Forward Tage Thompson will be taking plenty of time over the offseason to recuperate from a physically taxing end of the season, the 25-year-old sniper told reporters today. Thompson will be taking at least a month off from training during the offseason to recover from multiple injuries, including a hip pointer suffered in late March against the New Jersey Devils and some pre-existing back problems. He’s also dealing with a minor shoulder injury sustained during the team’s second-to-last game of the season against the Ottawa Senators on Thursday.
Despite those injuries, Thompson performed admirably down the stretch for Buffalo when he was healthy enough to dress. The team’s leader in goals and points notched four goals in eight games down the stretch, leading Buffalo to its first 90-point season since 2011. While the team narrowly missed the postseason this year, Thompson and his teammates have their eyes set on the playoffs in 2024 as they exit their rebuild.
Some other Sabres notes after their season drew to a close:
- While a number of NHL players on non-playoff teams have already publically declined participation in the upcoming IIHF Men’s World Championships, Sabres winger Alex Tuch is not one of them. He told reporters today that he and his brother, Montreal Canadiens prospect Luke Tuch, will both suit up for the United States at the only major international tournament currently involving NHL players. Tuch, 26, is coming off the first point-per-game campaign in his NHL career, notching 79 points in 74 games for Buffalo in 2022-23.
- Captain Kyle Okposo is a free agent this offseason after wrapping up a seven-year, $42MM deal with the Sabres, but isn’t certain about his playing future. The 34-year-old mentioned today that he’ll need some time to decide what’s next for him, although if he does return to NHL ice in 2023-24, it will be in Buffalo. Okposo registered 11 goals and 17 assists in 75 games this season and is less than 20 games away from the 1,000-game plateau.
- Another pair of free agents this offseason, Zemgus Girgensons and Tyson Jost, both expressed their interest today in returning to Buffalo next season. Both players had solid seasons in bottom-six roles, and it does seem unlikely that Buffalo would opt to move on from either. Jost is still under team control as a restricted free agent, while Girgensons is the longest-tenured player on the team, amassing 625 games in a Sabres uniform. With the team on the cusp of their first playoff appearance in over a decade, it would seem odd not to have a leader such as Girgensons in the fold.
Kyle Okposo: the poster child for why you don’t sign guys to max term contracts.
Okposo & his contract is not has bad as some. Ask the Wild about the 2 they had to buyout. Okposo & his contract allowed the Sabres to get to the cap floor the last few seasons.
Well … comparing Okposo to the Wild’s situation is like claiming that shooting yourself in the leg is better than shooting yourself in the leg twice. Arguably, but that doesn’t make it good. (With that, Suter and Parise gave Minnesota many top-quality seasons between them. Not in any season of his contract could it be said that Okposo played up to his AAV.)
Okposo should have played one more year at UM. Too many hockey guys have deficient maturity and never were in college for education.