Thompson - Buffalo Hockey Beat

Sabres scratched Michael Kesselring to ‘just take a breath’

BUFFALO – Instead of dressing defenseman Michael Kesselring for Tuesday’s 4-3 overtime loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning, Sabres coach Lindy Ruff gave the newcomer a chance to reset.

Having battled injuries all year, Kesselring hasn’t found much of a groove. Since training camp, he has dealt with a knee injury and a high ankle sprain he re-injured.

In his first 23 outings, he showcased glimpses of what made him a coveted return in the ... Read the full article

Injury will force Sabres’ Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen to miss Olympics

Buffalo Sabres goalie Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen’s lower-body injury will force him to miss the upcoming Olympics.

Team Finland on Tuesday named Boston Bruins goalie Joonas Korpisalo as Luukkonen’s replacement for the Milano Cortina Games.

Luukkonen hasn’t played since getting injured early in last Tuesday’s 7-4 road win over the Toronto Maple Leafs.... Read the full article

Sabres blow late lead, lose tight game to Canadiens: ‘A matter of inches’

BUFFALO – A high-stakes late-January game in a packed, noisy building. The Sabres have waited for what feels like forever for nights like Saturday.

“We love playing these games,” captain Rasmus Dahlin said after the Sabres’ entertaining 4-2 loss to the Montreal Canadiens ended their five-game win streak. “These are the type of games we want to be in.”

They’re also games the Sabres, who have registered an NHL-best 20-4-1 record since Dec. 9, must ... Read the full article

In trying season, Rasmus Dahlin enjoys dynamic night in win over Maple Leafs; Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen injured

TORONTO – Buffalo Sabres captain Rasmus Dahlin processed the question following his dynamic three-goal, five-point performance in Tuesday’s 7-4 win over the Maple Leafs and searched for the right words.

The defenseman never quite found them.

Over the last seven months, Dahlin has been through, for lack of a better word, hell.

In September, he revealed his fiancée, Carolina Matovac, has been rehabbing after experiencing major heart failure and undergoing a heart transplant in the ... Read the full article

Early in first recall, Sabres rookie Konsta Helenius shows he’s special talent

MONTREAL – As coach Lindy Ruff closed his remarks following Tuesday’s 5-3 win, he congratulated the Buffalo Sabres’ slick new line of neophytes for a “hell of a night,” then reached into his pocket and tossed rookie Konsta Helenius the puck for his first NHL point, an assist on Noah Ostlund’s early goal.

As Helenius’ teammates cheered, Ruff dug back into his pocket and lobbed Helenius the puck he whistled by Nashville Predators goalie Jusse ... Read the full article

Sabres’ Tage Thompson named NHL’s First Star; Michael Kesselring injured

A dynamic stretch in which Sabres center Tage Thompson scored three goals and an NHL-high nine points in four games has earned him First Star honors for the week ending Sunday.

Thompson, 28, enjoyed one of the best outings of his career in Thursday’s 5-3 win over the Montreal Canadiens, scoring his ninth career hat trick and hitting the five-point mark for the third time.

The American registered his 200th career goal and his 22nd ... Read the full article

Tage Thompson, Sabres honor 2005-06 team in style by beating Canadiens

BUFFALO – As the reunion of the 2005-06 Sabres approached, center Tage Thompson and the current group of players learned plenty about what made that beloved team so unique and special.

So Sabres coach Lindy Ruff, who also led that team 20 years ago, said he believes his players had some added incentive to live up to what they were hearing and seeing.

Fittingly, with 18 members of that 2005-06 team in attendance Thursday, the ... Read the full article

Sabres suffer one-goal loss to Panthers; Mattias Samuelsson injured late

BUFFALO – A tight game like Monday’s 4-3 loss to the Florida Panthers serves as a harbinger for the Sabres.

Down the stretch, with every point precious in the ultra-tight Eastern Conference, expect more heavy, low-chance games.

They sure as heck better get used to it.

“I think when the urgency gets up, you’re going to see a lot of that,” said coach Lindy Ruff, whose Sabres lost for just the second time in their ... Read the full article

In ending slump and scoring two goals, Sabres’ Jack Quinn displays talent

BUFFALO – Sabres winger Jack Quinn can be, shall we say, a bit streaky. Long goal droughts often follow productive stretches.

In October, Quinn, 24, scored three times in four outings before enduring a 13-game goalless stretch.

He briefly caught fire in late November, scoring in three straight contests. But two nine- game droughts followed, and before his slick two-goal performance in Saturday’s 5-3 win over the Anaheim Ducks, he hadn’t scored since Dec. 18.... Read the full article

Sabres defeat Ducks for 13th win in 14 games, move into playoff spot

BUFFALO – Some of the snapshots from the Sabres’ 13th win in their last 14 games, Saturday’s 5-3 victory over the reeling Anaheim Ducks, illustrate a confident team whose infectious energy runs up and down the lineup.

To wit: in the second period, winger Josh Doan’s dogged backcheck as Ducks center Tim Washe tried to exit his zone created the Sabres’ second goal.

“That’s part of the game I take a lot of pride in ... Read the full article