WNY and Buffalo NY Hockey Coverage
November Edition
Craig Anderson played in two outdoor games before he came to Buffalo. ©2022, Micheline Veluvolu
HAMILTON, Ont. – Having already played in two outdoor games, Buffalo Sabres goalie Craig Anderson understands the unique energy fans often bring to the huge venues.
“I think everyone was 25 beers deep,” Anderson joked following Saturday’s practice at Tim Hortons Field.
As expected, Sabres coach Don Granato said Anderson, 40, will start this afternoon’s Heritage Classic against the Toronto Maple Leafs.... Read the full article
Rasmus Dahlin has been looking forward to playing outdoors for months. ©2022, Micheline Veluvolu
BUFFALO – It doesn’t matter that they’ll be playing a regular-season NHL game on a pristine sheet of ice before 24,000 fans. When the Sabres head outdoors for Sunday afternoon’s Heritage Classic, coach Don Granato believes the elements will take them back to a simpler time when they skated on frozen ponds and backyard rinks.
“You get the feel of being a kid,” Granato said following Friday’s practice at KeyBank Center. “The ice sounds like ... Read the full article
The Sabres salute the crowd following Thursday’s 3-1 win over Vegas. ©2022, Micheline Veluvolu
BUFFALO – It wasn’t just ex-captain Jack Eichel that had the 12,437 fans at KeyBank Center going bonkers throughout Thursday’s wild 3-1 win over the Vegas Golden Knights.
The tight, gritty game featured suspect officiating that drew the ire of the season-high crowd throughout the memorable night. There were also two fights in the intense affair between teams that meet just twice a season.
The Sabres have been playing before the smallest crowds in franchise ... Read the full article
Peyton Krebs celebrates his first-period goal Thursday. ©2022, Micheline Veluvolu
BUFFALO – After scoring a goal and helping spoil Jack Eichel’s return, Peyton Krebs gave his good friend, Alex Tuch, a hug to celebrate perhaps the Sabres’ most exciting victory in years.
Krebs and Tuch, having arrived from the Vegas Golden Knights in the blockbuster Eichel trade, will forever be linked together. The wingers have embraced the opportunities that materialized when they departed one of the NHL’s elite teams to join a rebuilding one.
So ... Read the full article
Casey Fitzgerald has played 21 NHL games. ©2022, Micheline Veluvolu
BUFFALO – In Thursday’s game against the Vegas Golden Knights, five of the six defensemen the Sabres utilized were 25 or younger.
The graybeard of the group, Robert Hagg, 27, has played all of 282 NHL games.
The rest of the blue line consisted of neophytes. Only one other defenseman, Rasmus Dahlin, 21, has played more than 200 big league contests.
The Sabres dressed two rookies – Casey Fitzgerald, 25, and Mattias Samuelsson, who turns ... Read the full article
Mark Pysyk sat out one game last month. ©2022, Micheline Veluvolu
BUFFALO – Sabres defenseman Henri Jokiharju will return tonight from a lower-body injury that has sidelined him the last six games, coach Don Granato said.
To make room, Granato said the Sabres will scratch defenseman Mark Pysyk against the Vegas Golden Knights.
When the Sabres had a surfeit of defensemen last month, they began rotating one in and out each game. Right now, however, Granato wants the team’s young defenders keep playing.
Jack Eichel spent six seasons in Buffalo before being traded to Vegas on Nov. 4. ©2022, Micheline Veluvolu
BUFFALO – The scene looked downright odd. There was ex-Sabres captain Jack Eichel, clad in his Golden Knights gear with the team’s backdrop behind him and a flag in front of him, talking about his new life in Vegas.
In the same spot in KeyBank Center where he often spoke to the local media, Eichel, 25, acknowledged on Wednesday it felt a little awkward walking in as a visitor.
For six seasons after the Sabres ... Read the full article
Henri Jokiharju has missed the last six games. ©2022, Micheline Veluvolu
BUFFALO – Defenseman Henri Jokiharju and some other injured Sabres could return for tonight’s home game against Jack Eichel and the Vegas Golden Knights, coach Don Granato said.
Jokiharju, out the last six games with a lower-body injury, practiced Wednesday in his regular spot beside defenseman Rasmus Dahlin. Meanwhile, winger Zemgus Girgensons, out the last 16 games with a lower-body injury, skated on a line of extras with center Mark Jankowski and Anders Bjork inside ... Read the full article
Jonathan Huberdeau and some Florida teammates celebrate score another goal against Buffalo goalie Craig Anderson on Monday. ©2022, Micheline Veluvolu
BUFFALO – For 20 minutes Monday, the Florida Panthers looked uncharacteristically sloppy and slow, mustering just three shots on goal against the Sabres.
Despite outplaying the Panthers early, the Sabres trailed 1-0 after the opening period. The Sabres had an opportunity to exploit one of the NHL’s heavyweights, but they couldn’t get any of their 11 shots by Panthers goalie Spencer Knight.
“Being down 1-0, that hurts when you only give up three,” winger Kyle ... Read the full article
Sam Reinhart has kept producing in Florida. ©2022, Micheline Veluvolu
BUFFALO – In his six years here, ex-Sabres winger Sam Reinhart never experienced anything like this season. His playoff-bound Florida Panthers have established themselves as a Stanley Cup contender.
The Panthers, the NHL’s highest-scoring team, ranked fourth in the league entering Monday’s 6-1 win over the Sabres. They’re so deep that Reinhart, who spent most of his tenure in Buffalo as a first-liner, now skates on the third trio.
After more than 500 regular-season appearances, ... Read the full article