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Evening Notes: Tokarski, Jankowski, Barabanov

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The Buffalo Sabres have loaned netminder Dustin Tokarski to the Rochester Americans of the American Hockey League just a few days after recalling the 34-year-old. Tokarski was recalled and reassigned last week before being recalled again over the weekend due to an illness to Sabres backup Eric Comrie.

Tokarski backed up Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen’s today in a 4-3 loss to the Anaheim Ducks and was nearly summoned to play as Luukkonen struggled stopping just 11 of 15 shots in the loss. Tokarski hasn’t played in an NHL game since February 18th, 2023, and is 7-7-2 with a .887 save percentage in 17 AHL games this season.

In other evening notes:

  • A day after sending forward Mark Jankowski to the Milwaukee Admirals of the AHL, the Nashville Predators have recalled the 29-year-old. Jankowski has a goal in five games this season in the NHL but is currently third in AHL scoring with 15 goals and 32 assists in 40 games. He was named the AHL’s Player of the Month for January and will now re-join the Predators as they continue their five-game road trip tomorrow night in Vegas when they take on the Golden Knights.
  • The San Jose Sharks healthy scratched forward Alexander Barabanov today in their 4-0 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights. The 29-year-old has seen his name in trade rumors over the last few months despite struggling through a poor offensive season with just three goals and six assists in 34 games. Barabanov has put together a couple of solid offensive seasons in San Jose but hasn’t had the same quality of teammates this year which has led to poor offensive results. Barabanov is an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season, but it doesn’t appear he was held out of action for a pending trade. Based on reports, it seems as though Barabanov was scratched for his defensive play in a previous game.

Sabres Notes: Power, Clague, Tokarski, Comrie

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The Sabres moved defenseman Owen Power to IR on Monday, per the NHL’s media site. Power, 21, has already missed three games with a hand injury and remains listed as week-to-week

Assuming the IR placement is retroactive to Feb. 13, when the Sabres confirmed he sustained the injury in practice, he would be eligible to return Wednesday against the Canadiens. He’s likely to miss a little more time than that, though, and this roster move is for the purpose of opening up a roster spot more than anything else.

The 2021 first-overall pick hasn’t shown massive development from last year’s solid rookie campaign, but he’s not having a sophomore slump, either. He remains on track to be a long-term fixture in the Sabres’ top four and has been one of their best two-way defenders this season, recording 18 points and a +3 rating in 51 games while averaging 22:27 per game. He’s taken a significant step forward defensively, being on the ice for 0.74 expected goals against per game at even strength compared to last year’s 1.04 mark, per Hockey Reference, although it’s come at the expense of some offense.

The 6-foot-6 Mississauga native is signed to a seven-year, $58.45MM extension that begins next season. He will be eligible for unrestricted free agency in 2031.

More from the Sabres to open the week:

  • Power’s roster spot is going to defenseman Kale Clague, who the Sabres have recalled from AHL Rochester on an emergency basis, per a team announcement Monday. Buffalo recalled Clague under emergency conditions before Saturday’s overtime win over the Wild, but he was returned to Rochester after serving as a healthy scratch. Clague will likely be a scratch again against the Ducks on Monday but is an option to play if there’s an unexpected scratch. The 25-year-old has 23 points and a -8 rating in 42 games with Rochester.
  • Also coming up to the active roster is netminder Dustin Tokarski, who will back up Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen against Anaheim on Monday, head coach Don Granato says (via Paul Hamilton of WGR Sports Radio 550). Eric Comrie is unavailable with an illness and will be scratched. Tokarksi was summoned last Thursday to back up Comrie against the Panthers while Luukkonen was sidelined with a lower-body injury, but was returned to Rochester after Luukkonen was cleared to play over the weekend. The 34-year-old Tokarski has struggled in the minors this year, posting a .887 SV% in 17 games.

Buffalo Sabres Send Down Kale Clague

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  • Moving over to the Atlantic Division, the Buffalo Sabres announced they have sent down defenseman Kale Clague to their AHL affiliate, the Rochester Americans. Having yet to play for the Sabres up to this point in the season, Clague has been quite productive for the Americans, scoring three goals and 23 points through 41 contests.

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Sabres Might Need To Turn To Trade Market For Veteran Netminder Next Summer

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  • With Buffalo being in a spot where they were carrying three goalies for a good chunk of the season, Lance Lysowski of The Buffalo News wonders if that could affect their pursuit of a veteran netminder this summer. If it’s determined that Devon Levi needs more time with AHL Rochester, it stands to reason that the Sabres would want a veteran on a short-term deal to partner with Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen.  However, most of the quality second-string or platoon options will be looking for more than one year on the open market so Lysowski suggests that they might have to turn to the trade market to get a netminder on a short-term deal.

Victor Olofsson Hoping To Be Traded

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The future of Victor Olofsson in Buffalo has been a topic of some speculation for a few years now but each time, the winger has stuck around.  However, Olofsson told Lance Lysowski of The Buffalo News earlier this week that he has approached GM Kevyn Adams about finding a new place for him to play:

I’ve got to play hockey and right now I’m not doing it. You always have to think about yourself and your career. I’ve always had a great time here, and I love it here, but I’ve got to think about myself obviously. If there’s an opportunity to go somewhere and play, that would be the ideal thing.

The 28-year-old has been a frequent healthy scratch this season and when he has been in the lineup, he hasn’t been able to produce at the level he has in the past.  In 35 games so far, Olofsson has been limited to just four goals and eight assists.  Last season, he had 28 goals on his own and has hit the 20-goal mark in three of the last four years, a mark he’s unlikely to reach now in 2023-24.

Of course, while Olofsson may be hoping to find a new place to play, finding a team that can afford him will be trickier.  He has a $4.75MM cap hit and salary, a mark that not many contending teams can take on.  Even with the maximum 50% retention, there are still several playoff-bound squads that couldn’t take the remaining half of the contract on, nor would they want to cough up any sort of return of significance and possibly take themselves out of the market for a more impactful player.

Accordingly, it’s quite possible that Olofsson’s best chance to leave the Sabres is to find a non-playoff team that can afford his contract.  More specifically, a team with some injuries that’s looking for some players to fill out their roster or one with a similarly underachieving forward in a swap of expiring contracts.  But even with that scenario, Olofsson’s request to be moved might not be able to be honored.

Instead of his platform free agent year being a strong one, it has been anything but.  His hope was that he’d be playing for a big contract this summer but now, simply playing as a regular in a lineup somewhere appears to be Olofsson’s new goal.

Sabres Recall Kale Clague, Reassign Dustin Tokarski

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The Sabres have recalled defenseman Kale Clague from AHL Rochester, per a team release Friday morning. In a corresponding transaction, Buffalo returned goaltender Dustin Tokarski to Rochester after they summoned him on an emergency loan yesterday.

This recall is the 25-year-old Clague’s second of the season. Buffalo added him to the roster on an emergency basis for a Jan. 15 game against the Sharks, but he did not play.

Now in his second season with the Sabres organization, Clague is second on Rochester in assists with 20 in 41 games and leads Amerks defensemen in points with 23. His 52 PIMs this season are the most he’s had since his junior hockey days with the WHL’s Brandon Wheat Kings.

A second-round pick of the Kings in 2016, Clague’s tenure in Los Angeles ended when he was claimed off waivers by the Canadiens in December 2021. He didn’t do enough in 25 games with Montréal to end the 2021-22 season to convince them to give him a qualifying offer, thus reaching unrestricted free agency sooner than expected after his age-23 season.

The Sabres have since picked him up on two straight one-year, two-way deals, and he’s settled into the ninth spot on their defensive depth chart. An unexpected rookie showing from Ryan Johnson has limited his call-up opportunities, although he remains a dependable third-pairing option if needed. He struggled to control shot quality when handed some tougher matchups alongside Owen Power last season, controlling only 41.7% of expected goals in 27 games together, per MoneyPuck.

Clague will draw in only if injuries require it. With the Sabres heading on a one-game road trip to Minnesota and Power unavailable with a suspected hand injury, the Sabres opted to carry a seventh healthy defenseman.

Tokarski returns to the minors after backing up Eric Comrie in last night’s 4-0 loss to the Panthers. His reassignment suggests that Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, a late scratch with a lower-body injury yesterday, will return against the Wild tomorrow. The 34-year-old Tokarski is backing up top prospect Devon Levi in Rochester, where he’s struggled with a .888 SV% and a 7-7-2 record in 16 games.

Sabres Notes: Tokarski, Luukkonen, Quinn

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The Buffalo Sabres have recalled goaltender Dustin Tokarski from the Rochester Americans of the AHL. The 34-year-old has yet to play in the NHL this year and has sat fourth on the Sabres goaltending depth chart this season. The veteran of 80 NHL games will split duties with Eric Comrie for the time being as the Sabres have opted to leave youngster Devon Levi in the AHL.

A standout junior goalie in the WHL with the Spokane Chiefs, Tokarski has never been able to put it together in the NHL. He last dressed for an NHL game nearly a year ago to the day for the Pittsburgh Penguins surrendering four goals on 42 shots in a 5-2 loss to the New Jersey Devils. This season in the AHL, the native of Watson, Saskatchewan has struggled to a 7-7-2 record with an .888 save percentage and a 3.47 goals-against average.

In other Sabres notes:

  • Another Buffalo Sabres goaltender Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen is day-to-day after suffering a lower-body injury during the team’s morning skate. The 24-year-old was slated to start his fifth straight game tonight but will be sidelined for a few days. Luukkonen has started 10 of Buffalo’s last 11 games and is coming off his fourth shutout of the season on Tuesday against the Los Angeles Kings. The native of Espoo, Finland is 13-13-2 this season with a 2.51 goals against average and a .913 save percentage.
  • The Sabres also placed forward Jack Quinn on the injured reserve today with a lower-body injury. The 22-year-old underwent surgery on January 29th and is expected to be out for eight weeks meaning that his IR placement won’t affect a potential return when he is ready to get back into the lineup. The Ottawa, Ontario native has struggled with injuries this season and has played just 17 games. He was heating up before the injury with four points in his last two games and had been productive most of the season, posting five goals and seven assists.

Owen Power To Miss A “Few Games” With Upper-Body Injury

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Buffalo Sabres defenseman Owen Power will miss the team’s Tuesday night game, per head coach Don Granato, who shares that the former first-overall pick could miss a few games. Power left the team’s Monday practice with an apparent hand injury and isn’t expected to be out long-term.

Power becomes the third impact player to suffer injury recently, with Buffalo also set to be without Mattias Samuelsson for the remainder of the season and Jack Quinn for the next eight weeks. Power plays the biggest role of the trio, averaging over 22 minutes a game through 51 games this season. He’s scored two goals and 18 points, a step down in his scoring pace from last season when he totaled 35 points in 79 games. The 21-year-old is in his second full NHL season since being drafted with the top selection in the 2021 NHL Draft. He’s totaled 138 career games and 56 points – ranked third in his draft class in career games behind Cole Sillinger and J.J. Moser.

Power’s absence will likely open space for rookie Ryan Johnson to take on an expanded role. Johnson was the Sabres first-round pick in the 2019 NHL Draft and made his NHL debut this season – playing in a total of 32 games and recording six assists. It’s Johnson’s first season of professional hockey, with the 22-year-old also tallying four assists in nine AHL games this season. He’s still searching for his first professional goal – though scoring goals has never been his forte, as he totaled just nine goals across four seasons and 143 games with the University of Minnesota. Jacob Bryson will also benefit from Power’s absence. The 26-year-old has appeared in just five NHL games this season and is still searching through his first point of the year.

Owen Power Sustains Apparent Hand Injury

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  • Sabres sophomore defenseman Owen Power left practice with an apparent hand injury on Monday and is undergoing additional imaging, head coach Don Granato said (via Mike Harrington of The Buffalo News). Power’s status for Tuesday’s game against the Kings is now uncertain. The 2021 first-overall pick has seen his point production drop after last season’s third-place Calder Trophy finish, notching two goals and 18 points in 51 games this year, but he’s made up for it by making major strides defensively. He’s been on the ice for 0.74 expected goals against per game at even strength compared to 1.05 last season, per Hockey Reference, all the while seeing a tad more defensive-zone usage than he did in 2022-23. Averaging 22:28 per game, those minutes will be hard for the Sabres to replace if he’s gone for any length of time, especially with Mattias Samuelsson already done for the season after undergoing upper-body surgery. If Power can’t play Tuesday, rookie Ryan Johnson could slide into a top-four role alongside Connor Clifton, while depth defender Jacob Bryson could play for only the sixth time this season.

Sabres Looking To Add Despite Being A Dozen Points Out

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While the Sabres sit a dozen points out of the final Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference, it doesn’t seem as if they’re ready to give up on this season just yet.  In his Saturday Headlines segment on Saturday, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported (video link) that Buffalo is looking to add win-now pieces.  One thing they have that many buyers won’t is cap space as CapFriendly pegs them at having over $22MM in cap room today, a number that balloons to over $36MM on trade deadline day.  Accordingly, they have the ability to add some pieces to try to overcome this sizable deficit with 31 games left in their season.

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