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Sabres Reassign Devon Levi

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12/16: Buffalo has loaned Levi back to Rochester. Levi allowed four goals on 40 shots in Buffalo’s Sunday loss to Toronto. He will return to the AHL, where he’s set a 7-1-1 record and .916 save percentage so far this season.

12/15: The Sabres’ top goaltending prospect is back in the NHL. Devon Levi has been recalled from AHL Rochester, Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reports. He will start later today against the Maple Leafs, head coach Lindy Ruff told Bill Hoppe of the Olean Times Herald. Defenseman Ryan Johnson has been returned to the minors in a corresponding move to open a roster spot, the team confirmed.

Levi, 22, started the season on the NHL roster but played sparingly behind starter Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen. That was simply due to strong play from the latter and weak play from the former. Levi was a strong backup option last season, posting a .899 SV% and 3.10 GAA behind a demanding workload. However, few-and-far-between starts likely contributed to a steep regression for the youngster in 2024-25. In six starts and one relief appearance, Levi managed just a .870 SV% and 3.95 GAA with a 2-5-0 record. His -7.5 goals saved above expected are the worst on Buffalo by far and seventh-worst in the league despite his low workload, per MoneyPuck.

That led the Sabres to reclaim veteran James Reimer off waivers in mid-November after they lost him to the Ducks at the beginning of the season. After re-installing him as Luukkonen’s backup, Buffalo returned the waiver-exempt Levi to Rochester on Nov. 18 to get him more playing time and, by extension, regain his confidence.

It was a prudent move by Sabres general manager Kevyn Adams. Levi has been stellar on the farm, posting a 7-1-1 record in nine games with Rochester with a 2.08 GAA, .916 SV% and two shutouts. That’s nothing new from the 2020 seventh-round pick of the Panthers, who Buffalo acquired as part of the trade that sent Sam Reinhart to Florida. Levi was similarly spectacular when on assignment to Rochester last season, finishing fourth in the league with a .927 SV% in 26 outings.

Nonetheless, Ruff wouldn’t confirm today if Levi’s promotion is a long-term bump or a short-term jolt to help the Sabres exit a debilitating nine-game losing streak. “I don’t really have that answer, but he’s going to play this game, and we’ll make a decision,” he told Mike Harrington of The Buffalo News.

Both goalscoring and goaltending have been recent issues for the Sabres, whose last win was a 4-2 victory over the Sharks on Nov. 23. Luukkonen has a .890 mark in seven starts, while Reimer has a .860 in two over the losing streak. However, Buffalo won’t win many contests by scoring just 2.22 goals per game.

Outside of the current circumstances, it’s another chance for the Sabres’ top goaltending prospect to prove he can be a difference-maker at the NHL level after solidifying himself as an elite talent at every other step in his development. The Montreal native was arguably the best goaltender in college hockey during his two seasons with Northeastern in 2021-22 and 2022-23, logging a .942 SV% and 16 shutouts in 66 appearances and winning the Mike Richter Award for the NCAA’s top goaltender on both tries.

Meanwhile, Johnson returns to the minors after a middling showing during his 10-day recall. He appeared in Buffalo’s last three games with Rasmus Dahlin sidelined due to back spasms, posting no points and a -2 rating while averaging 17:40 per game. He recorded four blocks and one hit while hurting Buffalo’s puck possession at even strength, controlling only 45.2% of shot attempts. In contrast, the Sabres controlled 52.6% of shot attempts without Johnson on the ice.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Atlantic Notes: Reinhardt, Norris, Lafferty, Stolarz, McMann, Talbot

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The Senators announced Friday that they’ve recalled left-winger Cole Reinhardt from AHL Belleville.

The 24-year-old has been subject to multiple paper transactions this season, but this doesn’t appear to be one of them. Reinhardt has been in Belleville since Sunday and hasn’t been rostered for either of Ottawa’s last two games. He could enter the lineup tonight against the Hurricanes instead of center Zack Ostapchuk, who left Wednesday’s 5-1 win over the Ducks with an undisclosed injury.

Ottawa would need someone to shift to center – Reinhardt has never played the position meaningfully at the professional level. One of Nick Cousins, Noah Gregor or Ridly Greig will likely move to take Ostapchuk’s spot as fourth-line center while Reinhardt slots in on their wing.

In five NHL appearances this season, the 24-year-old Calgary native has a goal and an assist with a -2 rating and 14 hits while averaging 9:15 per game. He’s been dynamic when on assignment to the B-Sens, posting five goals and 10 assists for 15 points in only 12 games. He’s the only Belleville player producing more than a point per game.

In other Sens news, the league announced that center Joshua Norris had been fined $2,000 for being issued his second embellishment citation this season. The incident that spurred the fine occurred on Dec. 5 against the Red Wings, with the league positing that Norris overreacted to a holding offense from Detroit rookie Marco Kasper (video link).

Elsewhere in the Atlantic Division:

  • Sabres forward Sam Lafferty practiced in a regular jersey this morning and could be an option to return to the lineup this weekend, head coach Lindy Ruff told Paul Hamilton of WGR Sports Radio 550. Lafferty has been on injured reserve for over a week with a lower-body issue and has missed Buffalo’s last six games, all of them losses amid a larger eight-game winless streak. Prior to getting hurt, the 29-year-old was averaging just 9:48 per game and had been limited to one goal in 22 appearances with a -2 rating. Buffalo signed him to a two-year, $4MM deal in free agency over the summer to contribute as a fourth-line piece and kill penalties, the latter of which he’s rarely done – he averages just 32 seconds per game shorthanded.
  • It’s all good news on the injury front for the Maple Leafs. Netminder Anthony Stolarz is only day-to-day with his lower-body injury after leaving last night’s win over the Ducks after the first period, head coach Craig Berube said today (via Jonas Siegel of The Athletic). The 30-year-old leads the league with a .927 SV% and has started 17 of Toronto’s 29 games, on pace to break last year’s career-high 24. He’ll likely miss their next two games against the Red Wings and Sabres, but the lack of an IR placement suggests he may be available next Wednesday against the Stars. Berube also said that winger Bobby McMann, who’s missed seven games with a lower-body issue, is “very close” to returning (per David Alter of The Hockey News).
  • Red Wings starter Cam Talbot re-aggravated the lower-body injury that kept him out for most of this month and will be unavailable tomorrow against Toronto, per the team’s Daniella Bruce. He made 32 saves on 34 shots in a loss to the Flyers last night, bringing his SV% on the year up to a strong .916 mark. The team will wait to recall a backup for No. 3 option Ville Husso until tomorrow, Bruce said.

Atlantic Notes: Stolarz, Hildeby, Sabres

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TSN’s Darren Dreger is reporting that the Toronto Maple Leafs are waiting for results on the severity of an injury that forced goaltender Anthony Stolarz from last night’s game. The 30-year-old Stolarz has had a torrid start to his first season in Toronto, going 9-5-2 with a 2.15 goals-against average and a .927 save percentage. Stolarz is currently ranked sixth in the NHL in goals saved above expected with 9.3 (as per Money Puck).

Stolarz’s injury has forced Toronto to recall netminder Dennis Hildeby from the Toronto Marlies of the American Hockey League. Hildeby will presumably take on a backup role to Joseph Woll during Stolarz’s absence. Hildeby has seen action in two NHL games this season, going 1-1 with 4.03 goals against and a .869 save percentage.

In other Atlantic Division notes:

  • Buffalo Sabres head coach Lindy Ruff benched two of his top players on Wednesday night as the team dropped their eighth straight game (as per Bill Hoppe of Buffalo Hockey Beat). Ruff sat defenseman Owen Power and winger JJ Peterka for significant stretches of the game after they made crucial mistakes. Both players responded well, with Power scoring a goal in the third period of the game. The Sabres sit sixth in the Atlantic with a record of 11-14-4 but hold a goal differential of just -8. They have lost six one-goal games in their eight-game skid.
  • Speaking of the Sabres, Darren Dreger reported on TSN’s Insider Trading yesterday that Buffalo’s general manager Kevyn Adams is looking to make moves to shake up his roster but might not find a desirable move. Adams is receiving calls on younger players like Jack Quinn but doesn’t appear likely to force a move like that. The Sabres would like to make a trade that helps them now, but if they continue to slide it does appear that they will miss the playoffs once again. Should that happen, it would likely mean that veterans on expiring deals, such as Jason Zucker would be moved.

Sabres Activate Mattias Samuelsson From Injured Reserve

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Dec. 11, 10:42 a.m.: Ruff confirmed to reporters that Samuelsson will be available tonight (including Heather Engel of NHL.com), indicating he’s been taken off injured reserve.

Dec. 10, 5:45 p.m.: Sabres defenseman Mattias Samuelsson will make his return to the lineup tomorrow against the Rangers, reports Lance Lysowski of The Buffalo News. He’ll need to come off injured reserve first, but Buffalo has an open roster spot after reassigning Tyson Kozak to AHL Rochester this morning.

The 24-year-old lefty has missed the last 12 games with a lower-body injury he sustained against the Canadiens on Nov. 11. It was his first appearance in over a week after a run of three straight healthy scratches, part of what’s been a frustrating campaign for the 2018 second-round pick.

Samuelsson’s return comes a bit earlier than most expected after he was initially ruled week-to-week. He’ll end up missing exactly a month, although the tea leaves displayed by head coach Lindy Ruff at the time of his injury suggested it could be longer.

That’s good news for the young defender, who’s already missed significant chunks of the last two seasons with varying injuries. Now in the second year of his seven-year, $30MM extension, Samuelsson is averaging a career-low 16:05 per game in 2024-25 and had one goal and a -2 rating through 13 appearances.

While the Pennsylvania native looked to have the upside of a stalwart top-pairing shutdown defender, that outlook is looking bleaker after the last couple of years. He was off to the worst start of his career possession-wise before the injury – the Sabres were controlling 55.4% of shot attempts at even strength without Samuelsson on the ice compared to only 49.2% with him.

There are still five seasons left after this one on that long-term commitment, one that could feasibly be headed toward a buyout if he can’t work his way back up the depth chart or at least avoid the injury bug. He’s expected to skate in a third-pairing role alongside Connor Clifton in his return, per PuckPedia.

East Notes: Chinakhov, Duclair, Pelech, Kozak

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Columbus Blue Jackets winger Yegor Chinakhov has missed the team’s last six games with an upper-body injury, and doesn’t seem close to a return. Head coach Dean Evason told NHL.com’s Jeff Svoboda that Chinakhov is “progressing, for sure” but that he hasn’t yet returned to skating, making a return to the lineup hard to predict.

Chinakhov has 14 points, split evenly, through 21 games this season. He’s playing the best hockey of his career – scoring at a career-high pace, recording a positive +/- for the first time, and working his way into 17 minutes of average ice time each game. They’re all very positive signs of life for the 23-year-old winger, who’s bettering the 16 goals and 29 points in 53 games last season: an 82-game pace of 45 points. Improving on those numbers is helping Chinakhov justify his 21st-overall selection in the 2020 NHL Draft – a shocking pick at the time, despite Chinakhov was one of Russia’s top junior scorers entering the draft. He made the jump to the NHL less than two years later and has since recorded 70 points and 34 penalty minutes in 166 career games. He’ll look to continue producing when he’s finally able to return to the lineup, though Evason suggests he’ll have to hit multiple checkpoints before that occurs.

Other notes from out East:

  • Both Anthony Duclair (lower-body) and Adam Pelech (upper-body) returned to the New York Islanders practices today, each wearing a no-contact jersey, shares Newsday’s Andrew Gross. It’s a timely step for both players, who were designated to miss one-to-two months in late October and early November respectively. Duclair landed on long-term injured reserve on October 26th, while Pelech was placed on standard IR on November 2nd. Duclair scored two goals and three points in five games before falling to injury, looking like a stout addition to New York’s top-six. Meanwhile, Pelech’s spot on the top pair likely remains unrivaled. He’s averaged north of 20 minutes of ice time through 11 games this season, recording four assists along the way. The duo are pacing to return to the lineup before the holiday break, though it’s yet to be seen if that timeline will actually come to fruition.
  • The Buffalo Sabres have sent young winger Tyson Kozak back to the minor leagues. It’s unclear if this is a means of accruing daily cap space before Wednesday’s matchup against the Rangers, or if Kozak’s assignment is expected to stick. Kozak received the first three NHL games of his career on this recall. He scored his first NHL goal in his first NHL game – but it got called back after a coach’s challenge from Jets head coach Scott Arniel. Not to be denied, Kozak managed to score again in his second game – this time cementing his first goal at the top flight. He served in a fourth-line role throughout his recall, and could be at risk of formally losing an NHL spot with the return of Jordan Greenway and Sam Lafferty from injury.

Rasmus Dahlin Hopeful To Return This Weekend

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  • Lance Lysowski of The Buffalo News confirms that Buffalo Sabres’ winger Jordan Greenway will return to the lineup tonight against the Detroit Red Wings. He’s missed the last 10 games for the Sabres after scoring three goals and six points through his first 16 contests.
  • One player not returning to Buffalo’s lineup tonight is captain Rasmus Dahlin as the team announced he participated in a rehab skate this morning. There’s growing optimism that Dahlin will be able to return this weekend when the Sabres take on the Washington Capitals on Saturday. The first-year captain in Buffalo has scored three goals and 19 points in 25 games this season.

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Rasmus Dahlin Dealing With Back Spasms And Is Being Evaluated

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Aaron Portzline of The Athletic writes that Columbus Blue Jackets defenseman Ivan Provorov could play tonight when the team takes on the Winnipeg Jets. Provorov left Friday night’s game against the Vancouver Canucks with what was called an upper-body injury, which was later revealed to be an injury to his thumb. Photos circulated online of the 27-year-old’s thumb, and it certainly looked painful, however, Portzline is hearing that it’s possible he could play.

Provorov is an unrestricted free agent at the end of this season and has two goals and seven assists in 26 games so far this year. He will likely become a trade candidate at some point later in the season as the Blue Jackets are unlikely to be a playoff team.

In other morning notes:

  • Tampa Bay Lightning star forward Nikita Kucherov could return to the lineup today when the team takes on the Canucks (as per NHL.com). The 31-year-old has missed two games due to an undisclosed injury and hasn’t played since November 29th. Tampa had a quiet week last week with just two games and would be fortunate if that is all the time the reigning Art Ross Trophy winner misses. Kucherov is having another stellar season with 12 goals and 22 assists in just 22 games.
  • Buffalo Sabres defenseman Rasmus Dahlin missed last night’s game against Utah due to back spasms (as per NHL.com). The 24-year-old missed Thursday night’s game against Winnipeg and only played a single shift in the third period of Tuesday night’s game against Colorado before he left. Dahlin dealt with a back issue during training camp in September and missed five days before rejoining the team for practice. Despite the issue, the former first-overall pick is still having a good season with six goals and 13 assists in 25 games.

Greenway And Samuelsson Take Part In Full Practice

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The Sabres are getting close to getting a couple of players back in the lineup.  Team reporter Justin Alpert relays that winger Jordan Greenway and defenseman Mattias Samuelsson both took part in practice today in regular (contact) jerseys after previously being limited to non-contact drills.  Greenway has been out for nearly three weeks due to a middle-body injury and has three goals and three assists through 16 games so far.  As for Samuelsson, he last played nearly four weeks ago due to a lower-body issue.  It has been a struggle for him this season as his playing time is down by more than four minutes a night while also briefly spending time as a healthy scratch.  Both players probably aren’t going to be ready for Saturday’s game versus Utah but they should be back soon after that.

Sabres Reportedly Had Offseason Deal On The Table For Martin Nečas

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  • In a long-lasting meeting with the press in Buffalo, Sabres’ general manager Kevyn Adams could be kicking himself for not capitalizing on an offseason trade. Mike Harrington of Buffalo News Sports reported it was all but confirmed that Buffalo had a deal on the table this past summer for Carolina Hurricanes’ forward Martin Nečas but never went through with it. To Adams’ credit, few analysts predicted Nečas would lead the league in points by early December. He’s scored 14 goals and 41 points in 26 games for the Hurricanes through the first quarter of the regular season.
  • According to Heather Engel of NHL.com, Adams offered another interesting tidbit at today’s presser. Engel quoted Adams as saying, “We’re not a destination city right now where you’re going to be able to go out and UFAs that are key guys“. It’s typically uncommon for an active general manager to publicly assert that free agents don’t perceive his organization as a viable landing spot. Still, Adams’ omission is a sign that he agrees there is more work to be done to the Sabres roster.

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Rasmus Dahlin Out Tonight

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There will be a glaring hole on the Buffalo Sabres’ blue line tonight. Lance Lysowski of The Buffalo News reported earlier that defenseman Rasmus Dahlin won’t play for the Sabres tonight without adding any context regarding an injury.

Buffalo’s captain has become irreplaceable for the organization as he sits third on the team in scoring with six goals and 19 points in 25 games. The Sabres will have a tough time keeping up with a surgical Winnipeg offense tonight with their best defenseman. He’s the only blue liner on the roster with an expected +/- higher than 0.

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  • There’s at least one positive development for Buffalo’s blue line as Lysowski also shared that defenseman Mattias Samuelsson is close to returning from his lower-body injury. It’s been nearly a month since Samuelsson last suited up for the Sabres and the team is hoping to get him a few more practices before activating him from the injured reserve. They’ll need him to be better once he does return as Samuelsson has only managed an 83.2% on-ice save percentage in all situations, far beneath his career average.

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