Zadorov - Buffalo Hockey Beat

Sabres generate offense, still lose to Canucks; Mattias Samuelsson leaves game with head injury

BUFFALO – In the second period of Saturday afternoon’s 1-0 loss to the Vancouver Canucks, the Sabres had just three defensemen available, so they utilized winger Zemgus Girgensons on the back end for a few shifts.

The Sabres, of course, started the game with six defensemen. But 13 seconds into the second period, Filip Hronek elbowed Mattias Samuelsson in the head, knocking him into concussion protocol out of the contest. At 4:02, J.T. Miller elbowed ... Read the full article

Don Granato’s accessibility to Sabres players ‘a huge asset’

BUFFALO – In his early days behind the bench in junior hockey and in the ECHL, Sabres coach Don Granato was one-man show. He had no assistants to help him.

“So I had to be close to players,” Granato said prior to Thursday’s 5-0 loss to the Calgary Flames at KeyBank Center. “I had to get a feel for the team and a beat on the team.”

Right away, Granato learned he must separate the ... Read the full article

Why did Sabres suddenly focus on Russians during NHL Draft?

BUFFALO – You had to go back five years and 34 picks to find the last time the Sabres drafted a Russian.

Before they selected winger Prokhor Poltapov 33rd overall Saturday, they hadn’t drafted a Russian since winger Vasily Glotov in the seventh round in 2016.

Poltapov’s selection was harbinger. The Sabres used three straight picks on Russians and took four overall Saturday.

Later in the second round, the Sabres drafted winger Aleksandr Kisakov with ... Read the full article

Sabres will have strong options early at NHL Draft

VANCOUVER – The first two picks of tonight’s NHL Draft have been set for months. Unless something wild transpires inside Rogers Arena, the New Jersey Devils will select Jack Hughes first overall and the New York Rangers will grab Kaapo Kakko second.

The 2019 draft really begins with the third pick, when the Chicago Blackhawks go on the clock.

Drafts, of course, are always unpredictable. Youngsters pegged as surefire high picks inevitably fall.

But the ... Read the full article

Sabres notes: Casey Nelson returns after one-game benching

BUFFALO – The night after Nikita Zadorov drilled Sabres captain Jack Eichel high after the whistle, Casey Nelson said he couldn’t sleep.

The defenseman said he was looking through three players Saturday afternoon in Colorado and didn’t see Zadorov hit Eichel into the boards and rip off his helmet.

That’s why Nelson glided up to Zadorov and never went after the Avalanche defenseman.

On Thursday morning, Nelson’s tepid reaction was still bothering him.... Read the full article

Sabres’ Casey Nelson bothered by response to hit on Jack Eichel

BUFFALO – The night after Nikita Zadorov drilled Sabres captain Jack Eichel high after the whistle, Casey Nelson said he couldn’t sleep.

The defenseman said he was looking through three players Saturday afternoon in Colorado and didn’t see Zadorov hit Eichel into the boards and rip off his helmet.

That’s why Nelson glided up to Zadorov and never went after the Avalanche defenseman.

If Nelson had seen what happened to Eichel, he would’ve offered a ... Read the full article

Sabres notes: Taylor Fedun finds home with Stars

BUFFALO – For years and years, the cycle repeated itself. Taylor Fedun would earn a recall to the NHL as an injury replacement and eventually return to the AHL.

“Normally every opportunity I’ve had at this level, once guys get healthy, it’s just kind of the way it’s gone,” said Fedun, a Dallas Stars defenseman who played two full seasons in the Sabres organization. “I’m the guy that got sent back down.”

Despite compiling some ... Read the full article

Sabres’ Casey Nelson to be scratched against Stars

BUFFALO – After playing three straight games, Sabres defenseman Casey Nelson will sit out tonight’s contest against the Dallas Stars as a healthy scratch.

Why? Well, Sabres coach Phil Housley said Nelson will be scratched mainly because his play “has dipped the last couple games.”

“We’ve got some other guys there available and we haven’t had a lot of success, so we’ve made some changes,” Housley said this morning inside KeyBank Center.... Read the full article

Sabres’ Jack Eichel frustrated by suspension: ‘I don’t agree with it’

BUFFALO – Phil Housley wouldn’t go there. The Sabres coach simply said he disagreed with the two-game suspension the NHL slapped on center Jack Eichel, his captain and leading scorer, and left it at that.

But an aggravated Eichel offered a detailed description of the illegal check to the head he laid on Avalanche forward Carl Soderberg in Saturday afternoon’s 3-0 loss in Colorado.

The hit, Eichel said Monday, was legal and he shouldn’t ... Read the full article

NHL suspends Sabres’ Jack Eichel two games for illegal check to head

BUFFALO – The NHL has suspended Sabres captain Jack Eichel two games for an illegal check to Avalanche forward Carl Soderberg’s head in Saturday afternoon’s 3-0 loss in Colorado.

Eichel, the Sabres’ leading scorer with 72 points in 65 appearances, will miss two home games: Tuesday’s against the Dallas Stars and Thursday’s versus the Pittsburgh Penguins.

In announcing the suspension Sunday night, the NHL Department of Player Safety said Eichel could’ve avoided head contact with ... Read the full article