Game Preview: 10/22/21 vs. Boston

Posted on October 21, 2021 by | Leave a comment

GAME-DAY RESOURCES

Game Notes NHL Stats Rosters

LAST GAME
Tuesday, October 19
Vancouver 2 at Buffalo 5
Goals: Okposo, Girgensons, Skinner, Thompson, Asplund
Goalie: Anderson (32 saves/34 shots)
PP: 0/3; PK: 3/3; Shots: Buffalo 43 – Vancouver 34

CURRENT INJURIES – (Man Games Lost: 10)
Player (injury, first game missed) – total games missed
Mattias Samuelsson (Lower body, Oct. 14; injured reserve) – 3 games
Jack Eichel (Upper body, Oct. 14; injured reserve) – 3 games
Casey Mittelstadt (Upper body Oct. 16) – 2 games
Henri Jokiharju (Lower body Oct. 16; injured reserve) – 2 games
Cody Eakin (Undisclosed) – 0 games

TRANSACTIONS IN PAST 7 DAYS
10/16: Claimed D Christian Wolanin off waivers from Los Angeles; Placed D Henri Jokiharju on IR.

UPCOMING GAMES
Saturday, Oct. 23: Buffalo at New Jersey, 7 p.m.
Monday, Oct. 25: Tampa Bay at Buffalo, 7 p.m.
Thursday, Oct. 28: Buffalo at Anaheim, 10 p.m.
Sunday, Oct. 31: Buffalo at Los Angeles, 4 p.m.
Tuesday, Nov. 2: Buffalo at San Jose, 10:30 p.m.

TONIGHT’S GAME
BRUINS at SABRES

  • This is the first of four meetings between the Sabres and Bruins this season.
  • Last meeting: Boston defeated Buffalo 6-2 in Boston on May 1, 2021
  • Next meeting: Wednesday, Nov. 24 in Buffalo
  • The Sabres are 1-8-1 in their last 10 games vs. the Bruins; 2-7-1 at home.
  • This is the 305th game all-time between Buffalo and Boston; Buffalo has a 126-132-46 series record.
  • The Sabres are 75-54-24 at home against the Bruins all-time.

THIS DATE IN SABRES HISTORY

  • The Sabres are 10-8-0 all-time on October 22.
  • October 22, 1972: Gilbert Perreault records six points (2+4) and Rick Martin scores four goals, including three in the third period, as the Sabres defeat the Atlanta Flames 7-2 at Buffalo Memorial Auditorium.
  • October 22, 2011: Brad Boyes plays in his 500th NHL game against the Tampa Bay Lightning.

THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW

  • Buffalo enters tonight’s game looking for a win to go 4-0-0 to start a season for the fourth time in franchise history.
    • The last Sabres team to win at least its first four games of the season was the 2008-09 club that won its first four contests.
  • If the Sabres earn at least a point tonight, they will have opened the season by earning at least a point in their first four games for the seventh time in team history.
  • Colin Miller has four assists this season and now has seven assists in his last seven games played dating back to last season.
  • Arttu Ruotsalainen enters tonight’s game with a point in each of his last four games against Boston (3+1).
  • Rasmus Asplund has an assist in each of his last two games against the Bruins.

HOT START

  • The Sabres have started the season 3-0-0 for the first time since 2008-09.
  • Entering Thursday’s games, the Sabres ranked third in the NHL with a 57.08 shot attempts percentage at 5-on-5 this season.
  • Buffalo has had 62 scoring chances for and 33 scoring chances against at 5-on-5 through its first three games, good for second in the NHL entering play Thursday with a 65.26 scoring chance for percentage.
  • Before Thursday’s games, the team’s 64.63 expected goals percentage at 5-on-5 ranked second in the NHL.
  • The Sabres have successfully killed all nine of their penalties to begin the season. The last time the Sabres were perfect on the penalty kill through at least in the first four games of the season was in 2008-09 when the team opened with five straight games without allowing a power-play goal (24-for-24).

TERRIFIC TRIO

  • The line of Rasmus Asplund, Victor Olofsson and Tage Thompson has accounted for four goals and six points for the Sabres this season.
  • According to Natural Stat Trick, at 5-on-5, the trio has skated 32:13 together and registered a 69.81 SAT%, a 81.17 xGF% and a 86.67 HDCF%.
  • At all strengths, Asplund leads the Sabres in individual expected goals (1.64) and individual high-danger chances for (7), while Olofsson and Thompson are tied for the team lead in individual shot attempts (20).

BACK-TO-BACK
Tonight’s game opens Buffalo’s first of 17 sets of back-to-back games this season, which continues tomorrow night at New Jersey. The Sabres went 4-10-0 in the first game of back-to-back sets and 4-9-1 in the second game in 2020-21. Buffalo’s point breakdown in back-to-back sets last season was: four points (1), three points (1), two points (5), one point (0) and zero points (7).

WELCOME TO BUFFALO
The Sabres have seven new players on their roster this season:

Player, Pos. How Acquired Pronunciation Notes
Craig Anderson, G Free agency AN-duhr-suhn Ranks among the NHL’s active leaders in wins (6th, 291), saves (4th, 18,251) and shutouts (T-6th, 42).
Will Butcher, D Trade (NJD) BUH-chuhr Led all NJD defensemen in assists (92) and ranked second among Devils blueliners in points (106) since entering the NHL in 2017-18.
Robert Hagg, D Trade (PHI) HAG Averaged 15:40 of ice time over 34 games in 2020-21, recording five points (2+3) and leading PHI defensemen with 100 hits.
John Hayden, C Free Agency HAY-dihn Has compiled 31 points (13+18) in 185 career NHL games for CHI, NJD and ARI.
Vinnie Hinostroza, C Free Agency hihn-oh-STROH-za Recorded 12 points (4+8) in 17 games for CHI last season after being acquired via trade from FLA on April 2.
Mark Pysyk, D Free Agency PEH-sihk Played in 125 games for the Sabres from 2012 to 2016 after being selected by Buffalo in the first round (23rd overall) of the 2010 NHL Draft.
Christian Wolanin, D Waivers woh-LA-nihn Claimed off of waivers on Oct. 16; has 18 points (5+13) in 61 career NHL games for Ottawa and Los Angeles.

2021-22 ROSTER NOTES
Of the 23 players on Buffalo’s opening night roster:

  • Eight were drafted by the Sabres — five were first-round selections (Pysyk, 2010; Girgensons, 2012; Mittelstadt, 2017; Dahlin, 2018; Cozens, 2019), one was a second-round pick (Asplund, 2016), one was a fourth-round pick (Bryson, 2017) and one was a seventh-round pick (Olofsson, 2014).
    • Mark Pysyk was drafted by the Sabres in 2010 and returned as an unrestricted free agent in 2021.
  • Seven were acquired in trades: Bjork, Butcher, Hagg, Jokiharju, Miller, Skinner, Thompson
  • Seven were signed as free agents: Anderson, Eakin, Hayden, Hinostroza, Okposo, Ruotsalainen, Tokarski
  • Drake Caggiula was claimed off of waivers.
  • Seventeen played in Buffalo at some point last season: Asplund, Bjork, Bryson, Caggiula, Cozens, Dahlin, Eakin, Girgensons, Jokiharju, Miller, Mittelstadt, Okposo, Olofsson, Ruotsalainen, Skinner, Thompson, Tokarski
  • One played for Buffalo previously: Pysyk
  • Five are new to the Sabres this season: Anderson, Butcher, Hagg, Hayden, Hinostroza

SABRES AMONG LEAGUE-LEADERS (Sabres’ league rankings before 10/21 games)

  • Buffalo Sabres: 6 PTS (T-1st), 3 W (T-1st), 1.33 GA/GP (1st), 34.4% PP% (T-7th), 100.0% PK% (T-1st), 53.7 % FO% (8th), 28.7 SA/GP (T-7th)
  • Anderson: 2 W (T-3rd), .954 SV% (5th), 1.50 GAA (T-9th)
  • Eakin: 1 PPG (T-8th)
  • Girgensons: 1 GWG (T-1st)
  • Okposo: 1 PPG (T-8th)
  • Olofsson: 1 PPG (T-8th), 2 PPP (T-8th)
  • Skinner: 1 GWG (T-1st)
  • Thompson: 1 PPG (T-8th)
  • Tokarski: .952 SV% (T-8th), 0.92 GAA (1st) 

SABRES REAL-TIME STATS LEADERS
Hits: Hagg (9), Miller (6), Caggiula (5)
Blocked Shots: Hagg (9), Pysyk (5), Dahlin/Eakin/Miller (3)
Shots: Olofsson/Thompson (12), Skinner (11), Miller/Okposo (10)

SABRES’ RECORD IN 10 GAME SEGMENTS [W-L-OTL (PTS), GF/GA, PP, PK] 1-10: 3-0-0 (6), 12/4, 4/11, 9/9

OVERTIME RESULTS (0-0; 126-138 all-time)
N/A

SHOOTOUT RESULTS (1-0; 82-74 all-time)
Oct. 16 vs. ARI: W, 2-1 (GDG-Ruotsalainen)

MILESTONES APPROACHING (Player … Needs … Milestone)
Games Played
Zemgus Girgensons … 8 games played … 500 career games played

Assists
Colin Miller … 1 assist … 100 career assists
Will Butcher … 7 assists … 100 career assists
Rasmus Dahlin … 9 assists … 100 career assists

Points
Mark Pysyk … 8 points … 100 career points

Wins
Craig Anderson … 7 wins … 300 career wins 

RECENT MILESTONES
Kyle Okposo scored his 200th career NHL goal on Oct. 19 vs. Vancouver
Rasmus Dahlin played in his 200th career NHL game on Oct. 19 vs. Vancouver

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Postgame Report: 10/19 vs. Vancouver

Posted on October 19, 2021 by | Leave a comment

Final Score

1st 2nd 3rd OT SO Final SOG
Canucks
(1-2-1)		 2 0 0 – – 2 34
Sabres
(3-0-0)		 1 1 3 – – 5 43

Game Summary
Event Summary

Postgame Audio

Sabres head coach Don Granato

Sabres forward Dylan Cozens

Sabres forward Kyle Okposo

Sabres forward Jeff Skinner

Canucks head coach Travis Green

Canucks forward Brock Boeser

Canucks forward Justin Dowling

Top Notes

  • Buffalo’s win tonight gives the team its fifth 3-0-0 start in franchise history. The last Sabres team to win at least its first three games of the season was the 2008-09 club that won its first four contests.
  • Kyle Okposo’s first-period goal tonight was the 200th of his NHL career. Okposo  became the 56th U.S.-born player to reach the milestone and is now one of 61 active NHL players with 200 career goals.
  • Okposo’s goal and assist tonight give him 17 points (5+12) in his last 14 games against Vancouver, including a point in each of the last eight meetings (5+4).
    • His career point-per-game output through 16 games against the Canucks (5+12) is his best against any NHL team.
  • Rasmus Dahlin earned an assist on Kyle Okposo’s goal for his second assist in as many games. Dahlin, who played in his 200th career NHL game tonight, now has five assists in four career games against the Canucks.
    • Among Sabres defensemen with at least 200 games played for the team, Dahlin ranks 10th in goals per game (.09), fourth in assists per game (.46) and fourth in points per game (.55)
  • The Sabres have successfully killed all nine of their penalties to begin the season. The last time the Sabres were perfect on the penalty kill in the first three games of the season was 2017-18 (11-for-11).
  • Jeff Skinner and Tage Thompson scored 23 seconds apart in the third period tonight, marking the shortest time between two Sabres goals since Skinner and Zemgus Girgensons scored 13 seconds apart on Nov. 3, 2018.
  • With a goal and an assist tonight, Zemgus Girgensons now has a point in each of his last four games against Vancouver (3+2).
  • Jeff Skinner’s goal tonight gives him seven points (4+3) in his last seven contests against the Canucks.
  • With an assist on Tage Thompson’s goal, Will Butcher earned his first point in a Sabres uniform.
  • Victor Olofsson had an assist tonight and now has three points (1+2) in two career meetings with the Canucks.

Tonight’s Goaltenders

Tonight’s Stats
Team Goaltender Decision GA SA
Canucks
 Demko L 4 42
Sabres Anderson W 2 34
Updated Season Stats
Team Goaltender Record SV% GAA
Canucks Demko 1-1-1 .910 3.18
Sabres Anderson 2-0-0 .954 1.50

 

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Game Preview: 10/19/21 vs. Vancouver

Posted on October 18, 2021 by | Leave a comment

GAME-DAY RESOURCES

Game Notes NHL Stats Rosters

LAST GAME
Saturday, October 16
Arizona 1 at Buffalo 2 (OT)
Goals: Eakin, Ruotsalainen (GDG)
Goalie: Tokarski (20 saves/21 shots)
PP: 1/2; PK: 2/2; Shots: Buffalo 33 – Arizona 21

CURRENT INJURIES – (Man Games Lost: 6)
Player (injury, first game missed) – total games missed
Mattias Samuelsson (Lower body, Oct. 14; injured reserve) – 2 games
Jack Eichel (Upper body, Oct. 14; injured reserve) – 2 games
Casey Mittelstadt (Upper body Oct. 16) – 1 game
Henri Jokiharju (Lower body Oct. 16; injured reserve) – 1 game

TRANSACTIONS IN PAST 7 DAYS

10/16: Claimed D Christian Wolanin off of waivers from Los Angeles; Placed D Henri Jokiharju on IR.

UPCOMING GAMES
Friday, Oct. 22: Boston at Buffalo, 7 p.m.
Saturday, Oct. 23: Buffalo at New Jersey, 7 p.m.
Monday, Oct. 25: Tampa Bay at Buffalo, 7 p.m.
Thursday, Oct. 28: Buffalo at Anaheim, 10 p.m.
Sunday, Oct. 31: Buffalo at Los Angeles, 4 p.m.

TONIGHT’S GAME
CANUCKS at SABRES

  • This is the first of two meetings between the Sabres and Canucks this season.
  • Last meeting: Vancouver defeated Buffalo 6-3 in Buffalo on Jan. 11, 2020
  • Next meeting: Sunday, March 20 in Vancouver
  • The Sabres are 3-6-1 in their last 10 games against the Canucks; 6-4-0 at home.
  • This is the 125th game all-time between Buffalo and Vancouver; Buffalo has a 50-54-20 series record.
  • The Sabres are 32-22-8 at home against the Canucks all-time.

THIS DATE IN SABRES HISTORY

  • The Sabres are 6-8-3 all-time on October 19.
  • October 19, 1978: Don Edwards stops all 19 shots and Craig Ramsay scores the game’s lone goal as the Sabres shut out the Toronto Maple Leafs 1-0 in Buffalo.
  • October 19, 1984: Mike Foligno completes his third career hat trick with the game-winning goal at 12:33 of the third period to dispatch the Quebec Nordiques 5-4 at Buffalo Memorial Auditorium.

THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW

  • Buffalo enters tonight’s game looking for a win to go 3-0-0 to start a season for the fifth time in franchise history.
    • The last Sabres team to win at least its first three games of the season was the 2008-09 club that won its first four contests.
  • If the Sabres earn at least a point tonight, they will have opened the season by earning at least a point in their first three games for the ninth time in team history.
  • Rasmus Dahlin is expected to play in his 200th career NHL game tonight. Among Sabres defensemen with at least 199 career games played for the team, Dahlin ranks 10th in goals per game (.09), fourth in assists per game (.45) and fourth in points per game (.54)
    • Entering Monday’s games, Dahlin’s .45 assists per game ranked 10th among active NHL defensemen (min. 199 GP).
  • Kyle Okposo’s next goal will be the 200th of his NHL career. Entering Monday’s games, there were 55 U.S.-born players who have reached the 200-goal mark and 60 active NHL players who had scored 200 or more career goals.
  • Buffalo has held its opponents to one goal in each of its first two games this season. The last time the team held its opponents to three or fewer goals in the first three games of the season was 2009-10, when the Sabres allowed three goals through their first three contests.
    • The Sabres have held each of their first three opponents to one goal or fewer just once in franchise history: 2008-09, when the team allowed one goal in each of its first three contests.
  • The Sabres have successfully killed all six of their penalties to begin the season. The last time the Sabres were perfect on the penalty kill in the first three games of the season was 2017-18 (11-for-11).
  • Colin Miller notched two assists vs. MTL (10/14) and now has five assists in his last six games played dating back to last season.

HOT AGAINST THE CANUCKS

  • Kyle Okposo has totaled 15 points (4+11) in his last 13 games against Vancouver, including a point in each of the last seven meetings (4+3). His career point-per-game output through 15 games against the Canucks ties his mark against the San Jose Sharks (5+11 in 16 GP) as his best against any NHL team.
  • Vinnie Hinostroza has 10 points (1+9) in 10 career games against Vancouver, including seven assists in his last five. His total points (10) and points per game (1.00) against the Canucks both tie for his best output against any NHL team
  • Rasmus Dahlin has four assists in three career games against the Canucks.
  • Jeff Skinner has recorded six points (3+3) in his last six contests against the Canucks.
  • Zemgus Girgensons has a point in each of his last three games against Vancouver (2+1).
  • Victor Olofsson scored a goal and added an assist in his only career meeting with the Canucks.

WELCOME TO BUFFALO
The Sabres have seven new players on their roster this season:

Player, Pos. How Acquired Pronunciation Notes
Craig Anderson, G Free agency AN-duhr-suhn Ranks among the NHL’s active leaders in wins (6th, 291), saves (4th, 18,251) and shutouts (T-6th, 42).
Will Butcher, D Trade (NJD) BUH-chuhr Led all NJD defensemen in assists (92) and ranked second among Devils blueliners in points (106) since entering the NHL in 2017-18.
Robert Hagg, D Trade (PHI) HAG Averaged 15:40 of ice time over 34 games in 2020-21, recording five points (2+3) and leading PHI defensemen with 100 hits.
John Hayden, C Free Agency HAY-dihn Has compiled 31 points (13+18) in 185 career NHL games for CHI, NJD and ARI.
Vinnie Hinostroza, C Free Agency hihn-oh-STROH-za Recorded 12 points (4+8) in 17 games for CHI last season after being acquired via trade from FLA on April 2.
Mark Pysyk, D Free Agency PEH-sihk Played in 125 games for the Sabres from 2012 to 2016 after being selected by Buffalo in the first round (23rd overall) of the 2010 NHL Draft.
Christian Wolanin, D Waivers woh-LA-nihn Claimed off of waivers on Oct. 16; has 18 points (5+13) in 61 career NHL games for Ottawa and Los Angeles.

2021-22 ROSTER NOTES
Of the 23 players on Buffalo’s opening night roster:

  • Eight were drafted by the Sabres — five were first-round selections (Pysyk, 2010; Girgensons, 2012; Mittelstadt, 2017; Dahlin, 2018; Cozens, 2019), one was a second-round pick (Asplund, 2016), one was a fourth-round pick (Bryson, 2017) and one was a seventh-round pick (Olofsson, 2014).
    • Mark Pysyk was drafted by the Sabres in 2010 and returned as an unrestricted free agent in 2021.
  • Seven were acquired in trades: Bjork, Butcher, Hagg, Jokiharju, Miller, Skinner, Thompson
  • Seven were signed as free agents: Anderson, Eakin, Hayden, Hinostroza, Okposo, Ruotsalainen, Tokarski
  • Drake Caggiula was claimed off of waivers.
  • Seventeen played in Buffalo at some point last season: Asplund, Bjork, Bryson, Caggiula, Cozens, Dahlin, Eakin, Girgensons, Jokiharju, Miller, Mittelstadt, Okposo, Olofsson, Ruotsalainen, Skinner, Thompson, Tokarski
  • One played for Buffalo previously: Pysyk
  • Five are new to the Sabres this season: Anderson, Butcher, Hagg, Hayden, Hinostroza

SABRES AMONG LEAGUE-LEADERS (Sabres’ league rankings before 10/18 games)

  • Buffalo Sabres: 4 PTS (T-2nd), 2 W (T-1st), 1.00 GA/GP (T-1st), 50.0% PP% (T-2nd), 100.0% PK% (T-1st), 54.5 % FO% (5th), 26.0 SA/GP (3rd)
  • Bryson: 2 PPP (T-8th)
  • Eakin: 1 PPG (T-5th)
  • Girgensons: 1 GWG (T-1st)
  • Hagg: 8 BkS (T-2nd)
  • Okposo: 1 PPG (T-5th)
  • Olofsson: 1 PPG (T-5th), 2 PPP (T-8th)
  • Skinner: 2 PPP (T-8th)
  • Thompson: 1 PPG (T-5th) 

SABRES REAL-TIME STATS LEADERS
Hits: Caggiula (4), Dahlin/Hagg/Miller/Pysyk (3)
Blocked Shots: Hagg (8), Pysyk (4), Dahlin/Eakin/Miller (3)
Shots: Olofsson (8), Skinner (7), Miller/Okposo/Thompson (6)

SABRES’ RECORD IN 10 GAME SEGMENTS [W-L-OTL (PTS), GF/GA, PP, PK] 1-10: 2-0-0 (4), 7/2, 4/8, 6/6

OVERTIME RESULTS (0-0; 126-138 all-time)
N/A

SHOOTOUT RESULTS (1-0; 82-74 all-time)
Oct. 16 vs. ARI: W, 2-1 (GDG-Ruotsalainen)

MILESTONES APPROACHING (Player … Needs … Milestone)
Games Played
Rasmus Dahlin … 1 game played … 200 career games played
Zemgus Girgensons … 9 games played … 500 career games played

Goals
Kyle Okposo … 1 goal … 200 career goals

Assists
Colin Miller … 3 assists … 100 career assists
Will Butcher … 8 assists … 100 career assists
Rasmus Dahlin … 10 assists … 100 career assists

Points
Mark Pysyk … 8 points … 100 career points

Wins
Craig Anderson … 8 wins … 300 career wins

RECENT MILESTONES
N/A

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Postgame Report: 10/16 vs. Arizona

Posted on October 16, 2021 by | Leave a comment

Final Score

1st 2nd 3rd OT SO Final SOG
Coyotes
(0-1-1)		 1 0 0 0 0 1 21
Sabres
(2-0-0)		 0 1 0 0 1 2 33

Game Summary
Event Summary

Postgame Audio

Sabres head coach Don Granato

Sabres forward Cody Eakin

Sabres defenseman Rasmus Dahlin

Sabres goaltender Dustin Tokarski

Coyotes head coach André Tourigny

Coyotes forward Andrew Ladd

Coyotes goaltender Karel Vejmelka

Top Notes

  • According to Natural Stat Trick, Buffalo’s line of Rasmus Asplund,  Victor Olofsson and Tage Thompson was on the ice for 15 shot attempts for and zero shot attempts against in 13:31 of ice time at 5-on-5.
    • The line generated eight scoring chances for and allowed zero chances against at 5-on-5.
  • The Sabres have held the opposition to only two goals through the season’s first two games for the first time since 2008-09.
  • Cody Eakin’s second-period goal gave him points in consecutive games to start the season (1+1). Eakin now has six points (3+3) in his last seven games against the Coyotes dating back to 2018-19.
    • Eakin’s goal was his first power-play tally since March 18, 2019.
  • Thompson and Arttu Ruotsalainen scored in the shootout for Buffalo. It was Ruotsalainen’s first career shootout attempt. Thompson is now 3-for-6 in his career in shootouts.
  • Rasmus Dahlin led all Sabres in ice time with 25:21. It’s the 13th time in his career that he’s logged 25:00 or more.

Tonight’s Goaltenders

Tonight’s Stats
Team Goaltender Decision GA SA
Coyotes
 Vejmelka SOL 1 33
Sabres Anderson W 1 21
Updated Season Stats
Team Goaltender Record SV% GAA
Coyotes Vejmelka 0-0-1 .970 0.92
Sabres Tokarski 1-0-0 .952 0.92

 

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SABRES CLAIM WOLANIN OFF WAIVERS

Posted on October 16, 2021 by | Leave a comment

—

Highlights:

  • Recorded career-high totals in goals (4), assists (8) and points (12) in 30 games for the Ottawa Senators during the 2018-19 season.
  • Represented the United States at the 2019 and 2021 IIHF World Championships and captured a bronze medal with the Americans at the 2021 tournament after notching six points (1+5) in 10 games.
  • Played collegiately at the University of North Dakota and was a member of the team that won the 2016 NCAA national championship.

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