Chris Stewart could be traded soon. ©2015, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald

Heated meeting between Ted Nolan and Chris Stewart ignited winger

BUFFALO – Ted Nolan wanted to rattle Chris Stewart’s chain a bit, get the enigmatic veteran thinking. The Sabres coach saw a big, powerful winger playing a soft game.

So Nolan challenged Stewart during a meeting shortly after the 27-year-old’s Dec. 9 benching.

Their chat got heated.

“He got mad, he got angry,” Nolan told the Times Herald on Friday inside HarborCenter. “I got a little bit angry myself. Sometimes people think I’m a ... Read the full article

St. Louis goalie Jake Allen stones Brian Flynn on a third-period breakaway. ©2015, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald

Sabres don’t want moral victory from loss to Blues

BUFFALO – Thursday’s 3-0 loss to the St. Louis Blues was the Sabres’ 34th defeat this season and their 15th setback in the last 16 games. But against an NHL powerhouse, the league’s worst team held its own, carrying the play for stretches and generating some prime scoring chances.

If the Sabres converted a couple of opportunities – they had two clear-cut breakaways – then they might have upset the NHL’s hottest team. Instead, ... Read the full article

Chris Stewart has been the Sabres’ best forward recently. ©2015, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald

Sabres know trades will be coming soon

BUFFALO – Ted Nolan’s response raised some eyebrows. Coaches, after all, rarely acknowledge they have players who are ready to leave town.

But Tuesday in Montreal, hours before the Sabres’ 3-2 win ended their 14-game losing streak, Nolan, whose rebuilding club will likely be selling off assets soon, went a step further.

“We got some guys who could be very beneficial to some playoff teams,” Nolan replied when asked if coaching could be tougher because ... Read the full article

Ted Nolan knows the Sabres are too soft. ©2015, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald

Sabres coach Ted Nolan on future: ‘I’ve never feared my position in the NHL’

BUFFALO – The Sabres have lost a franchise-record nine consecutive games and 31 of 45 this season. They rank 29th overall and dead last or close to the bottom in every major statistical category. They just lost 7-0 to a reeling Minnesota Wild team, their worst home defeat since 1977.

Of course, the Sabres were supposed to lose this season. But was the rebuilding club supposed to lose so badly this often? Opponents ... Read the full article

Thomas Vanek scored his eighth goal Thursday. ©2015, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald

Former Sabres star Thomas Vanek struggling to score with Wild

BUFFALO – Call it hockey’s worst-kept secret.

Of course, Thomas Vanek couldn’t say anything as he bounced from team to team last season. But the former Sabres star confirmed the suspicions when free agency opened July 1, signing a three-year, $19.5 million contract with the Minnesota Wild.

Vanek, a Minnesota resident and Golden Gophers college hero, wanted to return home.

“Honestly, every time I went out somewhere and got recognized, that was one of the ... Read the full article

Tyler Myers will stand in front of the net tonight. ©2015, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald

Sabres’ Tyler Myers ready for new challenge; Chris Stewart to return

BUFFALO – Right now, Sabres defenseman Tyler Myers said, the plan is “to disrupt as much as I can” in front of the net during power plays.

“I guess I’m used to being in that area defensively, but it’ll be different,” Myers said this morning inside the First Niagara Center. “Usually I’m trying to carry out the puck, and now I’ll be trying score. So it’s a different look.”

The Sabres’ NHL-worst power play can’t ... Read the full article

Jason Pomiville knows the Wild must start winning soon. ©2015, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald

Reeling Wild not taking struggling Sabres lightly

BUFFALO – A year ago, a meeting with the Sabres changed the Minnesota Wild’s season.

The Wild had lost six straight games before beating the hapless club 4-1 on Jan. 2 in Minnesota. The team then ran off three more victories, saving its season and perhaps coach Mike Yeo’s job. The Wild later advanced to the second round of the playoffs, giving Chicago a tough series.

Fast forward to today, and Minnesota, having lost six ... Read the full article

Tyler Myers is 6-foot-8. ©2015, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald

Sabres tinker with power play; Nikita Zadorov to return

BUFFALO – When your power play is operating at an NHL-worst 9 percent and has 11 goals all season, you better try something different.

So the Sabres tried something very different toward the end of today’s 90-minute practice, putting 6-foot-8 defenseman Tyler Myers in front of the net on the power play.

Why not, right? Boston often puts hulking defenseman Zdeno Chara in front.

“You put a big man there, you can draw a ... Read the full article

Dominik Hasek (right) is greeted by Rene Robert (14) and Danny Gare (18) prior to having his number retired Tuesday. ©2015, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald

Choosing number was special for Sabres legend Dominik Hasek

BUFFALO – Goalie Dominik Hasek had never picked his own number before the Sabres acquired him in 1992.

Back home in the Czech Republic, he was given No. 9 as a 16-year-old when a player got sick. When he came to North America in 1990, the Chicago Blackhawks gave him Nos. 31 and 34.

So shortly after he arrived, Hasek was shocked when equipment manager Rip Simonick approached him at a late-summer workout at Sabreland ... Read the full article

Dominik Hasek speaks to the media this morning. ©2015, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald

Choosing No. 39 was special for Sabres legend Dominik Hasek

BUFFALO – Legendary Sabres goalie Dominik Hasek had never chosen his own number.

Back home in the Czech Republic, he was given No. 9 as a 16-year-old when a player got sick. When he came to North America in 1990, the Chicago Blackhawks gave him Nos. 31 and 34.

So shortly after the Sabres acquired him in 1992, Hasek was shocked when equipment manager Rip Simonick approached him at a late-summer workout at Sabreland in ... Read the full article