Buffalo News

'“You just want to win it, but to get it right after it was pretty cool,” Johnson said. “I’ll never forget it. I just remember him getting it and he was tearing up. You just know all the work you put in comes to fruition and you fulfill your goal. Nothing better. You want to bottle that moment up for the rest of your life. That’s as good as it gets."' … [Read more...] about Inside the NHL: New Sabres blueliner Erik Johnson reflects on his triumphant Cup tale

'The Devils outshot Buffalo, 18-4, in the third period after the teams went to the second intermission in a 3-3 tie. The Devils won the game on Erik Haula's goal with 5:43 left, which came less than two minutes after Dylan Cozens had tied the game thanks to a Kyle Okposo pass.' … [Read more...] about Observations: Badly outplayed in the third by Devils, Sabres now have to ponder goalie injuries

'“We sat together a lot in the locker room. Good guy. A lot of funny, funny memories of him,” Hughes said of Power prior to the game. “Really focused, really committed to the sport. He kind of pushed me up the mountain and I pushed him back. A lot of fun, fond memories of him at Michigan.”' … [Read more...] about Sabres Notebook: Owen Power and Devils’ Luke Hughes learned from each other as they dealt with Michigan hype

'The Sabres aren’t scoring enough to compensate for what they’re giving up defensively. Their primary issue hasn’t been defensive-zone coverage, either. Turnovers are the problem. They’re giving teams easy offense by forcing passes or overskating the puck on breakouts. Any goaltender in the league would have trouble stopping the barrage that Luukkonen faced in the third period … [Read more...] about Sabres postgame Q&A: Is it too soon to worry about playoff chances?

'Through seven games, Thompson’s line with Greenway and Cozens on the wings has controlled 65.57% of the shot attempts and 76.4% of the expected goals share at 5-on-5, according to Natural Stat Trick. They’ve earned 11 high-danger scoring chances in those situations and, as impressive, they’ve only allowed four while often skating against the other team’s top players.' … [Read more...] about How Tage Thompson, Jordan Greenway and Dylan Cozens have given Sabres two top lines

'“The soreness is not resolved to the point that, under our situation with three goaltenders and Comrie and Upie playing well in the last two games, we’re not pushing based on all of that,” Granato told reporters. “There’s no need to push it. We have three goalies and that’s the luxury when it comes to this.”' … [Read more...] about Sabres Notebook: Eric Comrie or UPL to start again while Devon Levi remains out

'Facing an Atlantic Division foe on the road in the second game of a back-to-back Tuesday night, the Sabres’ breakthrough finally arrived. Tage Thompson and Jeff Skinner scored two goals apiece, Alex Tuch added his first of the season, and Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen made 34 saves in a 6-4 win over the Ottawa Senators.' … [Read more...] about Sabres survive late scare, offensive breaks through in 6-4 win over Senators

'It’s too soon to send Levi to Rochester. He had some shaky moments while playing four games in eight days to start the season. His performance late last season, as well as the Sabres’ approach to this situation from the moment he arrived, should give the 21-year-old more time to show that he can stay in Buffalo without needing time with the Amerks.' … [Read more...] about Sabres postgame Q&A: How will the Sabres handle their goalie depth chart?

'But too many of the chances were from the outside of the ice. According to Natural Stat Trick, the Sabres had just four high danger chances all night in falling to 2-4.' … [Read more...] about Observations: Sabres get the shots, but Canadiens leave town with the win

'No matter the level or league, Benson has shown throughout his young career that he can overcome youth and size through will, courage and talent. He succeeded as a 13-year-old bantam player at Yale Hockey Academy near Vancouver, produced 20 points while appearing in all 24 of the Ice’s games as an underage player in the bubble and made his NHL debut in KeyBank Center with the … [Read more...] about How Zach Benson has proved people wrong throughout his path to the Sabres

'Savoie is not eligible to be assigned to Rochester due to the NHL/CHL agreement with Canadian junior teams, and must play in either the NHL or with the Wenatchee (Wash.) Wild of the Western Hockey League.' … [Read more...] about Sabres loan Matt Savoie to Rochester on conditioning assignment

'The Islanders game was the blueprint. It was the frenetic pace, the passion and the purpose the Sabres have to show every night.' … [Read more...] about Mike Harrington: Five games into the season, Sabres find their blueprint and now have to repeat it

''“I stand up here a lot and I back our guys a lot because they’re a very determined group,” said Sabres coach Don Granato, who has guided Buffalo to a 7-3 record against the Islanders since March 2021. “They care. And when we bring things to their attention, they work to do it. They knew tonight they needed to have a better game and they knew exactly how they could have a … [Read more...] about Sabres’ persistence pays off, Jeff Skinner’s goal sparks offense in 3-1 win

'While you could still have top prospects head to the stage for their photo moment to get their jersey and shake NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman’s hand (there’s no Roger Goodell hug), virtually everyone outside the first round would lose that moment and so would their families.' … [Read more...] about Inside the NHL: Dumping the convention-style draft is another terrible idea from a league full of them

'Tage Thompson centered Dylan Cozens and Jordan Greenway; Casey Mittelstadt was between Alex Tuch and Jeff Skinner; Victor Olofsson is positioned to draw back into the lineup after skating with Tyson Jost and JJ Peterka; and Peyton Krebs moved back to center with Kyle Okposo and Zemgus Girgensons on his wings.' … [Read more...] about Sabres notebook: Don Granato overhauls lines ahead of rematch with Islanders