BUFFALO – Jiri Kulich, the Sabres’ second-youngest forward, got singled out a bit by practicing as an extra before Wednesday’s game against the Ottawa Senators.
But make no mistake, nearly every Sabres forward struggled during their dreary 0-3-0 start they carried into their contest against the Ottawa Senators.
“This isn’t about Kulich,” coach Lindy Ruff, whose Sabres began the night with just two goals all season, said Wednesday morning in KeyBank Center.
On Tuesday, Ruff put Kulich, 21, alongside Mason Geertsen and Jordan Greenway to see how he would react to a difficult practice.
“I want to see his response tonight,” said Ruff, who shifted Kulich to right wing on the fourth line with center Tyson Kozak and Beck Malenstyn.
As of Wednesday morning, Ruff said he had spoken to at least a few forwards about their subpar play, although he hadn’t talked to Kulich.
“We could mention (Jason) Zucker, (Ryan) McLeod, (Alex) Tuch,” he said. “We got lots of guys in that category. It’s not about one player.”
What did he tell those players? Start playing a speedy and aggressive game.
“If we’re going to be better, we need to play faster, we need to get inside,” he said.
McLeod, fresh off a breakout season in which he scored a career-high 20 goals and 53 points, was arguably the Sabres’ biggest disappointment in the first week.
Through the first three games, he had registered zero goals and a team-worst minus-5 rating.
When he met with McLeod on Tuesday, Ruff told him he has “got to get inside.”
“That is the bottom line with our group, he’s got to get inside, got to be more competitive on the inside,” he said.
The Sabres scored their first two goals this season – Zucker’s from the top of the circle and center Tage Thompson’s from inside the blue line – from the outside.
As Ruff watched NHL games Tuesday, it only reinforced how the Sabres must go to the so-call “dirty area” around the net to score.
“Our defensive part of our game is good,” Ruff said. “Our penalty killing is good. Our offensive tenacity, if you just hit the goals from last night around the league and you just watch goals, it’s more about tips and getting in front of the net.
“It isn’t about pretty plays. You’re going to find 80 percent of guys getting to the net and deflections and plays that result in goals because pucks are bouncing around.”
The Sabres have also struggled in the faceoff circle, having won just 41.6 percent entering Wednesday’s game, the NHL’s third-lowest number.
McLeod had won just 34.1 percent of his faceoffs, down from 52.3 percent last year, the highest number among Sabres regulars.
In the opening three games, forward Justin Danforth won a team-high 57 percent of his draws.
The Sabres clearly miss injured center Josh Norris, who has won 52.4 percent of his faceoffs during his career.
“You look at that difference, that amount of time that we have to spend chasing the puck around,” Ruff said. “And then in the key areas, if you’re losing that faceoff, from penalty killing to power play, what a big difference that makes.”
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Goalie Alexandar Georgiev, who recently cleared waivers, began practicing with the Rochester Americans on Tuesday.
Georgiev, 29, hasn’t played in the AHL since 2018-19.
On Sept. 11, shortly after goalie Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen tweaked a lower-body injury, the Sabres signed the veteran to a one-year, $825,000 contract.
After the Sabres claimed goalie Colten Ellis off waivers, they waived Georgiev, who posted a 4.17 goals-against average and an .872 save percentage in four preseason games.
The Amerks, who play road games against the Utica Comets and Syracuse Crunch this weekend, also have goalie prospects Devon Levi and Topias Leinonen on their roster.
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Defenseman Ryan Johnson played alongside Jacob Bryson again Wednesday, giving the Sabres a speedy third tandem.
“Just seeing him just using his feet so well, I think that’s a big dynamic, is we both have that and rely on our … our quick feet to help us because we may not have the size,” said Johnson, who at 6-foot-1 is three inches taller than Bryson.
Notes: Center Dylan Cozens played his second game in Buffalo since the Sabres traded him to Ottawa on March 7 in the deal that brought back Norris. … Sabres winger Zach Benson played after a cut he suffered in practice forced him to be hospitalized last week. He sported a full “fishbowl” shield. “I thought it’d be worse, it actually wasn’t that bad,” he said Wednesday after wearing it during practice. “It fogs up a bit.” … Ruff said defenseman Mattias Samuelsson, who missed his second game with an undisclosed injury, skated on his own Wednesday morning and could play Saturday afternoon. … The Sabres also scratched Geertsen and forward Josh Dunne. … Ottawa captain Brady Tkachuk missed his first game with a broken hand.