WNY and Buffalo NY Hockey Coverage
Stanley Cup Playoffs Edition
Nathan Lieuwen is staying with the Sabres for now. ©2014, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
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
Nathan Lieuwen watches the play Sunday. ©2014, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
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
Thomas Vanek played his first game back in Buffalo on Sunday. ©2014, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
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
Nathan Lieuwen will dress tonight. ©2014, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
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
The Sabres recalled Nathan Lieuwen today. ©2014, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
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
Nathan Lieuwen stops Zemgus Girgensons during development camp. ©2014, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
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 167th 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
Cory Conacher was never drafted and played in the ECHL briefly. ©2014, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
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
Rasmus Ristolainen has played 30 AHL games. ©2014, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
BUFFALO – With defenseman Alexander Sulzer out, the Sabres today recalled rookie Rasmus Ristolainen from Rochester.
The 19-year-old should play tonight in New York against the Islanders, his first NHL game since Nov. 15.
Ristolainen, the eighth overall pick in June, compiled one goal and four penalty minutes in 19 games after making the Sabres out of training camp. He played one game under interim coach Ted Nolan before the Sabres sent him to the ... Read the full article
Zenon Konopka has a line of wines. ©2014, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
BUFFALO – Zenon Konopka has worked with Stop Concussions, former NHL star Keith Primeau’s foundation, for years. So the center wanted to get involved locally after the Sabres claimed him off waivers in January.
The native of nearby Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ont., said he’s met some unbelievable local doctors “doing some great things with concussions, especially with young kids.”
To help out with concussions and other causes, Konopka, who has a line of wines available at zkwines.com... Read the full article
Drew Stafford (21) and Cory Conacher (88) skate beside Nashville goalie Carter Hutton on Tuesday. ©2014, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
BUFFALO – It was just about Ted Nolan’s only option for another goal. So the interim Sabres coach kept utilizing his top line throughout Tuesday’s disappointing 4-1 loss to Nashville.
Scorching winger Drew Stafford, who scored the Sabres’ lone goal on the power play, skated a season-high 23 minutes. Slick center Tyler Ennis played a team-high 24:17. Winger Cory Conacher skated a season-high 19:47.
“There was only one line basically going,” Nolan said ... Read the full article