WNY and Buffalo NY Hockey Coverage
Stanley Cup Playoffs Edition
Tage Thompson greets Vinnie Hinostroza after Hinostroza’s second-period goal Sunday afternoon. ©2022, Micheline Veluvolu
HAMILTON, Ont. – If the Buffalo Sabres crack the postseason in the near future, the last four days, punctuated by Sunday afternoon’s 5-2 victory in the Heritage Classic, will be remembered as a significant stretch in their maturation.
Before a capacity, pro-Toronto crowd of 26,119 fans outdoors at chilly Tim Hortons Field, the Sabres scored three third-period goals to down the playoff-bound Maple Leafs.
It was a game, just like Thursday’s 3-1 win over ex-captain ... Read the full article
Buffalo’s Rasmus Dahlin and Toronto’s Auston Matthews battle late Sunday afternoon. ©2022, Micheline Veluvolu
HAMILTON, Ont. – After absorbing a vicious cross-check in the neck from Auston Matthews, Buffalo Sabres defenseman Rasmus Dahlin did not need much time to cool off.
“About two minutes in the box,” Dahlin said following Sunday afternoon’s win 5-2 over Matthews’ Toronto Maple Leafs in the Heritage Classic at Tim Hortons Field.
After the Leafs fell behind, they lost their cool in the waning minutes, and Matthews and Dahlin shoved each other near the ... Read the full article
Casey Mittelstadt played in an outdoor game for Team USA as a junior star. ©2022, Micheline Veluvolu
HAMILTON, Ont. – In the midst of another grueling season, the Heritage Classic offers the Buffalo Sabres a refreshing change.
The day-to-day NHL grind has suddenly been interrupted by a once-in-a-lifetime experience for some players. When you play outdoors like the Sabres will this afternoon, you never forget it.
For a weekend, the Sabres can enjoy time in the spotlight and make memories they’ll cherish forever. Their families have joined them, and after Saturday’s chilly ... Read the full article
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