WNY and Buffalo NY Hockey Coverage
Stanley Cup Playoffs Edition
Don Granato missed Thursday’s game. ©2021, Micheline Veluvolu
Interim coach Don Granato and assistant Matt Ellis cleared the NHL’s COVID-19 protocol and joined the Buffalo Sabres following Friday’s practice in Boston.
The Sabres announced shortly before Thursday’s 4-0 road loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins that Granato, 53, and Ellis, 39, had entered protocol and were self-isolating.
General manager Kevyn Adams filled in for Granato and the Sabres also promoted Rochester Americans coach Seth Appert to fill in for Ellis.... Read the full article
Don Granato has coached the Sabres three games. ©2021, Micheline Veluvolu
Ninety minutes before his NHL head coaching debut, Kevyn Adams was more focused on stepping behind the bench than trying to process the chaos that has transpired in his first season as Buffalo Sabres general manager.
“I can’t even really get into all that,” Adams said on a Zoom call prior to the Sabres’ 16th consecutive loss, a 4-0 setback to the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Can you blame Adams? The season from hell refuses to let ... Read the full article
Don Granato took over the Sabres last week. ©2021, Micheline Veluvolu
Interim Buffalo Sabres coach Don Granato and assistant Matt Ellis have entered the NHL’s COVID-19 protocol and will be unavailable for tonight’s game against the Pittsburgh Penguins, the team announced late this afternoon. General manager Kevyn Adams will coach the team.
Granato and Ellis are self-isolating, according to the team. Adams said they’re asymptomatic. Entering COVID-19 protocol doesn’t mean the person has tested positive.
The coaches, of course, were in close contact with the players, ... Read the full article
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen has played eight games with Rochester this season. ©2021, Micheline Veluvolu, Rochester Americans
If injured Buffalo Sabres goalie Linus Ullmark keeps progressing, he could play this week, perhaps as soon as tonight. So Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen’s first taste of the NHL might be brief.
Still, spending just a day or two with the Sabres, even on the taxi squad as their third goalie, should be a significant step for Luukkonen’s development.
“The more time a prospect can get around (the NHL), the easier it becomes for them to associate, ... Read the full article
Linus Ullmark has missed the last 13 games. ©2021, Micheline Veluvolu
Having been sidelined the last 13 games, Linus Ullmark must keep testing his lower-body injury in practice. So as badly as the Buffalo Sabres need their No. 1 goalie back, he needs more than one session before he can play again.
“For now, there’s no set timetable for me; it’s more of a day-to-day basis,” Ullmark said on a Zoom call Tuesday after practicing for the first time since getting injured Feb. 23.
So on ... Read the full article
Dustin Tokarski played his first NHL game in more than four years on Monday. ©2021, Micheline Veluvolu
After playing his first NHL game in more than four years, Buffalo Sabres goalie Dustin Tokarski allowed himself a moment to reflect on his journey back to the big leagues.
Tokarski, who played five playoff games for the Montreal Canadiens in 2014, hadn’t experienced any NHL action since Oct. 26, 2016.
Over the past few seasons, Tokarski, 31, quietly rebuilt his career, morphing into one of the AHL’s premier netminders.
So Tokarski’s strong 33-save effort ... Read the full article
Linus Ullmark has missed 12 games. ©2021, Micheline Veluvolu
BUFFALO – The Sabres plan for injured goalie Linus Ullmark to join them on their four-game road trip later this week, interim coach Don Granato said.
The Sabres have imploded without Ullmark, their No. 1 goalie. Their 13-game losing streak began Feb. 25, the game he suffered a lower-body injury.
“We need to integrate him into practice,” interim Sabres coach Don Granato said on a Zoom call this afternoon. “At some point, that’s the next ... Read the full article
Michael Houser hasn’t played any games this season. ©2021, Micheline Veluvolu, Rochester Americans
BUFFALO – The Sabres have signed goalie Michael Houser to a one-year, $700,000 contract, the team announced today.
The Sabres placed Houser, 28, on waivers this afternoon, a standard procedure when a player who had an AHL contract inks an NHL deal. Houser has served as Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen’s backup this season, playing zero games.
Houser spent the previous three seasons with the Cincinnati Cyclones, the Sabres’ ECHL affiliate.
Why did the Sabres suddenly signed Houser? ... Read the full article
Don Granato coached his first game Thursday. ©2021, Micheline Veluvolu
BUFFALO – Instead of having a day or two of practice and preparation prior to his first game as interim Sabres coach, Don Granato had one meeting just two hours before the opening faceoff.
On Thursday, a day after the Sabres fired coach Ralph Krueger and named Granato, 53, his interim replacement, a member of their hockey staff entered the NHL’s COVID-19 protocol. The Sabres, who had Wednesday off, canceled their morning skate and stayed ... Read the full article
The Sabres battled COVID-19 earlier this season. ©2021, Buffalo Sabres
The Buffalo Sabres have canceled this morning’s pregame skate because a member of their hockey staff has entered the NHL’s COVID-19 protocols.
The Sabres, who fired coach Ralph Krueger on Wednesday in the midst of a 12-game losing streak, are scheduled to host the Boston Bruins tonight at KeyBank Center.
More information regarding today’s schedule will be released later.
1:30 p.m. update: The Sabres announced after further testing and contact tracing, as of now, tonight’s ... Read the full article