WNY and Buffalo NY Hockey Coverage
Trade Deadline Edition
Robyn Regehr acknowledged he has thought about his future with the trade deadline looming. ©2013, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
BUFFALO – A stone-faced Ryan Miller was in no mood to dissect his team’s season-long struggles. The 13th-place Sabres still have 14 games left in what has again become a forgettable year. Technically, they’re not finished yet. When and if the time comes, the goalie will breakdown what went wrong.
“We’re trying to figure it out and battle,” Miller said Friday after the Sabres prepared for the Washington Capitals inside the Northtown Center ... Read the full article
Corey Tropp was injured Oct. 15. ©2013, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
BUFFALO – Sabres prospect Corey Tropp, thought to be done for the season after suffering ligament damage in his right knee playing for Rochester opening night, made a surprising return to the Americans’ lineup Friday in their 4-1 home loss to the Toronto Marlies.
Tropp damaged the medial collateral ligament and anterior cruciate ligament Oct. 15 after scoring twice in the Amerks’ 6-5 win over the Syracuse Crunch.
The 23-year-old winger underwent surgery later ... Read the full article
Ville Leino’s penalty earned him a spot on the bench Thursday. ©2013, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
BUFFALO – In the Sabres’ 5-4 shootout loss Thursday in Florida, winger Ville Leino’s unsportsmanlike conduct penalty with 40 seconds left in the first period led to the Panthers’ second goal.
When Leino left the penalty box, it was his last time on the ice. Rolston benched him the final 45 minutes.
“We’re a team. We play as a team,” interim Sabres coach Ron Rolston said Friday inside the Northtown Center. “It’s not about egos. ... Read the full article
Robyn Regehr (24) waived his no-trade clause in 2011. ©2013, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
AMHERST – The trade rumors, Buffalo Sabres defenseman Robyn Regehr said, don’t bother him. They’re part of being an NHL player around the trade deadline, which hits Wednesday.
“If you want to know any more about them, I think you’re asking the wrong Regehr right now,” the 32-year-old veteran, an unrestricted free agent this summer, said this afternoon after the Sabres practiced inside the Northtown Center.
Of course, Regehr was referring to Sabres general manager ... Read the full article
Corey Tropp hasn’t played since opening night. ©2013, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
BUFFALO – Sabres prospect Corey Tropp, thought to be done for the season after suffering ligament damage in his right knee playing for the Rochester Americans opening night, will return to the lineup tonight, WHTK’s Rob Sanderson reports.
Tropp damaged the medial collateral ligament and anterior cruciate ligament Oct. 15 after scoring twice in the Amerks’ 6-5 win over the Syracuse Crunch.
The 23-year-old winger underwent surgery later in the fall.
Tropp played 34 NHL ... Read the full article
T.J. Brennan played 21 games with the Sabres. ©2013, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
BUFFALO – Ron Rolston’s Feb. 20 promotion to the Sabres as interim coach meant more comfort for T.J. Brennan, who was playing sparingly under Lindy Ruff. The 23-year-old had just spent almost two seasons thriving under Rolston in Rochester, developing into one of the AHL’s slickest defenseman.
“(Rolston) knew my style and knew my type of play,” Brennan said by phone Wednesday. “I think that was a good change for me. But, I guess, at ... Read the full article
Mark Pysyk has played five games. ©2013, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
While interim Buffalo Sabres coach Ron Rolston wouldn’t confirm it, defenseman Andrej Sekera, out the last five games, essentially told reporters in Florida he planned to play tonight against the Panthers following a five-game absence.
Slick winger Thomas Vanek (muscle strain) is out and struggling winger Drew Stafford, a healthy scratch the last two games, will return, Rolston told reporters.
Assuming Sekera returns, what should the Sabres do? Should Rolston simply sit ... Read the full article
Patrcik Rissmiller had been playing on a tryout contract. ©2013, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
BUFFALO – The Rochester Americans signed forward Patrick Rissmiller, a veteran of 192 NHL games, to an AHL contract today.
The 34-year-old had been playing on a professional tryout contract he inked Feb. 2.
Rissmiller has two goals, 11 points and six penalty minutes in 16 games with the Amerks.
He has 18 goals, 46 points and 60 penalty minutes in NHL stints with San Jose, the New York Rangers, Atlanta and Florida. He ... Read the full article
The Sabres’ poor perforance Tuesday frustrated Ron Rolston. ©2013, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
It was John Tortorella-esque.
In his 35th day on the job following his 16th game, the Buffalo Sabres’ futility finally got to interim coach Ron Rolston.
After the Sabres’ uninspired 2-1 loss Tuesday in Tampa Bay to the Lightning, a game in which they sprinkled only 14 shots on journeyman goalie Mathieu Garon, Rolston sounded like the New York Rangers’ bench boss.
In his brief chat with the media, Rolston replied ... Read the full article
Jon Cooper spent three seasons in the AHL. ©2013, Dan Hickling, Olean Times Herald
Sure enough, former Buffalo Sabres coach Lindy Ruff was immediately linked to the first opening since his Feb. 20 dismissal, the Tampa Bay Lightning job.
Ultimately, general manager Steve Yzerman promoted Jon Cooper from the Lightning’s AHL affiliate in Syracuse today to replace Guy Boucher.
But how much did Yzerman, who hired Ruff as an assistant coach as GM of Team Canada’s 2010 Olympic entry, pursue him?
“To be perfectly honest with you, I called ... Read the full article