder hunt

BUFFALO – Thanks to a scheduling quirk three months ago, the Sabres enjoyed a six-day Christmas break, a rare opportunity to recharge during the rigorous six-month, 82-game season.

At that point, 33 games into his career, Sabres center Jack Eichel had nine goals and 16 points, terrific numbers for a 19-year-old. Still, those statistics ranked nowhere near the NHL’s elite.

Eichel used the time to go home to Boston and relax. Having played only ... Read the full article

Sabres’ Nick Deslauriers savors each goal

TORONTO – As a third- or fourth-liner known more for his fists than his soft hands, gritty Buffalo Sabres winger Nick Deslauriers has endured some long goal droughts.

While the likable Deslauriers scored his career-high sixth goal in Friday’s 3-1 home win against the Ottawa Senators, he has only 12 in his 160-game career. After scoring three times in the first 11 games this season, the former defenseman went 41 appearances before finally scoring again ... Read the full article

Former Sabres standout Derek Plante still reminded of famous goal

BUFFALO – At home in Duluth, Minn., no one knows or cares about the goal. But when Derek Plante occasionally visits here, where he played six seasons for the Sabres, he can’t avoid talking about it.

“Everybody brings up the goal, of course,” Plante said this morning about his Game 7 first-round overtime winner against the Ottawa Senators on April 29, 1997, one of the most famous goals in Sabres history.

Plante quietly enjoyed ... Read the full article