Vanek - Buffalo Hockey Beat

Matt Moulson open to staying with Sabres, not worried about getting traded again

BUFFALO – Thirty games into what could be a very short Sabres career, Matt Moulson said he’s given a lot of thought to a future he can’t control yet.

The winger, quietly one of the NHL’s top goal scorers for years, would be coveted as an unrestricted free agent this summer. But before that, if the Sabres want to deal the 30-year-old, he’d be in high demand as a rental prior to the March 5 ... Read the full article

Sabres’ No. 1 scoring line providing little offense

BUFFALO – Just under eight minutes into the Sabres’ 3-1 loss Sunday, winger Drew Stafford created one of the struggling team’s few highlight-reel goals this season by stealing the puck from Detroit’s Darren Helm above the left circle and dishing to an open Cody Hodgson in the slot.

The center then waited for Jonas Gustavsson to go down before tucking the puck past the outstretched goalie.

It was only the Sabres’ 41^st goal in ... Read the full article

Forgetting about Sabres helped Amerks star Luke Adam find AHL game

BRIGHTON – Whatever’s going on with the Buffalo Sabres right now, well, Luke Adam doesn’t care about it. Whatever general manager Darcy Regier or coach Ron Rolston are saying, the 23-year-old Rochester Americans winger isn’t worried about it.

“I’m not focused on what the Sabres are doing,” Adam said Tuesday inside Bill Gray’s Iceplex. “Frankly, I don’t care what’s going on up there, what people are saying or how everything’s going.”

Adam, whose scorching eight-goal, ... Read the full article

Struggling Drew Stafford sad to see teammates leave, wants to stay with Sabres: ‘I’m not going to quit’

BUFFALO – Drew Stafford started shaking his head. The veteran winger paused before answering a question about seeing so many teammates and friends depart the hapless Sabres recently.

With Thomas Vanek gone, only goalie Ryan Miller’s tenure outranks Stafford, who joined the Sabres early in 2006-07. When the 28-year-old looks around the dressing room these days, he mostly sees young, unfamiliar faces.

“It’s just times have changed, you know?” Stafford said last week inside ... Read the full article

Sabres captain Steve Ott will keep playing fierce style

BUFFALO – Steve Ott, the high-octane, fun-loving and helmet-licking agitator, won’t alter his style now that he’s the Sabres’ captain.

“I want to play a fine line edge of the game,” Ott said Wednesday after the Sabres prepared for tonight’s road tilt against the New York Rangers. “But I also can’t be a deterrent to my teammates, no difference if I was a captain or was not a captain.”

In Monday’s 4-3 loss to Dallas... Read the full article

Sabres’ Matt Moulson endured long road to becoming elite NHL scorer

BUFFALO – Four years ago, Matt Moulson’s career reached what he called “a fork in the road.”

Having spent the final six months of 2008-09 in the minors before Los Angeles let him go, the new Sabres winger began fretting.

At that point, Moulson had six goals in 29 NHL games. But at least the Kings had given him a shot. Pittsburgh, which drafted Moulson 263^rd overall in 2003, never even signed him.

“It ... Read the full article

Sabres retained money in Thomas Vanek trade with Islanders

BUFFALO – Some interesting new details have emerged about Sunday’s big swap, which sent Sabres co-captain and top scorer Thomas Vanek to the New York Islanders.

The Sabres retained 19.5 percent of Vanek’s $6.5 million salary in the trade, according to Sportsnet’s Chris Johnston. They also kept the same portion of his salary cap hit.

Perhaps that’s why the Isles, who sent high-scoring winger Matt Moulson to the Sabres, also parted with a ... Read the full article

Sabres’ Corey Tropp nearing return from broken jaw

BUFFALO – Before Corey Tropp broke his jaw fighting Toronto’s Jamie Devane Sept. 22, the Sabres winger, who tore up his right knee last season, enjoyed some peace of mind.

The few doubts the 24-year-old had about the injury vanished during the preseason.

“I grew that confidence with each day of training camp,” Tropp, who could make his season debut this weekend, said this afternoon following practice inside the First Niagara Center. “‘Oh, ... Read the full article

Sabres’ Matt Moulson can’t spoil Lindy Ruff’s special night in Buffalo with Stars

BUFFALO – Eight hours before his Sabres debut, high-scoring winger Matt Moulson joked he wanted Lindy Ruff’s return to the First Niagara Center as the Dallas Stars’ coach to overshadow his night.

Moulson wasn’t letting on Monday morning, but the 29-year-old, having just been acquired Sunday with draft picks from the New York Islanders for star co-captain Thomas Vanek, was incredibly nervous.

“I’m not going to lie, that was probably the most nervous I’ve been ... Read the full article

Matt Moulson endures long day to debut for Sabres

BUFFALO – Having grown up in nearby Mississauga, Ont., about a 90-minute drive, Sabres winger Matt Moulson said he’s well-acquainted with his new city.

“I used to love coming to Bills games,” Moulson said Monday inside the First Niagara Center prior to scoring twice in his Buffalo debut, a 4-3 loss to former Sabres coach Lindy Ruff and the Dallas Stars. “So it’s a great city. Who knows, it could be for a long time. ... Read the full article