Buffalo Hockey Beat - WNY and Buffalo NY Hockey Coverage

Sabres goalie Matt Hackett to start against Oilers

With Matt Hackett starting Thursday against the Oilers, the Buffalo Sabres will use five goalies in a season for the first time since 1995-96.

The Sabres are missing starter Jhonas Enroth (right leg) and backup Michal Neuvirth (lower body).

Neuvirth faced shots during Wednesday’s practice and could be available Sunday in Vancouver, interim Sabres coach Ted Nolan told reporters in Edmonton.

“He’s doing a lot better right now,” Nolan said.

Rookie Nathan Lieuwen started ... Read the full article

Sabres’ goalie situation unclear with injuries; Rookie Nathan Lieuwen could start against Flames

BUFFALO – A day after his surprising NHL debut, everything had settled down a bit for Sabres rookie Nathan Lieuwen.

Lieuwen said his body felt OK after playing three games in three days, a rarity for a goalie. He even remembered some of the action he faced Sunday. Memories were a blur following his 22-minute, 10-save relief appearance in the Sabres’ 2-0 loss to Montreal.

“I could remember a few more things this ... Read the full article

Sabres recall goalie Matt Hackett from Amerks

BUFFALO – With starting goalie Jhonas Enroth sidelined by a right leg injury and backup Michal Neuvirth day-to-day with a lower-body ailment, the Sabres today recalled Matt Hackett from Rochester on an emergency basis.

The Sabres, who start a five-game road trip Tuesday in Calgary, only had one healthy goalie on the roster, rookie Nathan Lieuwen.

The 24-year-old Hackett has endured a rough AHL season with the Americans, going 13-17-2 with a 3.07 goals-against average ... Read the full article

Sabres goalie Jhonas Enroth feeling better; Nathan Lieuwen staying put

BUFFALO – The good news for the injury-riddled Sabres?

Starting goalie Jhonas Enroth, knocked out of Sunday’s 2-0 loss to Montreal with an apparent right leg injury, could play again this season. The Swede won’t accompany the Sabres on their five-game road trip, however.

“It looks at least a little bit better today than it did yesterday,” interim coach Ted Nolan said today inside the First Niagara Center before the Sabres left for Calgary.

The ... Read the full article

Injury to Sabres goalie Jhonas Enroth forces Nathan Lieuwen to make NHL debut in loss to Canadiens

BUFFALO – Fresh off two weekend appearances with Rochester, goalie Nathan Lieuwen learned early Sunday he had earned his first recall to the Sabres.

Newcomer Michal Neuvirth was injured, so the 22-year-old would be backing up Jhonas Enroth inside the First Niagara Center.

“I was shocked. I was nervous. Everything,” a smiling Lieuwen said after stopping all 10 shots he faced in his NHL debut, a 2-0 loss to the Montreal Canadiens. “I couldn’t stop ... Read the full article

Former Sabres star Thomas Vanek happy to be with Canadiens

BUFFALO – Back in the summer, Thomas Vanek had a simple, straightforward question for the Sabres. The slick winger wanted to know what direction the team was going.

“No one really had an answer,” Vanek said Sunday prior to the Montreal Canadiens’ 2-0 win against Sabres, his first game back here. “That’s when I kind of made up my mind July 1 (unrestricted free agency) was probably a goal of mine.”

The Sabres, of course, ... Read the full article

Former Sabres star Thomas Vanek has jitters returning to Buffalo; Michal Neuvirth a ‘little banged up’

BUFFALO – Former Sabres star Thomas Vanek couldn’t quite explain what he felt walking into the First Niagara Center for the first time as an opponent this afternoon.

“It was actually a different feeling, for sure,” said Vanek, now a member of the Montreal Canadiens. “It’s just I can’t explain it. I felt pretty good all day. As soon as I walked in here I started to get a little of the jitter.”

Vanek, an ... Read the full article

Sabres goalie Nathan Lieuwen nearly lost career to concussions

The Sabres recalled goalie Nathan Lieuwen from Rochester today. What’s the 22-year-old endured to make the NHL?

A lot.

I wrote this in July 2011 just a couple of weeks after the Sabres drafted him.

LEWISTON – Yeah, Nathan Lieuwen thought the worst. The Buffalo Sabres goalie prospect is only human, you know. He knew the two scary concussions that had derailed his promising junior hockey career could potentially force him to retire as teenager.... Read the full article

Sabres recall goalie Nathan Lieuwen from Amerks

BUFFALO – In a surprising move, the Sabres today recalled goalie Nathan Lieuwen from Rochester on an emergency basis.

It’s unclear why the Sabres need Lieuwen. Goalie Jhonas Enroth finished Saturday’s 4-1 loss in New York to the Islanders. Michal Neuvirth backed him up.

Lieuwen, the 167^th overall pick in 2011, has enjoyed a breakout AHL season with the Americans, wrestling the starting job away from Matt Hackett. The 22-year-old Lieuwen is 17-11-2 ... Read the full article

Sabres’ Cory Conacher endured long road to reach NHL dream

BUFFALO – There was no straight path to the NHL for Cory Conacher. About 10 years ago, after the AAA Burlington Cougars cut him, the diminutive Sabres winger figured his hockey career was over.

“You always run into a certain coach that just doesn’t like your physical stature,” Conacher recalled Friday, “and that’s kind of I think what happened.”

But the 5-foot-8 Conacher had a chip on his shoulder that would help buoy him ... Read the full article