Rochester Americans - Buffalo Hockey Beat

Sabres claim Derek Grant off waivers

BUFFALO – The Sabres reclaimed center Derek Grant off waivers from the Nashville Predators today and sent him to the Rochester Americans.

Grant started the season with the Sabres, playing 35 games. But Nashville grabbed the 26-year-old on waivers Jan. 11, and he played six games with the Predators, who waived him Sunday.

Grant offers the Sabres, who struggled to replace him, a fourth-line center. They have been using winger Nick Deslauriers for a ... Read the full article

Sabres sign Justin Falk to contract extension

BUFFALO – The Sabres have signed defenseman Justin Falk to a one-year, one-way contract extension worth $650,000, the team announced this morning.

Falk has provided valuable depth as the Buffalo blue line has endured a rash of injuries. The 28-year-old has played 35 games, compiling three assists, 17 penalty minutes and a plus-4 rating.

The Sabres signed Falk to a one-year, two-way contract July 1. He started the season with the Rochester Americans before being ... Read the full article

Sabres notes: Josh Gorges returns; Nick Deslauriers stays at center

BUFFALO – The badgering has finally stopped. Josh Gorges is healthy, back playing after a hip injury cost him 12 games. So Sabres coach Dan Bylsma can walk by the defenseman again without getting an earful.

“Josh has been one miserable guy to be around,” Bylsma said Saturday morning. “I don’t walk by him without him saying he’s ready to play, and that was about 15 days ago.”

Gorges, 32, played in Saturday’s 4-0 win ... Read the full article

Sabres’ Josh Gorges, Jake McCabe set to return; Justin Bailey recalled

BUFFALO – For weeks, Sabres coach Dan Bylsma said, defenseman Josh Gorges “has been one miserable guy to be around.”

“I don’t walk by him without him saying he’s ready to play, and that was about 15 days ago,” Bylsma said this morning inside KeyBank Center.

Gorges, out the last 12 games with a hip injury, can finally stop badgering Bylsma. He will return tonight against the Ottawa Senators. So will defenseman Jake McCabe, ... Read the full article

Justin Falk grateful for time with Sabres

BUFFALO – On Wednesday, after almost three months of commuting back and forth to Rochester, Sabres defenseman Justin Falk moved his family into an extended-stay hotel here.

For Falk, who has shuttled between the NHL and minors for years, having his wife and two children close by, of course, offers some comfort.

“That helps … just to have a little sense of feeling at home,” said Falk, who said he sometimes made the 75-mile drive ... Read the full article

Overcoming back injury tough for Sabres’ Dmitry Kulikov

BUFFALO – These days, Sabres defenseman Dmitry Kulikov, a young veteran at just 26 years old, said he feels like an old man when he wakes up.

A lower-back bruise has been dogging the Russian for four months, forcing him out of the lineup three times and costing him 26 games.

Kulikov has dealt with the pain through a daily treatment regimen, and Thursday’s 2-1 overtime loss against New York Rangers was his fourth ... Read the full article

Sabres prospect Justin Bailey named AHL All-Star

High-scoring Buffalo Sabres prospect Justin Bailey has been named a replacement for Monday’s AHL All-Star game in Allentown, Pa., the league announced today.

Bailey, 21, a Williamsville native, has a team-high 18 goals with the Rochester Americans, including 10 goals in his last 12 games. His recent seven-game goal-scoring streak is the AHL’s longest this season.

The winger, whose goal total ranks sixth in the league, also has 28 points in 38 AHL appearances. He ... Read the full article

Sabres send Casey Nelson to Amerks

The Buffalo Sabres sent defenseman Casey Nelson back to the Rochester Americans today.

The rookie played for the AHL club later in the day.

Nelson, 24, played in one game during his recall, his ninth NHL appearance this season. He made the Sabres out of training camp but played sparingly before being sent down.... Read the full article

Ryan O’Reilly helps push Sabres past Red Wings in OT

BUFFALO – With just over four minutes left in regulation Friday and the Sabres trailing 2-1, Ryan O’Reilly zoomed down the right wall hellbent on grabbing the puck from Danny DeKeyser deep in the Detroit zone.

O’Reilly eventually twisted DeKeyser around, grabbed the puck and skated behind the net, where he zeroed in on linemate Kyle Okposo in front.

But the rest of the Red Wings hadn’t caught up, so a surprised O’Reilly skated out ... Read the full article

Sabres’ Nick Deslauriers seeing less action

BUFFALO – Chat with Nick Deslauriers for a few minutes, and if the subject turns to fighting, the affable Sabres winger usually perks up.

Deslauriers, 25, relishes his job as the Sabres’ chief protector. In his 196-game NHL career, he has 15 fights and 12 goals.

“That’s what I want to bring, just safety for all the guys that are on the ice with me,” Deslauriers said Friday prior to being scratched for the Sabres’ ... Read the full article