Sabres & NHL 2017-18 - Entry Draft on June 22

[26CornerBlitz]

"I would love to come over next year. I feel like I'm starting to get ready for that," Olofsson said in a phone interview this past weekend. "I've been patient with going over because I felt like I wasn't ready, but I'm starting to feel ready now. I would say next year is probably the right time."

[apuszczalowski]

12 hours ago, 26CornerBlitz said:

 

Might as well wait until next season at this point with virtually nothing on the line.

Why not, high ankle sprains always seem to take time to heal and a player to get back to 100%

No point rushing it and risk having to hear next season why he is off to a slow start because his ankle injury still hasn't healed and gotten back to 100%....

[Fadingpain]

55 minutes ago, apuszczalowski said:

Why not, high ankle sprains always seem to take time to heal and a player to get back to 100%

No point rushing it and risk having to hear next season why he is off to a slow start because his ankle injury still hasn't healed and gotten back to 100%....

I'd be surprised if Jack plays again this year.

 

The organization is quick to point out the possibility of his return only b/c we have a lot of home games left and the fan base is already totally pissed off as it is!  Especially if we are in a solid battle for dead last with the best odds to win the lottery...Eichel will not be played.

 

At least I hope not!  But don't expect the Sabres to mention any of that publicly.

 

 

 

 

[26CornerBlitz]

 

Game Preview: 2/13/18 vs. Tampa Bay

Game Notes

NHL Stats

Press Clips

 

LAST GAME
Sunday, February 11
Colorado 5 at Buffalo 4
Goals: Pouliot, Nelson, O’Reilly, Kane
Goalie: Lehner (22 saves/27 shots)
PP: 1/5; PK: 4/5; Shots: Buffalo 32 – Colorado 27

 

CURRENT INJURIES – (Man Games Lost: 196)
Player (injury, first game missed) – total games missed
Zach Bogosian (lower body, Jan. 11; injured reserve) – 13 games
Jake McCabe (thumb, Feb. 8; injured reserve) – 3 games
Jack Eichel (high-ankle sprain, Feb. 11) – 1 game

 

TRANSACTIONS IN PAST 7 DAYS
2/11: Recalled F Nicholas Baptiste from Rochester (AHL); Placed D Jake McCabe on IR

 

UPCOMING GAMES
Thursday, Feb. 15: Buffalo at Ottawa, 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, Feb. 17: Los Angeles at Buffalo, 1 p.m.
Monday, Feb. 19: Washington at Buffalo, 3 p.m.
Thursday, Feb. 22: Buffalo at Detroit, 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, Feb. 24: Buffalo at Washington, 7 p.m.

 

TONIGHT’S GAME
LIGHTNING at SABRES

• This is the second of four meetings between the Sabres and Lightning this season.
• Last meeting: Tampa Bay defeated Buffalo 2-0 in Buffalo on Nov. 28, 2017
• Next meeting: Wednesday, Feb. 28 in Tampa
• The Sabres are 1-8-1 in their last 10 games vs. the Lightning; 2-5-3 at home.
• This is the 96th game all-time between Buffalo and Tampa Bay; Buffalo has a 52-35-8 series record.
• The Sabres are 24-18-5 at home against the Lightning all-time.

Edited February 13, 2018 by 26CornerBlitz

[26CornerBlitz]

 

[26CornerBlitz]

 

[26CornerBlitz]

 

[eball]

What exactly are we watching right now?  3 out of 4 without Jack, including wins against the top two point leaders in the league?

[26CornerBlitz]

 

[plenzmd1]

1 hour ago, eball said:

What exactly are we watching right now?  3 out of 4 without Jack, including wins against the top two point leaders in the league?

couple things come to mind

1) I think quite often you see a short-term rally when its star goes down, and think we have a little of that. Lomg term they cooked

 

2) Goes back to the makeup of the [players. We see what they can look like when they put 100% effort in, unfortunately they only give that about 25% of the time. Been different coaches dealing with that, so if it ain't the coaches gotta be the players.

[4merper4mer]

1 hour ago, plenzmd1 said:

couple things come to mind

1) I think quite often you see a short-term rally when its star goes down, and think we have a little of that. Lomg term they cooked

 

2) Goes back to the makeup of the [players. We see what they can look like when they put 100% effort in, unfortunately they only give that about 25% of the time. Been different coaches dealing with that, so if it ain't the coaches gotta be the players.

It was the GM.  Trading for drunks, shrimps and reprobates.  It'll take a while.

[K-9]

2 hours ago, eball said:

What exactly are we watching right now?  3 out of 4 without Jack, including wins against the top two point leaders in the league?

Jack played the whole game vs. the Isles and was a star in that game. So, 2 out of 3 without Jack. 

[bbb]

3 hours ago, K-9 said:

Jack played the whole game vs. the Isles and was a star in that game. So, 2 out of 3 without Jack. 

 

Ain't bad.

[K-9]

2 minutes ago, bbb said:

 

Ain't bad.

No doubt. It's a good sign that they can find losing Jack as something to galvanize them and rally around. But we've been slowly turning the ship since the new year as players other than Eichel have started to come around. Hope they keep it up. Especially on the back end as they are beginning to look like they're figuring out what Housley wants. Much better decision  making lately. 

[26CornerBlitz]

2-14: Phil Housley on WGR (12:21)

 

#Sabres head coach Phil Housley joins Howard and Jeremy next on WGR after last night's big win over the Lightning! Tune in:

 

Housley - it goes back to our games after the All-Star break. We weren't happy with the efforts early, but we built off those games. Guys are realizing that our system works when we stick to the gameplan. Guys are stepping up without Jack in the lineup. #Sabres

 

Housley - with Jack being out, Ryan O'Reilly has stepped up his game and is coming into his own. Everybody is doing their part throughout the lineup, and it's great to see. #Sabres

 

Housley - Tampa Bay is a deadly team and we knew they were going to have their chances. We did a nice job shutting them down throughout the night. #Sabres

Housley on Reinhart - He's winning a lot of battles, getting to the net. That's where Sam is most dangerous. #Sabres

 

Housley - guys earlier in the season had to get their 5-on-5 game in order. Once the chemistry got back, they seem to feed off each other. But it comes down to execution, and the guys have kept things simple. #Sabres

 

Housley - As long as we work in the areas that need the work, we've been getting rewarded. #Sabres

 

Housley on Casey Nelson - I think he got an opportunity with McCabe and Bogosian out. He's taken advantage of that opportunity. I like his stick detail, his gaps are tight. He also finds ways to get pucks through to the net. #Sabres

 

Housley - we hold Rasmus Ristolainen to such a high level and we expect him to deliver and be consistent. However, not everypne can play that way for all 82 games. He played a really strong game last night, like the way he responded. #Sabres

 

Housley - There is a chance that Jack can come back this season. There is no timeline for his recovery, the 4-6 weeks is a ballpark figure. I'm sure he will want to come back and play, but we'll see how he heals. #Sabres

 

Housley - Jack feels that this high-ankle sprain is a lot better than his last one, which is encouraging. #Sabres

[26CornerBlitz]

 

 

Game Preview: 2/15/18 at Ottawa

Game Notes

NHL Stats

Press Clips

LAST GAME

Tuesday, February 13
Tampa Bay 3 at Buffalo 5
Goals: Reinhart (2), Baptiste, Wilson, O’Reilly
Goalie: Johnson (26 saves/29 shots)
PP: 2/3; PK: 4/5; Shots: Buffalo 33 – Tampa Bay 29

 

CURRENT INJURIES – (Man Games Lost: 199)
Player (injury, first game missed) – total games missed
Zach Bogosian (lower body, Jan. 11; injured reserve) – 14 games
Jake McCabe (thumb, Feb. 8; injured reserve) – 4 games
Jack Eichel (high-ankle sprain, Feb. 11) – 2 games

 

TRANSACTIONS IN PAST 7 DAYS
2/11: Recalled F Nicholas Baptiste from Rochester (AHL); Placed D Jake McCabe on IR

 

UPCOMING GAMES
Saturday, Feb. 17: Los Angeles at Buffalo, 1 p.m.
Monday, Feb. 19: Washington at Buffalo, 3 p.m.
Thursday, Feb. 22: Buffalo at Detroit, 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, Feb. 24: Buffalo at Washington, 7 p.m.
Sunday, Feb. 25: Boston at Buffalo, 5 p.m.

 

TONIGHT’S GAME
SABRES at SENATORS

• This is the second of four meetings between the Sabres and Senators this season.
• Last meeting: Buffalo defeated Ottawa 3-2 in Buffalo on Dec. 12, 2017
• Next meeting: Thursday, March 8, 2018 in Ottawa
• The Sabres are 7-1-2 in their last 10 games vs. the Senators; 4-5-1 on the road
• This is the 135th game all-time between Buffalo and Ottawa; Buffalo has a 66-49-19 series record.
• The Sabres are 30-27-11 on the road against the Senators all-time.

Morning Skate: February 15, 2018 from 11:15 AM – 12:15 AM at Canadian Tire Centre

 

 

Edited February 15, 2018 by 26CornerBlitz

[LB3]

As a Sens fan, it's been weird seeing my team go from 1 goal away from being in the Stanley Cup Finals to hoping for the 1st overall pick and hearing rumors of potentially trading Karlsson away because they won't pay him what he's worth. Melnyk is easily among the worst owners in all sports.

[26CornerBlitz]

 

 

[BringBackFergy]

I had to laugh when they tied it with 30 seconds remaining...same when we lost in OT. At least it didn't have to come down to a shootout.

[BillsFan4]

5 hours ago, BringBackFergy said:

I had to laugh when they tied it with 30 seconds remaining...same when we lost in OT. At least it didn't have to come down to a shootout.

Yeah, especially with Lehner in net... it's an automatic loss, just more embarrassing than losing in OT (when Lehner fails to make a single save). 

 

20 hours ago, LBSeeBallLBGetBall said:

As a Sens fan, it's been weird seeing my team go from 1 goal away from being in the Stanley Cup Finals to hoping for the 1st overall pick and hearing rumors of potentially trading Karlsson away because they won't pay him what he's worth. Melnyk is easily among the worst owners in all sports.

 

The Sens fall in the standings has been quite surprising after their surprising run last year. I thought things were finally coming together for Ottawa last year. 

Who knows, they could rebound quickly next year though with some savvy moves by Dorian (not holding my breath on that one...). 

 

I empathize with Sens fans. Melnyk reminds me of the days of ultra cheap Sabres ownership, back when they were owned by the NHL and then Tom Golisano. 

They were so cheap that they only had a bare bones scouting department, and scouted players by video tape. 

 

Trading Karlsson would be such a bummer. Especially over money. 

Thats a damn hard trade to win. I'm sure you'll get a ton for him if he's traded. But I don't see an equal piece coming back, unless Dorian's able to find a 1 for 1 type hockey trade (which is doubtful IMO). He's sooo good. Hopefully the owner just ponies up. 

 

Itll be interesting to see see what happens in Ottawa the next couple years. With Stone an RFA this year, and Karlsson, Duchene and Brassard all UFA after next year.