Buffalo Hockey Beat - WNY and Buffalo NY Hockey Coverage

Sabres prospect Noah Ostlund joins Amerks following Swedish season

Buffalo Sabres prospect Noah Ostlund, the 16th overall pick last year, has joined the Rochester Americans to practice and get a feel for the organization.

The Amerks play the fifth and decisive game of their AHL North Division semifinal series tonight on the road against the Syracuse Crunch. Ostlund, however, likely won’t be participating in the Calder Cup Playoffs.

Ostlund, 19, has been battling a foot injury that forced him to miss playoff games ... Read the full article

After season of massive growth, Sabres’ Dylan Cozens can reach higher level

BUFFALO – Sabres center Dylan Cozens scored 31 goals despite missing about three or four opportunities a game to generate more chances, coach Don Granato said.

So consider the potential that Cozens, 22, still possesses coming off a breakout season. Granato told him last month there’s a whole lot more he can do.

“He told me that he doesn’t think I’m anywhere close to the player I can be,” Cozens said April 16 as the ... Read the full article

Sabres’ Tyson Jost hopes he has found home in Buffalo: ‘Really special group’

BUFFALO – Tyson Jost had no idea what to expect here. The center joined the Sabres at their nadir in mid-November, an eight-game losing streak. Having spent his entire career in the Western Conference, he wasn’t familiar with the organization.

Right away, Jost, a waiver claim from the Minnesota Wild, felt at home. The tight-knit group warmly welcomed him. The Sabres ended their skid in his first game and he quickly earned regular duty.

Following ... Read the full article

Sabres rookie Owen Power named finalist for Calder Trophy

Buffalo Sabres defenseman Owen Power on Wednesday was named one of three finalists for the Calder Trophy, awarded to the NHL’s rookie of the year.

Power, 20, enjoyed a dynamic season, stepping into the lineup and providing an immediate impact. He led all rookies in ice time per game (23:48) and total ice minutes (1,880:20), the fifth- and seventh-highest figures, respectively, since the league began tracking the stat 25 years ago.

The 6-foot-6, 218-pound Power ... Read the full article

Sabres’ Peyton Krebs might’ve found niche in checking role

BUFFALO – At times in his first full NHL season, the pressure to perform overwhelmed Sabres center Peyton Krebs and he struggled to reach his own expectations.

In late November, Krebs sat out four contests as a healthy scratch. He scored his first goal in his 20th outing and had a 26-game goal drought before receiving credit for a fluky one in the season finale.

“I had my ups and downs, for sure,” Krebs said ... Read the full article

Sabres sign Russian prospect Viktor Neuchev to entry-level contract

The Buffalo Sabres on Tuesday signed Russian forward Viktor Neuchev, a third-round pick in 2022, 74th overall, to a three-year, entry-level contract.

Neuchev, 19, spent the 2022-23 season in the Kontinental Hockey League, registering four goals, 12 points and 17 penalty minutes in 57 games for Yekaterinburg Automobilist.

The Sabres drafted the 6-foot-2, 165-pound Neuchev after a standout year in which the 40 goals and 67 points he compiled in 61 games led Yekaterinburg’s ... Read the full article

Malcolm Subban’s terrific season with Amerks could keep him in Sabres’ plans

ROCHESTER – Americans goalie Malcolm Subban chose to talk more about the team than himself.

Subban performed splendidly in Sunday afternoon’s 4-0 win over the Syracuse Crunch, making 31 saves in the Amerks’ first shutout in the Calder Cup Playoffs in 19 years. At 29, he has enjoyed a terrific comeback season, playing a career-high 43 games, including all four playoff contests, for the Buffalo Sabres’ AHL affiliate.

Following a subpar outing in Friday’s 8-5 ... Read the full article

Sabres prospect Jiri Kulich stars again as Amerks roar back to tie series

ROCHESTER – Before the Americans began the Calder Cup Playoffs, coach Seth Appert told rookie Jiri Kulich to prepare for his first taste of postseason hockey as a pro.

So Appert had Kulich, 19, watch a Stanley Cup Playoffs game between the Toronto Maple Leafs and Tampa Bay Lightning. Then Appert challenged the Buffalo Sabres prospect to study the action as he sat out the Amerks’ first two games recovering from a lower-body injury.

“You ... Read the full article

Amerks captain Michael Mersch, Sabres prospect Jiri Kulich star in playoff win

ROCHESTER – Three goals from captain Michael Mersch, more than the Americans had in their first two playoff games. An early score from rookie Isak Rosen, whose play, coach Seth Appert acknowledged, wasn’t good enough early in the series. The late go-ahead goal from rookie Jiri Kulich, who missed the first two contests.

After falling in a 2-0 hole in their best-of-five AHL North Division semifinal series, the Buffalo Sabres’ affiliate sorely needed its best ... Read the full article

Offense, grit helping Sabres prospect Tyson Kozak stand out in Rochester

ROCHESTER – In the moment, Buffalo Sabres prospect Tyson Kozak had no idea he was fighting Tage Thompson’s brother.

“I just stood up and then we just went,” Kozak, a rookie forward with the Americans, said of his scrap with Utica Comets forward Tyce Thompson.

Kozak, 20, pummeled Thompson after getting knocked to the ice April 1, landing several uppercuts. Not surprisingly, the bout went viral because he trounced the brother of the Sabres’ ... Read the full article