WNY and Buffalo NY Hockey Coverage
Free Agency Edition
Chris Stewart (80) balances the puck on his blade in front of Ottawa’s Erik Karlsson on Tuesday. ©2015, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
BUFFALO – The Sabres have played 165 periods this trying season. Most, given their 15-36-3 record and 30th overall standing, have been poor or even awful.
In the opening period of Tuesday’s 2-1 loss to the Ottawa Senators, the Sabres, fresh of a pathetic 10-shot outing, performed terribly again, getting outscored 1-0 and outshot 14-8.
Early on, some fans in the announced sellout crowd of 19,070 inside the First Niagara Center responded to ... Read the full article
Patrick Kaleta tore his ACL in Rochester last season. ©2015, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
BUFFALO – Finally, 33 games into his season, Patrick Kaleta is buzzing around the ice regularly looking to thump opponents, a sign the aggressive Sabres winger has recovered from a torn ACL.
“It looks like he got his legs underneath him,” coach Ted Nolan said Tuesday prior to the Sabres’ 2-1 loss to the Ottawa Senators inside the First Niagara Center. “He’s searching for those big hits. You can just tell … his timing’s getting ... Read the full article
Cody Hodgson has two goals and eight points this season. ©2015, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
BUFFALO – Cody Hodgson’s benching could last for a bit.
“Maybe two or three (games). Maybe four or five. Who knows?” Sabres coach Ted Nolan said this morning inside the First Niagara Center.
The struggling Sabres winger, who has two goals and eight points in 51 games, will sit out tonight’s tilt against the Ottawa Senators, the second straight game he has been scratched.
The 24-year-old must wait to return, Nolan said.
“We’re going to ... Read the full article
Cody McCormick blocked a shot Jan. 3. ©2015, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
BUFFALO – On Jan. 3 in New York, gritty Sabres forward Cody McCormick blocked a shot, something he has done 126 times in his career.
This time, however, the pain felt different. It lingered.
Something was wrong.
“I had pain in my calf after for no real reason,” McCormick told the Times Herald during the first intermission of Sunday’s 3-2 loss to the New York Islanders inside First Niagara Center.
McCormick didn’t know it then, ... Read the full article
Sabres goalie Michal Neuvirth upends the New York Islanders’ Matt Martin on Sunday. ©2015, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
BUFFALO – Even by Sabres standards, it was ugly. Almost 32 minutes into Sunday’s 3-2 loss, the New York Islanders led by three goals. The Sabres, meanwhile, had five shots total and zero in the second period to that point.
Then, like so many other times this season, they got going. After Sabres coach Ted Nolan called a timeout, Marcus Foligno buried Nikita Zadorov’s rebound.
Just like that, the Sabres had two shots in about ... Read the full article
Cody Hodgson has only two goals all season. ©2015, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
BUFFALO – Some nights, Ted Nolan said, he lies awake in bed wondering how he can fix Cody Hodgson, his struggling winger. Right now, the Sabres coach and his staff can’t get through to the 24-year-old, who might be enduring the worst season of any NHL forward.
Nolan scratched Hodgson, who has two goals and eight points in 51 games this season, for Sunday’s 3-2 loss to the New York Islanders, the third time ... Read the full article
Cody Hodgson nearly scores on Philadelphia goalie Rob Zepp last month. ©2015, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
BUFFALO – Struggling Sabres winger Cody Hodgson, who has two goals and eight points in 51 games this season, will be a healthy scratch again this afternoon against the New York Islanders.
Sabres coach Ted Nolan seems to have run out of ways to reach Hodgson, who was scratched Jan. 30 in Vancouver against the Canucks, his former team. This will be the third time he has sat.
“I don’t believe anybody’s a lost cause,” ... Read the full article
Dallas’ Jordie Benn (24) hits the Sabres’ Tyler Ennis in the face Saturday. ©2015, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
BUFFALO – The Sabres often possess an uncanny ability to weather a fierce storm. Sure, opponents have pummeled them regularly this season. But they can also take a beating and come out on top.
The Dallas Stars dominated early in the Sabres’ 3-2 win Saturday, pumping shot after shot on goalie Jhonas Enroth. Just 18 seconds in, they left Tyler Seguin open, gifting a prime scoring chance to the superstar. Enroth stymied Seguin, one of ... Read the full article
Jason Spezza joined Dallas in the summer. ©2015, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
BUFFALO – Right away, Lindy Ruff and Jason Spezza buried the hatchet. For years, as Ruff coached the Sabres and Spezza starred for the Ottawa Senators, the two were adversaries.
At the height of the fierce post-lockout Sabres-Senators rivalry, Ruff sent Adam Mair on the ice to jump Spezza, a move that helped ignite the infamous 2007 brawl between the teams after Chris Neil leveled Sabres co-captain Chris Drury.
Spezza, who was dealt to Ruff’s ... Read the full article
Lindy Ruff talks to Patrick Eaves (18) today. ©2015, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
BUFFALO – Right away, Lindy Ruff and Jason Spezza buried the hatchet. For years, as Ruff coached the Sabres and Spezza starred for the Ottawa Senators, the two were adversaries.
At the height of the fierce post-lockout Sabres-Senators rivalry, Ruff sent Adam Mair on the ice to jump Spezza, a move that helped ignite the infamous brawl between the teams after Sabres co-captain Chris Drury was injured.
Spezza, who was dealt to Ruff’s Dallas Stars ... Read the full article