Buffalo News

'Mittelstadt had no points in the first eight periods of the Prospects Challenge and has no points in his three preseason appearances. He was blanked again in Tuesday's 4-2 loss to Columbus and the notion that Mittelstadt would start the season as the No. 2 man in the middle already seems to be flimsy.' … [Read more...] about Mittelstadt remains a work in progress

'"By all appearances, the team is on an upward spiral," Bettman said when asked by The Buffalo News during the first intermission of Tuesday night's Kraft Hockeyville exhibition against Columbus in Clinton Arena. "All of these things happen in cycles. You look at the young talent they have and the moves they made over the summer — among those acquiring Jeff Skinner — I think … [Read more...] about Bettman on Sabres: ‘I think the team is being rebuilt in the right way’

'The Sabres outshot the Blue Jackets, 33-26, but fell to 2-3 in the preseason with their third straight loss. Columbus (2-4) snapped a three-game skid of its own by scoring three power-play goals in the game.' … [Read more...] about The Wraparound: Blue Jackets 4, Sabres 2

'"I went into it hoping I could play one NHL game," Gionta said. "And from there it was play as long as you could, as long as you were having fun, enjoying the game and as long as your body would hold up. I would have never thought it lasted as long as it did but I'm super appreciative for the people along the way that supported me and gave me that chance."' … [Read more...] about Mike Harrington: Gionta beat the odds, earned proper Sabres sendoff

'The team starts with a morning flight through the state to Griffiss Air Force base in Rome, notable as the site of Woodstock '99. Then it's a brief bus trip to the Village of Clinton, population 2,000.' … [Read more...] about Sabres Notebook: Team takes the big time to a small town

'"It's going to take work ethic every day and this has been a good camp for it," Scandella said. "I believe in this group of guys. I feel like we can do it. The fans here deserve a winning team. It's such a good fan base, it's about time that we bring that product on the ice. I'm excited to be a part of that."' … [Read more...] about Sabres’ Marco Scandella wants to avoid that losing feeling

'Zemgus Girgensons and Johan Larsson are both under contract for this year but are getting pushed for their spots on the roster. It's possible the Sabres could look to waive or trade either of them prior to the season if they are looking to use spots for young players.' … [Read more...] about With a week left in preseason, Sabres have some interesting choices

'The defense pairs seemed to be the likely top six of the regular season. That would be Marco Scandella-Rasmus Ristolainen, Rasmus Dahlin-Jake McCabe and Nathan Beaulieu-Zach Bogosian.' … [Read more...] about The Wraparound: Maple Leafs 3, Sabres 2

'The Sabres suffered a 5-3 preseason loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs Friday night in Scotiabank Arena but the game was punctuated by highlight-reel goals from C.J. Smith and Tage Thompson, wingers who are on the bubble to make the NHL club or figure to be key components of the Rochester Amerks to start the season.' … [Read more...] about Smith, Thompson adding to Sabres’ offensive talent pool

'The Leafs have already announced their lineup for the teams' rematch Saturday in KeyBank Center (7 p.m., MSG, Radio 550) and it features the likes of Auston Matthews, Patrick Marleau and starting goaltender Frederik Andersen. The Sabres are expected to field mostly an NHL lineup, with expected participants including Jack Eichel, Jeff Skinner, Rasmus Dahlin and Rasmus … [Read more...] about The Wraparound: Maple Leafs 5, Sabres 3

'"Ideally you're always getting it done for the start of training camp," said General Manager Jason Botterill. "But the fact we kept the dialogue going, there was no boycott from either side ... was probably the reason we came to a deal now versus having to wait until the start of the season. Both sides realized the importance of a young player being part of training camp with … [Read more...] about After long process and long flights, Reinhart thrilled with return to the ice

'"Coming back from a major surgery, you're trying to check off all the boxes and I think it's just precautionary stuff," Bogosian said. "They had a plan in place to get me back to playing. There's certain stages you have go to through coming back from surgery even thought I got it a long time ago."' … [Read more...] about Sabres Notebook: Bogosian back after brief absence; Sheary could play in opener

'The Sabres clearly believe Wedgewood, 26, played better than his statistics would indicate. “They kind of spoke to me on my level and how I felt,” said Wedgewood, a third-round pick by the New Jersey Devils in 2010. “What they had (seen) was similar to what me and my agent, goalie coach and personal development people in my tight circle felt as well.”' … [Read more...] about Sabres goalie Scott Wedgewood: ‘I think I can be a No. 1 in this league’

'“It was a tough year. I kind of let it eat me up a little bit. You want it to hurt a little bit,” the Sabres defenseman said. “Obviously, I’m 25 years old. I didn’t want a year like that to define me. I knew how important it was to be in shape, ready to go, and the biggest thing is to take advantage of everything they give me.”' … [Read more...] about Beaulieu is ready for every opportunity Sabres present to him

'More good work by Botterill, who got high marks for the Jeff Skinner trade with Carolina and is looking better and better on the Ryan O'Reilly deal with the performances in camp thus far of Patrik Berglund, Vladimir Sobotka and Tage Thompson.' … [Read more...] about Mike Harrington: Sabres got the right fit on Reinhart numbers