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Sabres Recall Ryan Johnson

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The Sabres announced Thursday that they’ve recalled defenseman Ryan Johnson from AHL Rochester. Buffalo has a full active roster, so a corresponding transaction is imminent.

Johnson’s recall gives the Sabres an extra defender for tonight’s game against the Jets after captain Rasmus Dahlin left Tuesday’s collapse against the Avalanche in the third period with back spasms. The star blue liner had been dealing with back issues since training camp, but head coach Lindy Ruff said that a hit from Colorado superstar Cale Makar in the corner aggravated the problem.

Dahlin will likely miss tonight’s game as a result. If the pending corresponding move is an injured reserve placement for Dahlin, he would also miss their following two games – including a key divisional battle against the Red Wings on Dec. 9.

That would be an enormous blow to the Sabres, who are now 4-5-1 in their last 10 games and have slipped back below the .500 mark for the first time since Nov. 16. They’re three points back of the Flyers for the second wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference with no games in hand and need to leapfrog five teams to get back into playoff position – a stark reminder of how competitive the East postseason race is shaping up to be in the first half of the campaign.

Johnson is a good choice as far as short-term insurance policies go, though. The Sabres selected the 23-year-old with the final pick of the first round in the 2019 draft. After a full four years at the University of Minnesota, he turned pro in 2023 and split last season between the NHL and AHL.

The son of former NHLer Craig Johnson spent about half the season on the Buffalo roster, recording seven assists and a +3 rating while averaging 13:53 per night over 41 games. The 6’1″, 195-lb lefty didn’t get much special teams usage, but the Sabres controlled play well with him on the ice at even strength (52.7 CF%, 52.9 xGF%).

While he’s been lauded as a two-way defender, Johnson’s point totals haven’t popped yet in the pros. He’s still looking for his first professional goal and has only 14 assists in 48 games for Rochester dating back to his debut last season.

That’s not to say he’s been a liability, though. As Bill Hoppe of the Olean Times Herald profiled last month, Johnson’s taken leaps and bounds defensively in Rochester this season. If his offensive development stagnates, he looks to be a competent stay-at-home piece for the Sabres.

The Sabres could make several transactions to accommodate Johnson’s recall without placing Dahlin on IR. The most foreseeable is reassigning center Tyson Kozak back to Rochester, whom they recalled last week in the wake of a short-term injury to Sam Lafferty. However, Kozak has been a healthy scratch in two straight and is waiver-exempt.

Evening Notes: Team USA, Annunen, Misa

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Chris Johnston of TSN’s Insider Trading reported tonight that it appears Montreal Canadiens forward Cole Caufield and Buffalo Sabres forward Tage Thompson will not be a part of Team USA at the 4 Nations Face-Off. Both Caufield and Thompson have had strong starts to the season but were reportedly left off the roster as Team USA prioritized experience over young skill.

It’s a tough decision for Team USA, but one that makes sense given that the players they chose will be a better fit in the team’s bottom six forward group. Johnston floated the names of Vincent Trocheck, Chris Kreider and Brock Nelson as the players likely to make the team over Caufield and Thompson.

In other evening notes:

  • The Nashville Predators reportedly tried to acquire goaltender Justus Annunen from the Colorado Avalanche last season in the Yakov Trenin deal (as per Predators reporter Brooks Bratten). The Predators scouts coveted Annunen for quite a while and are thrilled to have him in the fold. The 24-year-old has dressed in 11 games this season with Colorado, posting pedestrian numbers with a 6-4 record and a .872 save percentage. While those numbers certainly don’t jump off the page, Annunen was solid last season in 14 NHL games, posting a .928 save percentage and a 2.25 goals-against average.
  • Jeff Marek of Daily Faceoff tweeted today that Boston University is interested in potential 2025 first-overall pick Michael Misa. The 17-year-old has been tearing up the Ontario Hockey League this season with the Saginaw Spirit, tallying 25 goals and 24 assists in 25 games. The Oakville, Ontario native is in his third full season in the OHL and has registered 76 goals and 104 assists in 137 career OHL games. BU is also apparently interested in Misa’s brother, Luke Misa, who is a Calgary Flames prospect playing for the Brampton Steelheads. Luke is having a nice season in Brampton, scoring 13 goals and adding 19 assists in 24 games.

Sabres Recall Tyson Kozak With Sam Lafferty Out

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Buffalo Sabres Sam Lafferty left the team’s Friday loss to the Vancouver Canucks with a lower-body injury. Head coach Lindy Ruff shared that Lafferty isn’t expected to play against the Islanders on Saturday, prompting the team to recall forward Tyson Kozak, per Lance Lysowski of The Buffalo News. Lysowski adds that Kozak could make his debut right away, leapfrogging Nicolas Aube-Kubel as the team’s extra forward.

Lafferty has just one goal in 21 games this season from Buffalo’s fourth line. He’s added onto that 14 penalty minutes, a -2, and 26 hits – the slimmest stat line of any routine Sabres lineup piece. That should pave a strong path to minutes for Kozak, who seems to have finally found his groove at the pro level. He has five goals and six points in 14 game this season, already matching his goal-totals from 55 games in 2022-23, and 41 games in 2023-24. He’ll become the first seventh round pick from the 2021 NHL Draft to make his debut, should he step in – with the closest NHL company being fifth-round pick Joshua Roy, who’s played 25 games with Montreal.

Kozak was a diligent playmaker in junior hockey, recording 109 points across 152 games with the WHL’s Portland Winterhawks, though that tenure was interrupted by COVID-19 cancellations. He served as Portland’s captain in his final season of 2021-22, posting 69 points in 66 games with a letter on his chest. He’s not been as diligent at the pro level, but could still hit a strong groove should this hot start to the season continue.

Sabres Reassign Isak Rosen, Activate Tage Thompson

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Nov. 27, 10:25 a.m.: Thompson will come off injured reserve and play tonight against the Wild, head coach Lindy Ruff confirmed to reporters, including Heather Engel of NHL.com.

Nov. 26, 5:50 p.m.: The Buffalo Sabres have assigned top prospect Isak Rosen back to the minor leagues, clearing up the room to activate star forward Tage Thompson off of injured reserve per Lance Lysowski of The Buffalo News. Thompson has missed Buffalo’s last five games after suffering a lower-body injury in the team’s November 11th matchup against Montreal. He returned to practice in full earlier today and shared that he’ll be good to go on Wednesday with reporters, including Jonathan Acosta of WGRZ.

Thompson will return to the lineup with an intact four-game goal streak since he scored once in the game when he sustained his injury. He has 11 goals and 18 points in 16 games this season and is still the only Sabre to cross 10 goals despite five fewer appearances. Thompson has continued to serve as the heart of Buffalo’s lineup this season, averaging over 19 minutes of ice time and a key role on the power-play. He’ll jump right back into a top role when Buffalo hosts Minnesota on Wednesday, likely between his usual wing pair of JJ Peterka and Alex Tuch.

Buffalo has persevered through Thompson’s absence, setting a 4-1-0 record in their last five games. But the offense has taken a notable hit, with Buffalo averaging just 2.8 goals-per-game without Thompson – down from the 3.44 goals they averaged in their first 16 games. It’s been defender Bowen Byram and goaltenders Devon Levi and Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen stepping up in response, with Byram averaging nearly 24 minutes of ice time and the netminders averaging 2.40 goals against without Thompson.

Meanwhile, Rosen will return to the minors after receiving 6:30 of ice time in Buffalo’s Saturday win over San Jose. He didn’t record any points in the outing, pulling Rosen through his eighth career NHL game with still no scoring. That’s despite the young Swede serving as the Rochester Americans’ leading scorer, with 13 points through 14 games this year. He ranked second on the team in scoring last year, with 50 points in 67 games as an AHL rookie. Rosen still stands as one of Buffalo’s top-shelf prospects, and will rejoin company like Konsta Helenius, Viktor Neuchev, and Anton Wahlberg in Rochester. All four prospects will fight to climb Buffalo’s call-up list before the winter break by righting a sinking Rochester lineup currently on a seven-game losing streak.

Tage Thompson Won't Return Tonight

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  • Forward Tage Thompson has been ruled out of tonight’s contest in another unfortunate turn for the Buffalo Sabres (X Link). There was plenty of expectation that Thompson would return tonight but he will now miss his fifth straight game due to a lower-body injury. Impressively, despite the injury, Thompson still leads Buffalo in goal-scoring with 11 goals in 16 games.

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Alex Tuch Good To Go, Tage Thompson Still Out

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  • Lance Lysowski of The Buffalo News shared a few updates regarding the Buffalo Sabres and their matchup against the Los Angeles Kings. After initially projecting as questionable for today’s matchup due to an undisclosed injury, forward Alex Tuch is expected to play tonight. Unfortunately the same cannot be said for Tage Thompson, who will miss his third consecutive game due to a lower-body injury. There was some optimism that Thompson could return tonight after practice on Monday but today’s practice has changed Buffalo’s mind.

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Jordan Greenway Considered Week-To-Week With Injury

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The Buffalo Sabres received unfortunate news on the injury front earlier today after an MRI confirmed the severity of Jordan Greenway’s current injury. It had already been announced that Greenway wouldn’t play in the team’s loss on Saturday against the Philadelphia Flyers but Paul Hamilton is reporting he’s expected to miss the next few weeks.

Greenway has played in 16 of a potential 18 games for the Sabres this season but has significant injury concerns dating back to last season. In his first full season with the organization in the 2023-24 campaign, Greenway missed 15 games due to injury while scoring 10 goals and 28 points in the other 67 contests.

It’s not all negative on the injury front in Buffalo as Hamilton also reported that Tage Thompson has become a realistic possibility to play on Wednesday. Thompson hasn’t played since November 11th due to a lower-body injury making Wednesday his first day of eligibility from the injured reserve. He’s been electric for the Sabres this season scoring 11 goals and 18 points in 16 games when healthy.

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Sabres Reassign Devon Levi

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2:50 p.m.: Buffalo used Levi’s roster spot to recall winger Isak Rosén from Rochester. The 2021 first-round pick will likely head back to the AHL when Thompson is ready to return, but it’s still a nice reward for the 21-year-old, who leads Rochester with 13 points (4 G, 9 A) in 14 games this season.

10:28 a.m.: The Sabres will reassign goaltender Devon Levi to AHL Rochester, head coach Lindy Ruff told reporters Monday, including Mike Harrington of The Buffalo News.

While the demotion is made primarily with Levi’s development in mind, it also likely prefaces a couple of corresponding moves. Starter Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen will be back in the crease against the Kings on Wednesday after missing two games with an undisclosed injury. At the same time, star center Tage Thompson will likely come off injured reserve to fill Levi’s vacated roster spot after sitting out a few contests with a lower-body injury.

Before Luukkonen’s injury last week, Levi had sat as the backup for 11 out of 15 games. That’s not the best recipe for success for a 22-year-old netminder with plenty of room to grow, which Ruff articulated as the primary reason for his return to Rochester.

It could also rightfully be considered a performance-based demotion. The 2020 seventh-round pick has gone five games without recording a .900 SV% and has won only two of his six starts, posting a .870 SV% and 3.95 GAA with a career-worst -5.7 GSAA on the year.

Buffalo’s top young netminder was excellent in the AHL last season while splitting time evenly between the NHL and the minors. In 26 games, he posted a 2.42 GAA, .927 SV% and a 16-6-4 record. It was his first full professional campaign after two seasons at Northeastern, where he compiled a sparkling .942 SV% in 66 appearances, winning the Mike Richter Award for the NCAA’s top goalie in 2022 and 2023.

While those are promising numbers, it’s clear Levi needs more reps and more frequent playing time before establishing himself as a fixture on the NHL roster. He’s arguably been the worst goaltender in the league in 2024-25, relative to the shot quality he’s faced. Among the 58 goalies with at least five games, Levi’s -1.23 goals saved above expected per 60 minutes are the lowest, per MoneyPuck.

Levi’s demotion leaves veteran James Reimer as the Sabres’ No. 2 option behind Luukkonen for the foreseeable future. The 36-year-old signed a one-year, $1MM contract with Buffalo in free agency over the summer but was selected off waivers by the Ducks the day before the regular season started.

Reimer suited up twice for Anaheim while John Gibson was on the shelf due to an emergency appendectomy surgery, conceding nine goals on 66 shots for a poor .864 SV%. Nonetheless, the Sabres wanted him back and re-claimed him off waivers last week after Gibson returned to play. The Manitoba native spent last season with the Red Wings, recording an 11-8-2 record, .904 SV%, 3.11 GAA, and two shutouts in 20 starts and five relief appearances.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Sabres Recall Jiri Kulich, Place Tage Thompson On IR

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The Buffalo Sabres have placed top-line forward Tage Thompson on injured reserve retroactive to November, 11th, shares Lance Lysowski of The Buffalo News. Buffalo has recalled top prospect Jiri Kulich in a corresponding move.

Thompson was pulled from Buffalo’s Monday loss to Montreal after the first period with a lower-body injury. He ended his night with one goal in 6:49 of ice time, continuing his scoring streak into its fourth game. He went on to miss Buffalo’s Thursday win over St. Louis, and will now miss at least one more game before being eligible to return on November 18th. He’s continued to stand as one of Buffalo’s absolute best, currently leading the team with 11 goals, 18 points, and 114 shot attempts through 16 games. Thompson has scored an NHL-leading 10 of his goals at even-strength.

Buffalo also announced that winger Jordan Greenway has been playing through an injury and is now questionable for Saturday night. The news is a bit of a surprise, with Greenway continuing to serve in a go-to bruiser role over the last five games. He only has one point, but has added 16 hits and one fight in that span. That emerging injury has prompted Buffalo to bring Kulich back to the NHL lineup after four games in the AHL. He was productive in a return to the minors, totaling two goals, three points, and 17 shots. The Sabres will hope that spur of scoring will spark Kulich’s game at the NHL level as well, with the rookie currently sitting with just one goal in eight NHL games this season.

Sam Lafferty stepped into the lineup in Thompson’s absence, while Ryan McLeod filled his hole on the top line. McLeod recorded one goal and one assist with the boosted minutes, and should hang onto a strong hold of ice time. Meanwhile, Lafferty and Kulich will battle for the role of fourth-line center, unless Greenway is unable to play.

Tage Thompson, Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen Won't Play Thursday Versus Blues

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Neither Sabres starter Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen nor star center Tage Thompson will play versus the Blues on Thursday, head coach Lindy Ruff told Lance Lysowski of The Buffalo News. They remain day-to-day with undisclosed and lower-body injuries, respectively.

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