Buffalo News

'"Obviously, it'd be really cool, an incredible achievement I think personally," Thompson said after practice Monday in KeyBank Center. "It's hard not to think about it, but you try just to kind of block it out and focus on the team stuff first. I think when you start focusing on the number, that's kind of when you'll probably get snakebit and chances will start not going in … [Read more...] about Tage Thompson’s breakthrough season for Sabres on the verge of franchise history

'Prior to the practice mishap, Okposo was named as the Sabres' nominee for the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy. Voted on by members of the Buffalo chapter of the Professional Hockey Writers Association, the Masterton honors perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication to hockey. PHWA members then vote among the 32 chapter nominees for the winner of the award, which is presented … [Read more...] about Sabres Notebook: Kyle Okposo is a practice casualty, status unknown

'You won’t see Adams expedite the rebuild with counterproductive trades or free-agent signings that impact long-term organizational depth and financial flexibility. But yes, the Sabres are going to be active because they must spend approximately $20 million to simply reach the cap floor, which is expected to rise to $61.5 million next season. The salary cap will be $81.5 … [Read more...] about Sabres mailbag: Will GM Kevyn Adams be aggressive this offseason?

'Buffalo (31-38-11) has won four straight – its longest win streak since the 10-game run in November 2018 – and five of its last six with two games remaining this season.' … [Read more...] about Observations: Sabres’ offense pours it on again to extend win streak to 4

'The gap in the East remains large. But the Sabres think they can seriously bridge it next season.' … [Read more...] about Mike Harrington: You have to love this Sabres stretch, but the East standings can be sobering

'So if Vegas misses the playoffs and goes nowhere in the lottery, Buffalo could be looking at a pick in the No. 15-16 range instead of a high-20s or low-30s that many forecasted at the time. A notable reminder that Vegas strikes gold in the lottery, the pick is deferred to 2023.' … [Read more...] about Inside the NHL: Sabres’ draft pick from Vegas a key point to watch in final week

'“I think they’re two guys who complement each other really well,” said Granato. “They work for each other in different ways, and I think they’ve rubbed off on each other. Dahls is picking up nuances from Sammy from the defensive and a way to play maybe more aggressive defensively, assertive. And I think Sammy’s picked up some slight things with maybe how he can maybe … [Read more...] about Rasmus Dahlin, Mattias Samuelsson a formidable top defense pair for Sabres

'"The group likes it," coach Don Granato said of Power's push up the ice. "They are curious to see how effective Owen can be as well as anybody else. There's a little bit of fan in each guy in that locker room. As they get excited, and they get to know him and they see what a good person he is, it just adds to it. So it's a lot of fun."' … [Read more...] about Observations: Owen Power gets his first NHL goal as Sabres bedevil New Jersey

'“It’s everything to have your players back the following year,” said coach Don Granato. “Kevyn (Adams) did an amazing job with setting us up for this as a coaching staff, to have guys that we know will return. Not a lot of activity as far as re-signing guys for the summer. There is some, but we know the guys want to be back and we know we’ll be able to get it done. As a coach, … [Read more...] about Final 4 games will allow Sabres to develop, evaluate, build for next season

'The 19-year-old is averaging 22 minutes, 2 seconds of ice time and looks every bit the part of a No. 1 overall pick. His passes out of his defensive zone and through neutral ice are on a string. His positioning is sound, his skating sublime for a 6-foot-6 defenseman. The Sabres are getting nearly 57% of the shot attempts at 5-on-5 when Power is on the ice and they’re 3-1 since … [Read more...] about A week into his NHL career, Owen Power has fit right in on Sabres’ defense

'Craig Anderson, Dustin Tokarski, Aaron Dell and Malcolm Subban are pending unrestricted free agents. Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen’s statistics in the AHL have been blemished by poor defensive play in Rochester. Unsigned prospects Devon Levi and Erik Portillo chose to return to Northeastern and Michigan, respectively.' … [Read more...] about Inside the Sabres: Questions in goal loom large with prospects going back to school

'Bloom delivered in a big way, totaling 30 goals and 61 points in 67 games for the Spirit. He finished second in the league with seven shorthanded goals and scored seven game-winning goals. He hadn't competed in an organized game since 2019-20, when he had six goals and 14 points in 54 games as a 16-year-old in the OHL.' … [Read more...] about Sabres sign forward Josh Bloom to 3-year, entry-level contract

'The Sabres’ valuation was $600 million, which ranked 27th out of 32 NHL franchises.' … [Read more...] about Where Bills and Sabres rank in value among North American sports franchises in Sportico study

'The outlook for next season is bright and that couldn’t be said in the final weeks of most seasons during the franchise’s 11-year playoff drought. The Sabres (29-38-11) swept both games of the back-to-back, home-and-home against the Flyers (23-42-11) behind two goals from Victor Olofsson, one by Anders Bjork and Thompson added his second of the game with the net empty. It was … [Read more...] about Observations: Rasmus Dahlin, Victor Olofsson reach milestones in Sabres’ win

'The Flyers have lost nine of their last 11 and a second period in which they were outshot by Buffalo, 18-3, pretty much showed their warts after they jumped ahead by two goals in the first four minutes.' … [Read more...] about Observations: Sabres’ second-period outburst grounds Flyers