Schuldt - Buffalo Hockey Beat

Utica’s Nolan Foote scores a first-period goal on Rochester goalie Aaron Dell on Tuesday.

Amerks fall to Comets, can’t close out series: ‘Wanted to finish it off now’

ROCHESTER – In opening up a series lead and putting the Utica Comets on the brink of elimination from the Calder Cup Playoffs, the Americans hadn’t seen the best out of the AHL powerhouse.

The top-seeded Comets only showcased flashes of their slick regular-season form throughout the first three games of best-of-five AHL North Division semifinal. In a do-or-die scenario Tuesday, you figured they would come out roaring.

Well, in Game 4, the Comets gave ... Read the full article

Arttu Ruotsalainen secures another Amerks OT win, puts Comets on brink

ROCHESTER – In his brief time playing with Peyton Krebs, winger Arttu Ruotsalainen has learned he must always be ready for the Americans center to adroitly feed him the puck anywhere on the ice.

“He’s an incredible player and he sees those passing lanes that others can’t see,” Ruotsalainen said Sunday after converting Krebs’ slick feed on the power play 1:39 into overtime, securing another wild 4-3 win and a 2-1 series lead against ... Read the full article

Back from Sabres, Peyton Krebs buoys Amerks to dramatic overtime win

ROCHESTER – When the Sabres assigned Peyton Krebs to the AHL following a successful 48-game stint in Buffalo, they probably hoped the center would be an offensive catalyst for the Americans in his first taste of playoff hockey.

Sure enough, after a slow start, Krebs helped the Amerks complete a furious three-goal, third-period comeback in Wednesday’s dramatic 4-3 win overtime win against the Belleville Senators before a raucous crowd of 6,044 fans at Blue Cross ... Read the full article

Sabres prospect Jack Quinn dazzles for Amerks in return from injury

ROCHESTER – In the opening minutes of Friday’s third period, Americans center Mark Jankowski fought off a defender behind the net and laid the puck on the doorstep for his linemate, Jack Quinn, to convert.

When goal scorers receive a nifty pass like that in close, they shoot, oh, just about every time. But Quinn, the most dangerous threat the Amerks have had in a long time, displayed poise under pressure, quickly dishing the puck ... Read the full article

Sabres waive goalie Michael Houser, make 10 other roster moves

The Buffalo Sabres this afternoon waived goalie Michael Houser and assigned nine players to the Rochester Americans, including center Peyton Krebs and defenseman Mattias Samuelsson.

The Sabres also reassigned defensemen Oskari Laaksonen and Jimmy Schuldt and forwards Brandon Biro, Brett Murray, JJ Peterka and Arttu Ruotsalainen from the taxi squad to the Amerks.

In addition, the Sabres sent goalie Aaron Dell, who cleared waivers Sunday, to their AHL affiliate. Dell just completed his three-game ... Read the full article

Sabres’ Casey Mittelstadt to talk to surgeon; Tage Thompson set to return

Buffalo Sabres center Casey Mittelstadt will miss tonight’s road game against the Vegas Golden Knights and plans to talk to the surgeon who repaired his upper-body injury, coach Don Granato said.

Mittelstadt left Sunday’s 4-1 loss to the Colorado Avalanche, just his third outing since undergoing surgery Dec. 10, with soreness in his upper body after playing just 4 minutes, 59 seconds.

“We want to make sure we’re doing the right things with that,” Granato ... Read the full article

Sabres acquire Will Butcher, bring back Sean Malone, Brandon Davidson

After losing goalie Linus Ullmark to the Boston Bruins in free agency this afternoon, the Buffalo Sabres made their second addition of the day, acquiring defenseman Will Butcher and a fifth-round pick in 2022 from the New Jersey Devils in exchange for, well, nothing.

The Devils gave Butcher, 26, to the Sabres because they just signed defenseman Dougie Hamilton to an seven-year, $63 million contract, according to reports, and needed to clear salary cap space.... Read the full article