Buffalo Hockey Beat - WNY and Buffalo NY Hockey Coverage

Owen Power to meet with Sabres this week, might return to Michigan

The COVID-19 pandemic deprived top NHL Draft prospect Owen Power of the full college experience as a freshman at Michigan.

Power, 18, played in empty rinks, meaning he never felt the rush of playing in front of 5,800 raucous fans at Yost Ice Arena, one of college hockey’s most historic venues. The defenseman had to take online classes, so he spent most of his time at Yost or home.

After Michigan compiled a 15-10-1 record ... Read the full article

Sabres name Sam Ventura VP of hockey strategy and research

The Buffalo Sabres have made a significant analytics hire, naming Sam Ventura vice president of hockey strategy and research, the team announced Monday.

Ventura, 33, spent the last six seasons in the Pittsburgh Penguins’ front office, winning the Stanley Cup in 2016 and 2017. In Pittsburgh, he worked under Jason Karmanos, who was hired as the Sabres’ associate general manager April 13.

Jason Nightingale, who recently served as the director of analytics and assistant ... Read the full article

Coach Don Granato wants to keep instilling pride in Sabres

It was Sept. 1, 2019, and Don Granato, one of the Buffalo Sabres’ new assistant coaches, was wandering the halls of Park Country Club in Williamsville looking for the banquet room.

Granato had been invited to the team’s annual alumni golf outing, and before everyone hit the course, they gathered for a meeting. When Granato found the room and sneaked in through a back door, the number of alumni in attendance shocked him.

“I ... Read the full article

Confident Don Granato embraces challenge of coaching Sabres

After the Sabres’ tumultuous season ended, Don Granato told general manager Kevyn Adams how much he coveted the team’s permanent head coaching position.

Granato, having transformed the Sabres into a competitive group during his 28-game stint as interim coach, likely could’ve pursued opportunities on higher-profile clubs.

But Granato, who on Tuesday was named the 20th coach in franchise history, wanted to stay in Buffalo.

“This is the position I wanted to be in, I had ... Read the full article

Sabres coach Don Granato to discuss filling out staff

As the Buffalo Sabres’ interim coach, Don Granato worked with a staff he inherited.

When general manager Kevyn Adams fired coach Ralph Krueger and assistant coach Steve Smith on March 17, he moved Matt Ellis, his director of player development, and Dan Girardi, a development coach, behind the bench.

Ellis replaced Granato, who ran the power play as an assistant under Krueger. Girardi, meanwhile, took over Smith’s role in charge of the defense.... Read the full article

Don Granato paid dues, defied odds to become Sabres’ new coach

When the Buffalo Sabres named Don Granato their interim coach, he was expected to simply be a fill-in. After their disastrous season ended, general manager Kevyn Adams could start searching for Ralph Krueger’s permanent replacement.

But a funny thing happened. Granato, who was named the 20th head coach in franchise history Tuesday, quickly emerged as the Sabres’ best long-term option.

After losing their first six games under Granato, 53, the Sabres looked like a ... Read the full article

Sabres name Don Granato 20th coach in franchise history

But a funny thing happened. Granato, who was named the 20th head coach in franchise history Tuesday, quickly emerged as the Sabres’ best long-term option.

After losing their first six games under Granato, 53, the Sabres looked like a radically ... Read the full article

Rene Robert seized opportunity with Sabres, became legend: ‘Could do it all’

When Mike Robitaille caught up with Rene Robert last year, he was struck by how well his old friend and Buffalo Sabres teammate looked.

Robert, who was approaching his 72nd birthday, had a trim physique and a full head of hair. Robitaille saw the same man he had played with almost 50 years earlier.

“Looked like a young Rene to me, just kind of bouncing along and feeling good,” Robitaille told the Times Herald on ... Read the full article

Rene Robert holds his plaque at the Sabres’ Alumni Plaza outside KeyBank Center.

Sabres legend Rene Robert, member of famed ‘French Connection,’ dies at 72

Rene Robert, a member of the Buffalo Sabres’ legendary “French Connection” line and one of the most popular players in franchise history, passed away Tuesday, the team announced. He was 72.

Robert had been hospitalized in Florida since suffering a heart attack last week.

Throughout much of the 1970s, Robert, center Gilbert Perreault and left wing Rick Martin formed hockey’s most dynamic trio.

In 2012, the Sabres immortalized the line by erecting a statue ... Read the full article

Sabres prospect J-J Peterka possesses maturity, talent to be special player

Sometimes Don Jackson’s excitement got the best of him and he became too focused on helping Buffalo Sabres forward prospect J-J Peterka develop for the NHL.

“It seems like I was thinking about him more as a Buffalo Sabre more than I was him winning a championship in Munich,” said Jackson, Peterka’s coach with Red Bull Munich the past two seasons.

Jackson’s words, of course, were a bit tongue-in-cheek. It’s just that prospects of Peterka’s ... Read the full article