BUFFALO – Sabres defenseman Mattias Samuelsson, who sat out the last three games as a healthy scratch, will be playing in this afternoon’s game against the Montreal Canadiens, coach Lindy Ruff said.
“First pass and then kill plays,” Ruff said this morning in KeyBank Center of what he wants to see from Samuelsson. “Big body, be physical when you have the moment to be physical.”
Update: Samuelsson and center Tage Thompson, who scored his team-leading 11th goal in the first period, both left today’s 7-5 loss in the second period with upper-body injuries.
Ruff did not have update on either player following the game.
The Sabres won all three games without Samuelsson, a regular for years.
To make room, defenseman Dennis Gilbert will be a healthy scratch. Gilbert struggled in Saturday’s 3-2 shootout win over the Calgary Flames, taking three penalties before getting benched.