Thompson - Buffalo Hockey Beat

Don Granato, Matt Ellis clear COVID-19 protocols, join Sabres in Boston

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

Everything has gone wrong for Sabres in chaotic season

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, Matt Ellis enter COVID-19 protocol; Kevyn Adams to coach Sabres

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

Sabres fall to Penguins, lose 15th straight: ‘We’re not working smart’

The hapless Buffalo Sabres kept hanging around Wednesday, trailing by one goal late in the second period despite being outshot by nearly a two-to-one margin.

No one, of course, expected the Sabres would win. But right now, they’re so bad a one-goal deficit is noteworthy.

That narrow margin did not last. The Pittsburgh Penguins pulled ahead late in the second period, capitalizing on two miscues from struggling winger Taylor Hall to take a commanding lead ... Read the full article

Sabres goalie prospect Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen excited for first taste of NHL

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

Sabres to make lineup changes, scratch Cody Eakin

BUFFALO – Sabres center Cody Eakin, who has scored just one goal in 26 games this season, an empty-netter, will be a healthy scratch tonight against the Washington Capitals.

Rasmus Asplund, who hasn’t played since Feb. 25, will replace Eakin between Tobias Rieder and Kyle Okposo.

Eakin’s penalty-killing prowess has helped the Sabres improve from 30th last season to fifth this year. His 57.5 faceoff percentage ranks first among Sabres who have taken at ... Read the full article

Sabres lose game to Penguins, Dylan Cozens to injury

BUFFALO – Sabres defenseman Colin Miller went right after Zach Aston-Reese, dropping the gloves for the first time in more than three years.

Miller doesn’t fight often, but after watching the Pittsburgh Penguins center hit rookie Dylan Cozens about six feet from the boards Thursday, he needed to stick up for his teammate.

Cozens’ head bit the boards hard and he got up slowly as Miller fought Aston-Reese 2:27 into the third period of the ... Read the full article

Sabres’ Ralph Krueger says Rasmus Dahlin getting closer to ‘full package’

BUFFALO – Sabres coach Ralph Krueger knows defenseman Rasmus Dahlin allowed the Philadelphia Flyers to score an easy goal in Tuesday’s 5-4 shootout loss.

Dahlin, 20, showcased an alarming lack of awareness early in the second period, never reacting to Scott Laughton, the puck carrier, or Kevin Hayes, his closest opponent.

When Laughton backhanded a pass from the right circle across the slot, Dahlin, who was focused elsewhere, never moved his head. Hayes, meanwhile, ... Read the full article

‘Sophomore’ slump hurting Sabres’ Henri Jokiharju

Last season, his first in Buffalo, defenseman Henri Jokiharju morphed into the Sabres’ biggest surprise, showcasing a steady style that earned him coach Ralph Krueger’s trust.

So naturally, Jokiharju, 21, wants to advance his game this year and develop his offensive side.

“It’s part of the development for a young defenseman to come in and be very conservative and then try to build a more attacking, offensive game on top of that,” Krueger said on ... Read the full article

Despite slow start, Sabres’ Taylor Hall open to contract extension with Buffalo

When Taylor Hall shocked the hockey world by signing a one-year, $8 million contract with the Sabres, he said he was open to staying in Buffalo on a long-term deal.

Twenty-one games into the season, Hall and the Sabres have struggled mightily.

Hall scored his first goal since opening night in Thursday’s 5-2 loss to the New York Islanders. It was his first even-strength goal this season and just his 13th point. The Sabres, having ... Read the full article