Sabres’ Mattias Samuelsson must ‘raise the standard’ after healthy scratch

BUFFALO – Mattias Samuelsson knew it could happen. The Sabres defenseman has struggled from the get-go this season, losing ice time under new coach Lindy Ruff.

Still, he figured he would be playing Tuesday against the Ottawa Senators as the Sabres tried to end their three-game losing streak.

“I wouldn’t say it was a complete shock, but no, I didn’t expect it yesterday,” Samuelsson said of being a healthy scratch for the Sabres’ 5-1 win in KeyBank Center.

While Samuelsson, 24, doesn’t like sitting out, he understands why Ruff, who also scratched defenseman Henri Jokiharju, shook up his blue line.

He said if you had asked him about his play before his benching, he “would have told you that I needed to be better anyways.”

“It’s not like it was a secret beforehand,” he said of his struggles following Wednesday’s practice.

Samuelsson, who’s in the second season of a seven-year, $30 million contract, equates sitting out to “just a kick in the butt.”

“You could say a little added motivation but get back to work,” he said. “I plan on playing in the NHL a long time. You’re gonna have your ups and downs, so I’m not too worried about it.”

Samuelsson, an alternate captain, will likely have to wait at least one more game before Ruff puts him back in. He practiced on Wednesday alongside Jokiharju, a sign the Sabres will keep the same lineup for tonight’s road game against the New York Rangers.

Connor Clifton and Dennis Gilbert, the duo that replaced Samuelsson and Jokiharju, practiced together.

At his best, the 6-foot-4, 227-pound Samuelsson can serve as a top-pair defender capable of shutting down the opposition’s best. What does he need to get back to doing?

“Just playing physical, being more direct, harder to play against, moving the puck quicker,” he said. “I think I could be better in a lot of ways. Raise the standard in a lot of ways.”

There’s that word again. Standard. Ruff used it when he explained to Samuelsson why he was being scratched.

“What he’s been preaching all year – raise the standard,” Samuelsson said of Ruff’s message. “I think I have to do that on a personal level, which will ultimately help the team raise the overall standard.”

Ruff has history of scratching underperforming players, even if they’re established or have big contracts. But as he began his second stint in Buffalo and tried to instill the accountability players desired, he said he exercised more patience to learn about his team.

He has demanded his players expect more from themselves. A month into the season, Samuelsson hasn’t elevated his game, so he sat out.

Samuelsson has endured a lot over the past year. Injuries limited him to 41 games in 2023-24, when he underwent season-ending shoulder surgery in February.

Ruff has utilized him a bit differently this season, often skating him alongside Clifton on the Sabres’ third pairing. A whopping 82.3 percent of his starts have been in the defensive zone, up from 61.3 last season.

His ice time has dropped to 16 minutes, 20 seconds per outing this season, down from the 20 minutes, 30 seconds he averaged last year.

“It’s been a hard adjustment,” Samuelsson acknowledged. “I think when you’re playing more minutes, you don’t really think much out there. You kind of just get into a rhythm and play. When you play less, you find yourself thinking a lot, which can definitely be bad when you’re in your head a bit. It’s been an adjustment, for sure, but figuring it out every day.”

Samuelsson has already had 13 giveaways in 12 games. He had 24 last season. While he’s usually a top penalty killer, he has been on the ice for seven goals with the Sabres down a man this season. He was on for 13 last year.

“There’s definitely been some PK scenarios that I would want back or fix, but I think five-on-five I can definitely improve, too,” Samuelsson said. “I don’t think I’m really ending plays or moving the puck as well as I should be or things along those lines. So I think all-around it could be better.”