BUFFALO – Center Sam Carrick has practiced just once since recovering from a left arm injury that sidelined him 13 games. Could the Sabres really insert in the lineup tonight for Game 1 of their second-round series against the Montreal Canadiens?
“We really haven’t put a date on it,” Sabres coach Lindy Ruff said of Carrick’s return. “Tonight could be a possibility.”
In Carrick’s absence in the first-round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs against the Boston Bruins, Josh Dunne and Tyson Kozak centered the fourth line.
Kozak, who played the final four games of the series, would likely play if Carrick sits out. Carrick practiced on Tuesday and participated in this morning’s optional pregame skate.
The rest of the lineup is expected to be the same one the Sabres utilized in the later stages of the opening round.
Defenseman Logan Stanley, who missed Friday’s series-clinching win because he was sick, has been practicing all week.
While the Sabres knocked off the Bruins in six games, they went just 1-2 at KeyBank Center.
“Being ready to play at home, every individual has his way of preparing,” Ruff said this morning. “I think you stay with your program. You don’t try to do too much. You don’t add to much much to your schedule. Whatever works for you, you make that work.”
Ruff believes the time off between their series will benefit the Sabres. They took Saturday off and stayed off the ice Monday.
“I think it allowed us to take a breath and reset, get away from the game for a day, practice and, again, get some rest,” he said. “We took another day we didn’t go on ice. It’s just a reset for a day. It gave them a little bit more time to enjoy what they just went through. What more could you want?
“You won just a series, and now instead of jumping right into the other one, you can take a breath and you can maybe go to dinner. You can enjoy it with your friends and family, and then these last couple of days the focus was on let’s get ready to play.”