‘“It hasn’t been good enough,” Staal lamented Thursday. “I haven’t been good enough.”’
Archives for March 24, 2021
Sabres’ Linus Ullmark returns to practice; Dustin Tokarski to start Wednesday
‘The Sabres’ top three goalies at the start of this season won’t be available to Granato on Wednesday: Hutton, Ullmark and Jonas Johansson, who was traded to Colorado in exchange for a sixth-round draft choice. Another loss would make the Sabres’ winless streak the longest in the NHL since the Phoenix Coyotes dropped 15 games in a row from Feb. 21 to March 21, 2004.’
Sabres through 30 games: As you would figure, this season is one of the worst
‘Want a gruesome comparison? There are nine teams in the league with 20+ wins so far and three others are at 19.’
Sabres confident Victor Olofsson will overcome struggles: ‘He’ll get there’
‘Olofsson, 25, has endured a rough sophomore season, compiling eight goals, 20 points and a wretched minus-17 rating in 30 games entering Wednesday’s contest against the Pittsburgh Penguins at PPG Paints Arena.’
Linus Ullmark returns to practice; Sabres have more injuries
‘Granato wouldn’t rule out Ullmark playing later in the road trip. The Swede went through drills for 20 minutes Tuesday inside PPG Paints Arena.’
Wednesday’s Pittsburgh Coverage
Penguins need sweep of woeful Sabres after yielding points to Devils last week (Pittsburgh Tribune Review)
Buffalo plays Pittsburgh, looks to stop road skid (AP)
Game Preview: 03.24.21 vs. BUF (PittsburghPenguins.com)
Sabres’ goalie depth thinned with Hutton sent home for tests
‘Granato said Tobias Rieder could miss a second consecutive game with an undisclosed injury, and Kyle Okposo isn’t expected to be available until after Buffalo completes its four-game road trip at Boston on Sunday. Okposo has already missed one game and didn’t travel with the team because of an upper body injury.’
Linus Ullmark returns to practice for Sabres
‘At that point of the season, Ullmark had been playing pretty well for Buffalo with a 5-4-2 record in 12 games played with a 2.44 goals-against average and a .919 save percentage. Leading up to the injury, former head coach Ralph Krueger had turned to Ullmark for five straight starts, going 2-2-0 with a 2.11 goals-against average and a .930 save percentage.’
Opinion: What do the Sabres do with the expansion draft coming?
‘The Sabres may be a rare instance of the eight players and one goalie option being a more favorable course of action. There are too many defensemen and not enough forwards.’
Granato: We have to be ready and willing to compete
‘”I felt our team was confused and anxious, at times. I’ve never felt the effort wasn’t there, the commitment wasn’t there. There’s been nothing like this season. All of that said, we have had trouble scoring. … We know the importance of defense – that can hurt your confidence if you’re a team that can’t defend itself and defend well. Not spoken often is offense and the damaging psychological impact of not being able to score.”‘