Batavia Daily News

'Buffalo's supporting cast simply has not been good enough – particularly at goaltender. But when it comes to star power, Buffalo has it in the form of two of the NHL's elite, young talents that have kept the diehard fans that remain within the Sabres Universe coming to the arena. If this team is to dig itself out of the doldrums and earn a playoff berth next season, its … [Read more...] about 4 reasons Sabres will end playoff drought in 2025

'Following a 6-3 win over the Boston Bruins on Sunday, Buffalo has won four games in a row and seven of its last eight. Its home record since Jan. 1 is now 14-4. While it hasn't been perfect, the Sabres' performance over the past few months has been enough to provide fans with hope with another offseason around the corner.' … [Read more...] about Following comeback win over Bruins, hope springs eternal for Sabres

'In addition to Dahlin being named captain, the Sabres introduced four alternate captains: forwards Alex Tuch, Tage Thompson, Dylan Cozens, and defenseman Mattias Samuelsson.' … [Read more...] about Sabres introduce Dahlin as captain, name four alternates

'Luukkonen, 25, began his NHL career with the Sabres in 2020, starting in four games and finishing with a 1-3 record. Questions arose following an inconsistent 2022-2023 campaign and the rise of goaltender Devon Levi. Luukkonen went 17-11 with a .892 save percentage, while Levi was stellar between the pipes as a rookie, finishing at 10-8 with a .899 save percentage.' … [Read more...] about Sabres agree to five-year deal with goaltender Luukkonen

'Helenius was selected by Buffalo 14th overall in the 2024 NHL Draft, despite rumors that general manager Kevyn Adams was trying to trade the pick to acquire a player to help the Sabres make a playoff push.' … [Read more...] about Sabres reach agreement with first-round pick Helenius, re-sign two defensemen

'McLeod scored 16 total goals for the Oilers last season, including 4 during the postseason. He will likely slot in as Buffalo’s third-line center. The 24-year-old has one year remaining on his contract, which carries a $2.1 million cap hit for the 2024-25 season.' … [Read more...] about Sabres acquire C McLeod in trade that sends Savoie to Edmonton

'In addition, Buffalo brought in F Sam Lafferty and F Nicolas Aube-Kubel, as well as defenseman Dennis Gilbert, a Buffalo native. Lafferty’s deal is for two years and an annual average value (AAV) of $2 million, while Aube-Kubel signed a one-year pact worth $1.5 million. Gilbert agreed to a one-year deal worth $825,000.' … [Read more...] about Sabres announce flurry of signings to open free agency

'Across the 2022-23 and 2023-24 Liiga campaigns, Helenius compiled 47 points as a member of Mikkelin Jukurit, which is second all-time among Liiga players under the age of 18. Stanley Cup champion Aleksander Barkov of the Florida Panthers holds the record with 48 points before turning 18.' … [Read more...] about Sabres select C Konsta Helenius with No. 14 overall pick in first round

'"I feel strongly after (picks) six or seven, it's really a wide range of where the names are going to go," Adams said. "We felt it's a real good value for us to make that deal. We really like the group of players we see ourselves potentially targeting at No. 14. We pick up an extra asset, which is good value at pick No. 42."' … [Read more...] about Sabres trade No. 11 pick to Sharks, gain draft capital

'Buffalo holds an impressive pool of young talent, inclduing Jiri Kulich (2022, No. 28), Matt Savoie (2022, No. 9), Noah Ostlund (2022, No. 16) and Isak Rosen (2021, No. 14), defensemen Ryan Johnson (2019, No. 31) and goalies Devon Levi (trade, Florida Panthers) and Topias Leinonen (2022, No. 41). Add that to the star-level talent within the forwards and a blue line consisting … [Read more...] about Questions surround Sabres ahead of 2024 NHL Draft

'Buffalo is amid a critical offseason, with the hiring of Lindy Ruff and a pool of young talent, the expectation is to take the next step and make the playoffs.' … [Read more...] about Sabres GM Adams open to anything with 2024 NHL Draft looming

'“We’re going to be connected. If you’re going to be a successful hockey club now, there’s got to be alignment between players, coaches and an understanding of how we need to play. And the last part of that is being consistent with that play night in, night out.”' … [Read more...] about Ruff returns as Sabres HC with hope for better days ahead

'During Ruff’s previous tenure in Buffalo, he guided the Sabres to a Stanley Cup Final appearance in just his second season at the helm and later led the team to back-to-back appearances in the Eastern Conference Final during the 2006 and 2007 campaigns. Fast-forward to 2024, and Ruff re-joins an organization that has not made a playoff appearance in 13 seasons, the longest … [Read more...] about Sabres bring back Ruff for second stint as team’s head coach

'“I can tell you, there’s no doubt in my mind that our locker room, our team, our organization, is in a better place today than we were three and a half years ago when Donny took over as head coach, and I’m very appreciative of that,” said Sabres general manager Kevyn Adams from KeyBank Center on Tuesday. “As far as our team, I’m sure you’ll get deeper, more definitive answers … [Read more...] about Sabres fire HC Granato as playoff drought extends to 13 seasons

'It took 79 games for Buffalo to be eliminated as a playoff contender — just two fewer than last season when the Sabres finished 42-33-7 and within a whisker of punching its postseason ticket. While once again they were in the hunt down the stretch, this year’s ill-fated mission seemed to produce a far different tone than that which we saw from the team’s 2023 run to a playoff … [Read more...] about Sabres at a crossroads as postseason drought extends to 13 seasons