Henri Jokiharju Won’t Return To Tonight’s Game
The Buffalo Sabres have announced that defenseman Henri Jokiharju won’t return to tonight’s game after leaving with a lower body injury. Jokiharju left the game against the Columbus Blue Jackets after logging just 2:43 of ice time a registering a single shot. The former first round pick will finish the season with 13 points in 60 games.
The 23-year-old is in his fourth season with Buffalo after coming over to the Sabres in a trade that sent Alexander Nylander to the Chicago Blackhawks. He established a career high in points last season with 19 points in 60 games. While he couldn’t produce the same offense that he did last season, he continued to kill a lot of penalties for the Sabres while providing a steady defensive presence.
Jokiharju has had issues staying healthy as he has never been able to play a full NHL season. Although he is unlikely to miss any time due to this injury, he did miss a month of hockey back in December with another lower body injury. That injury was from blocking a shot against the Pittsburgh Penguins, which isn’t that surprising for a penalty killing defenseman.
Jokiharju will be hoping for a full summer of rest and training as the Sabres look to take the next step in their rebuild. Buffalo didn’t qualify for the playoffs this season but were in the mix until the last week of the year. With much of their core coming back next season, and a potential franchise goalie now in the mix, Buffalo figures to be a team that can contend for a playoff spot in the ultra-competitive Eastern Conference.
Buffalo Sabres Sign Zach Metsa
Freshly off leading his team to an NCAA National Championship title, now-former Quinnipiac University Bobcat captain Zach Metsa has decided to sign a 2-year contract with the Rochester Americans, the AHL affiliate of the Buffalo Sabres. For the remainder of this season, Metsa will join the Americans on a professional tryout agreement.
Metsa finished off his five-year career with Quinnipiac in impressive fashion, scoring nine goals and 28 assists in 40 regular season games. During this year’s Frozen Four, Metsa helped his team to the National Championship, scoring one goal and three assists through the Frozen Four. In total, the young defenseman played in 177 regular season games in the NCAA, scoring 31 goals and 90 assists.
Currently 35-25-6, the Americans have already clinched a spot in the Calder Cup playoffs. Being one of the most historic franchises in the AHL, Metsa will help Rochester in their attempt to win their seventh Calder Cup in franchise history.
If the season were to end today, the Americans would have a first-round bye into the division semifinals, where they would take on the AHL affiliate of the Tampa Bay Lightning, the Syracuse Crunch. With nine defensemen already on the roster in Rochester, it will be interesting to see how Metsa fits into the lineup down the stretch, and especially during the playoffs.
Ryan Johnson Meeting With Sabres
- Another possible college signing to keep an eye on is Ryan Johnson. Lance Lysowski of The Buffalo News reports that the Buffalo Sabres and Johnson had a zoom meeting and though things went well during the meeting, nothing official was put in place. Johnson has been a great two-way defender for Minnesota for the past four seasons, putting up four goals and 18 points in 40 games this season while playing a shutdown style and penalty killing role for a defensively sound squad. Johnson was the Sabres first-round pick in 2019 and would be another terrific young player on the Sabres squad if they are able to get a deal done. If not, Johnson has the option to become a free agent in August.
Tage Thompson Practices, Will Be Game-Time Decision Tomorrow
Buffalo Sabres forward Tage Thompson took to the ice for practice today, per the Times Herald’s Bill Hoppe, as he continues his recovery from an upper-body injury. Thompson was initially injured during a game on March 24 and played the Sabres’ next contest before aggravating the injury, missing the three games since.
Thompson’s return to practice is a lifeline for the Sabres, who are still barely hanging in the Eastern Conference playoff race and have, arguably, their most important game in a decade tomorrow against the Florida Panthers. Per CapFriendly, Thompson is listed as a game-time decision. Thompson’s 44 goals still rank sixth in the league, and his 89 points lead the team. His impact in such a crucial game could be immeasurable, and if at all possible, he’ll be suiting up Tuesday night.
- On the other side of the coin, the Florida Panthers could again be without goalie Sergei Bobrovsky against the Sabres as he continues to deal with a rather nasty illness, per Florida Hockey Now’s George Richards. He did not practice today and, like Thompson, is expected to be a game-time decision. The 34-year-old netminder has been sidelined for the past three games, but he’s been relieved well by Alex Lyon, who’s allowed just four goals in Bobrovsky’s absence.
Several Sabres Players To Return From Injury
- Bill Hoppe, a beat writer for the Buffalo Sabres, gave several updates on some key injuries to the lineup before tomorrow night’s game against the New York Rangers. As top prospect Devon Levi looks to make his NHL debut, Hoppe writes that forwards Tage Thompson and Jordan Greenway, as well as defenseman Mattias Samuelsson could all see their return to the lineup the same night. Currently, the Sabres sit five points back of the final wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference with nine games remaining in the regular season.
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Sabres Send Down Rousek
- After scoring one goal and one assist in his first-ever game in the NHL, Buffalo Sabres’ forward Lukas Rousek will be returned to the team’s AHL affiliate Rochester Americans. Drafted 160th overall in 2019, the Sabres forward has scored 49 points in 62 games for Rochester and seemed to translate that talent to the NHL in the team’s loss to the Montreal Canadiens. As Rochester is in the midst of a playoff hunt coming down the wire, expect Rousek to be a big part of that.
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Injury Notes: Thompson, Lindgren, Golden Knights
Bleacher Report contributor Joe Yerdon reports Tage Thompson will miss today’s game against the Montreal Canadiens. He also mentions it is an upper-body injury and Thompson has been dealing with it for the team’s past two games, but batted through. The Sabres are off for three days after tonight’s contest so it is hoped he will be recovered in time to face the New York Rangers on Thursday.
The 25-year-old forward is having a terrific season, leading the Sabres in scoring with 44 goals and 89 points in 72 games. He was hit awkwardly as he skated out of his zone on Friday night and appeared to be favoring his right side. He was able to finish that game and played the next night as well but will get some additional rest tonight.
- Arthur Staple of The Athletic reports Ryan Lindgren was a full participant at practice today. Lindgren missed a month earlier this season with an upper-body injury before returning on March 21. He played just one game and has missed the Rangers past two contests after re-aggravating the same injury. It sounds like he could be ready to go tomorrow night when the Rangers face the Columbus Blue Jackets.
- Per SinBin.vegas, the Golden Knights will be without a couple of key players for a while. Reilly Smith missed the team’s most recent game against the Edmonton Oilers and Logan Thompson has only played one game since February 9. Both players have lower-body injuries and head coach Bruce Cassidy said he does not expect either of them to play this week. The Golden Knights play the Oilers again on Tuesday and face the San Jose Sharks on Thursday.
Tage Thompson Day-To-Day With Upper-Body Injury
The Buffalo Sabres are all but out of the playoff race after a tough stretch of games, and life won’t get any easier for them down the stretch run. The Buffalo News’ Lance Lysowski reports Tage Thompson is absent from morning skate, as he’s day-to-day with an upper-body injury that caused him to miss much of the team’s win last Friday against the New Jersey Devils. In response, Lukas Rousek has been added to the Sabres roster for the second time in three days on an emergency loan, per CapFriendly.
In more positive news for the Sabres, Lysowski also notes forward Vinnie Hinostroza has returned to the team after a personal absence that kept him out of the team’s last two games. Hinostroza had been a healthy scratch for the two games prior, meaning he’s not played in over a week. Left winger Jordan Greenway, who remains day-to-day with an upper-body injury, also rejoined the team at practice. He has just one goal in eight games and a -5 rating since the Sabres acquired him on deadline day.
Buffalo Sabres Reassign Lukas Rousek
03/26/23: The Sabres announced this morning that Rousek has been sent back down to AHL Rochester.
It’s a tough break for one of Rochester’s top scorers, as Rousek didn’t draw into the lineup for the Sabres’ win over the New York Islanders yesterday. Having spent the day a healthy scratch, he’ll now head back to the AHL where he’ll resume playing a major role in the Americans’ playoff push.
03/25/23: Lukas Rousek’s first full professional season has been a strong one and he was rewarded for his efforts on Saturday as the Sabres announced (Twitter link) that they’ve recalled the forward from Rochester of the AHL.
The 23-year-old was a sixth-round pick by Buffalo back in 2019 and this is his first NHL promotion. After an ACL injury cost him the bulk of last season, Rousek has been productive this year with the Americans, notching 15 goals and 33 assists in 61 games; his assist and point totals are good for second on the team in scoring. If Rousek suits up for the Sabres, he’ll be the third player from their 2019 draft class to see NHL action.
Lance Lysowski of The Buffalo News clarifies (Twitter link) that the move has been classified as an emergency recall. Tage Thompson was injured last night while Jordan Greenway has missed the last week with an upper-body injury. Meanwhile, Vinnie Hinostroza is away from the team for personal reasons so Buffalo certainly needed to bring a forward up. Rousek will get that opportunity but as soon as one of those players is able to return, he’ll need to be sent back to the minors or have his recall converted to a regular one which would then count against the post-deadline limit of four.
Latest On Devon Levi
- Devon Levi, one of the game’s top goalie prospects, was on the ice today for Buffalo Sabres practice according to The Buffalo News’ Lance Lysowski. The former Northeastern Husky earned a three-year entry-level deal jam-packed with performance bonuses and remains on the Sabres’ active roster. While it’s not officially clear whether Buffalo plans on getting Levi some NHL action over the course of the rest of this season, his presence with the team and on their roster, rather than with the AHL’s Rochester Americans, indicates that the team could be leaning towards giving Levi a chance against NHL competition.