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Mattias Samuelsson

Morning Notes: Maple Leafs, Andersson, Sabres

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Unlike other teams that have recently claimed their offseason checklists are complete, the Maple Leafs are still open for business, general manager Brad Treliving said on TSN 1050 last week. “To me, we’ve still got five weeks or so till camp,” Treliving said. “And, you know, we’re not set yet. We continue to look at ways to make our team better.”

It’s more like four weeks now, but Treliving’s right in that there are still multiple minor moves Toronto intends to make before veterans roll in for training camp. Chief among them is likely finding a home for disgruntled winger Nicholas Robertson, who remains an unsigned RFA after reportedly requesting a trade in June. The 2019 second-round pick finally broke into an everyday role with the Leafs last season after a few years of being relegated to minor-league roles, producing well in a depth role with 14 goals and 27 points in 56 games. That was good enough for 39 points over a full 82-game sample, but his ice time remained limited at 11:23 per game. Going pointless and averaging less than 10 minutes per game in six playoff contests against the Bruins didn’t boost his stock.

That means there’s still an unknown ripple effect on the Leafs’ forward depth. They’ll undoubtedly replace Robertson’s role one way or another, either by recouping a similar player in a swap or making a UFA signing to avoid putting too much pressure on rookies Easton Cowan and Fraser Minten to crack the opening night roster. Doing so would be a tricky fit with the salary cap if injured defenseman Jani Hakanpaa ever puts pen to paper on his reported two-year, $3MM deal, though. As things stand, they only have $1.275MM in space with a roster size of 21, per PuckPedia, which is not enough to be cap-compliant with Hakanpaa on the roster to start the season.

More from around the league:

  • The Flames have been on a major selling spree for the past year, shedding a multitude of veterans as part of a significant roster overhaul. Top-four staple Rasmus Andersson was among the players Calgary was getting calls on before last year’s trade deadline, but they ultimately opted to keep the 27-year-old while trading away Noah Hanifin and Chris Tanev instead. Nothing’s really changed on that front this summer, The Athletic’s Julian McKenzie said in a recent mailbag. Andersson isn’t off the trade block entirely, but it’ll take an overwhelmingly valued offer to pry him out of Alberta. He still has two years left on his deal at $4.55MM against the cap and has a six-team no-trade list.
  • Even with the Sabres entering training camp with Bowen Byram in tow for the first time, expect head coach Lindy Ruff to deploy Mattias Samuelsson on the team’s top pairing alongside Rasmus Dahlin to begin the season, writes Lance Lysowski of The Buffalo News. It’s a pairing that previous bench boss Don Granato used with aplomb when Samuelsson was in the lineup, but the promising stay-at-home defender has missed significant chunks of the past two seasons with injuries. With Byram then expected to slot in alongside Owen Power on their second pairing, the Sabres may be the only team in the league without a right-shot defenseman in their top four.

Sabres Turning Away Trade Interest In Mattias Samuelsson

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The Sabres have heard from teams looking to trade for shutdown defenseman Mattias Samuelsson following another injury-plagued season. However, The Fourth Period reports that general manager Kevyn Adams has been telling interested parties the team has no plans to move on from him.

Samuelsson’s 2023-24 season was the first of the seven-year, $30MM extension he signed in October 2022. Signed on the eve of the Sabres’ regular-season opener last season, it was a controversial buy-low move at the time – he only had 54 NHL games under his belt and hadn’t even scored his first goal.

Early on, Samuelsson, 24, seemed on track to give Buffalo $4.286MM worth of on-ice value yearly as soon as this season. 2022-23 was a solid sophomore campaign for the 2018 second-round pick, who settled into a top-pairing role alongside Rasmus Dahlin and put up 10 points and a +14 rating in 55 games.

All of his 27 absences were due to injuries. A knee injury kept him out of the lineup for most of the season’s first quarter, and an upper-body injury had him in and out of the lineup down the stretch as the Sabres finished one point out of a playoff spot. Juxtaposing their record with and without Samuelsson in the lineup (33-18-4 vs. 9-15-3 without) offered some anecdotal evidence that their decade-plus playoff drought may have ended in 2023 had he stayed healthy.

While the Sabres took a step back this season, mainly due to a lack of scoring, Samuelsson continued improving. He saw his average time on ice reduced from 22:11 to 20:30, no doubt influenced by multiple appearances stunted by injuries, but he posted the best even-strength possession results of his career with a 50.5 CF%. His pairing with Dahlin improved slightly at controlling shot quality, posting an xGF% of 50.0 compared to last season’s 49.4, per MoneyPuck.

Unfortunately, his campaign ended back in late January. After missing a few games with an upper-body injury, later revealed to be shoulder-related, he underwent surgery in early February. He was ruled out for the rest of the campaign.

Thankfully, his absence likely won’t stretch into training camp next fall. The Buffalo News’ Lance Lysowski reported last month during the Sabres’ end-of-season media availability that Samuelsson had been cleared to resume skating.

He finished the season with one goal, six assists, seven points and a +4 rating in 41 appearances. With his defensive improvements, he arguably provided his highest single-season value as an NHLer, even if their record with and without him this season didn’t have the same dramatic difference as last year.

Some had wondered whether the Sabres would make a corresponding move on defense after striking a deal with the Avalanche to swap Casey Mittelstadt for Bowen Byram before this year’s trade deadline. While most have experience playing both sides, the Sabres’ four highest-value defenders – Byram, Dahlin, Samuelsson and Owen Power – are now all left shots.

It does present a crowded picture, but it’s a cost-controlled one. All except Byram are locked in through at least 2030, and cap space isn’t yet a significant hurdle as the Sabres are tantalizingly close to exiting their years-long rebuild.

Despite his injuries and lengthy contract, Samuelsson’s steady improvements over the past few seasons likely give him some decent trade value. But having a 20-minute-plus defenseman on all three pairings has worked for other teams.

The Lightning had a stacked left side during their back-to-back Stanley Cup wins earlier in the decade, icing Victor Hedman, Ryan McDonagh and Mikhail Sergachev on different pairings. With Samuelsson likely sticking around next season, it’s up to incoming head coach Lindy Ruff to decide which of their four minute-munchers is best suited to play on their off side.

The Sabres still have a fair amount of cap space to burn next season – $23.219MM, per CapFriendly. Other offseason priorities will include adding a third-line center to complement Dylan Cozens and Tage Thompson and a top-six winger, per The Fourth Period’s report last night. Still, they also have a few restricted free agents to get re-signed. None of them are more crucial than netminder Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, whose .910 SV% in 51 starts this season was instrumental in helping the Sabres allow their fewest goals against per game (2.96) since 2017.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Sabres Place Mattias Samuelsson On Injured Reserve, Activate Erik Johnson

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One man in, one man out for the Buffalo Sabres as the team announced they have placed defenseman Mattias Samuelsson on injured reserve, and have officially activated defenseman Erik Johnson. It will be the second time this season that the organization has placed Samuelsson on the IR, as he suffered an undisclosed injury from November 4th to November 11th.

In the middle of the pack of man games lost to injury throughout the 2023-24 regular season, Buffalo has seemingly dealt with a consistent slate of injuries for much of the year. With the team having already played 49 games this season, Casey Mittelstadt, Owen Power, and John-Jason Peterka remain the only players to have appeared in every game.

Once again primarily playing with Sabres’ defenseman Rasmus Dahlin this season, Samuelsson has been relatively successful as a two-way defenseman for the club. His Corsi For % in All Situations and his On-Ice Save Percentage in All Situations are both at career highs, with his Expected +/- being at a career-high over a full season, according to HockeyReference.

On the other hand, Johnson has struggled considerably during his first year in Buffalo. After multiple successful seasons with the Colorado Avalanche, Johnson’s transition to the Eastern Conference has not gone swimmingly. Primarily playing with Connor Clifton, the two have produced an Expected Goals Against Per 60 minutes of 3.5 on the season, the worst of any defensive combination deployed by the Sabres this season according to MoneyPuck.

Not completely out of the playoff picture yet, Buffalo currently sits 10 points back of the final wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference, with only one game in hand of the Detroit Red Wings, who currently occupy the spot. Depending on the Sabres’ approach to the deadline, they will need to pick up some quick steam in order to have a shot at the 2024 Stanley Cup playoffs.

Mattias Samuelsson Out For Season With Upper-Body Injury

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Sabres defenseman Mattias Samuelsson requires surgery to repair an upper-body injury and will miss the rest of the 2023-24 campaign as a result, the team announced Sunday.

Samuelsson, 23, missed four out of the last six games before the All-Star break with upper-body injuries and was listed as day-to-day. The 2018 second-round pick finishes the 2023-24 season with one goal, six assists, seven points, and a +4 rating in 41 games.

The son of long-time Flyers blue-liner Kjell Samuelsson put up the best two-way numbers of his young career this season, the first in a seven-year, $30MM extension ($4.29MM AAV) signed in October of 2022. His 50.8% Corsi share at even strength was a career-high, and his pairing with Rasmus Dahlin has seen the most usage of any Sabres duo with 440 minutes together, per MoneyPuck.

The improvement in play is despite another injury-plagued campaign that prevented him from developing much consistency. He missed a handful of contests earlier in the season with a spattering of lower-body and undisclosed injuries, and he never played more than 14 consecutive games.

His most concerning stat remains his low games played total. Injuries limited Samuelsson to 55 contests last season, which remains his career-high since entering the league in 2021. Even if he continues developing into a top-pairing-caliber shutdown defenseman on a playoff team, his long injury history at a young age creates significant concern about his current contract, which runs through the 2029-30 season.

Samuelsson is eligible for LTIR, although the Sabres don’t need the cap relief that would provide. They remain with over $8MM in projected cap space, per CapFriendly, and could settle for placing Samuelsson on standard injured reserve to open up a roster spot if necessary.

The injury could translate into more ice time for 2019 first-round pick Ryan Johnson, who hasn’t looked out of place in his first NHL showing this year. He’s still looking for his first NHL goal through 30 games, but he has added six assists and owns a promising 52.1% Corsi share at even strength while averaging 14:33 per game.

Atlantic Notes: Samuelsson, Girgensons, Lockwood, Cousins, Jarnkrok

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Buffalo Sabres forward Zemgus Girgensons is day-to-day, while the extent of defenseman Mattias Samuelsson’s injury is still being assessed, per team reporter Mike Harrington. Both players are out with upper-body injuries. Girgensons spent a month on injured reserve earlier in the season, while Samuelsson has dealt with a menagerie of small injuries, leading the pair to appear in just 31 and 41 of Buffalo’s 48 games respectively.

Samuelsson has managed seven points and 26 penalty minutes in his outings while playing over 20 minutes a night on average. He’s Buffalo’s third-most frequent defenseman this season, behind Rasmus Dahlin and Owen Power. The season has continued Samuelsson’s substantial role with Buffalo, with the defenseman averaging 20 or more minutes every year since his rookie season in 2021-22. His only exception to this pattern came in the 12 games he received during the 2020-21 season when he averaged 18 minutes. The Sabres are big fans of the 23-year-old defender, signing him to a seven-year, $30MM contract extension at the beginning of the 2022-23 season. They’ll hope he can return to his frequent role in the lineup soon, alongside depth forward Girgensons, who has four goals and 12 penalty minutes this season.

Other notes from the Atlantic Division:

  • William Lockwood entered concussion protocol after his fight with Minnesota Wild forward Brandon Duhaime and is set to miss time beyond the three-game suspension he received for his hit on Marc-Andre Fleury, which preceded the fight. That suspension is set to end on Saturday, though when Lockwood may be ready to return is not yet clear, with head coach Paul Maurice sharing that he will undergo testing on Saturday. Lockwood has just one point and 14 penalty minutes through 23 appearances with the Panthers this season. He’s also recorded seven points and eight penalty minutes through 14 games with the AHL’s Charlotte Checkers.
  • Florida is also getting back forward Nick Cousins, who joined the team for their upcoming two-game road trip and has returned to a full-contact jersey at practice. When he will officially return is not yet clear, but his progress at practice suggests fans won’t have to wait long. Cousins has five points and 20 penalty minutes through 37 games this season.
  • Calle Jarnkrok left the Toronto Maple Leafs Friday practice early after blocking a shot in a drill. The extent of his injury is currently unknown, per head coach Sheldon Keefe. Jarnkrok has appeared in 46 games this season, scoring 10 goals and 19 points. He ranks fifth on the high-scoring Leafs lineup in scoring that’s led by Auston Matthews’ 39 goals in 45 games.

Sabres Recall Kale Clague, Move Jeff Skinner To IR

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5:30 PM: The Sabres have sent Clague back to the AHL after the defenseman served as a healthy scratch for the team’s Monday win over the San Jose Sharks.

9:00 AM: The Sabres have recalled defenseman Kale Clague from AHL Rochester, per a team announcement. To create the necessary space on the active roster, the team moved star winger Jeff Skinner to injured reserve, according to CapFriendly.

The latter move is purely for roster management purposes and does not change Skinner’s recovery timeline. He remains listed as week-to-week with an upper-body injury.

Clague’s recall comes after defenseman Mattias Samuelsson took an elbow to the head from Canucks defenseman Filip Hronek early in the second period of Saturday’s 1-0 loss. Samuelsson did not return to the game and is likely out for this afternoon’s contest against the Sharks.

The 25-year-old Clague isn’t projected to dress against San Jose, but he does provide some needed defensive depth on the NHL roster. Buffalo lost multiple defenders to injury at points during the loss to Vancouver, namely Connor Clifton and Rasmus Dahlin. At one point during the contest, after Dahlin and Samuelsson had both exited the contest to go into concussion protocol due to separate hits to the head, veteran blueliner Erik Johnson was ineligible to play for five minutes after fighting Canucks center J.T. Miller, whose hit knocked Dahlin out of the game. That gave the Sabres only three available defensemen for a stretch, leading depth forward Zemgus Girgensons to play some shifts on the blue line. Head coach Don Granato confirmed both Clifton and Dahlin are cleared to play in today’s contest against the Sharks, although Samuelsson will remain out.

Clague, a second-round pick of the Kings in 2016, re-joined the Sabres on a one-year deal a few days after becoming a UFA in July. It was his second straight season without receiving a qualifying offer, which allowed the Sabres to sign him to a new deal at a slightly discounted cap hit. He’s in his second season in the Sabres organization after spending the first five seasons of his pro career with the Kings and Canadiens.

This is his first recall of 2023-24 after clearing waivers at the end of training camp. The puck-moving blueliner leads Rochester defensemen in assists (15) and points (17) this year in 31 games. It’s the most minor-league action he’s seen since he played 49 games with AHL Ontario in 2019-20.

In 33 games with the Sabres last year, Clague posted four assists while averaging 15:06 per game, all coming at even strength. He posted the best possession metrics of his career in a decent sample, per Hockey Reference – a 52.7% Corsi share, 50% expected goals for, and a +0.1 expected rating at even strength, to be exact. If he can replicate those, there are much worse options to have as an injury fill-in.

Sabres Notes: Tuch, Murray, Samuelsson, Greenway

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Sabres forward Alex Tuch will be activated off injured reserve and return to the lineup tonight against the Avalanche, head coach Don Granato said earlier Wednesday. Winger Brett Murray was assigned to AHL Rochester later in the day to create roster space to activate Tuch, per a team release.

Tuch’s return marks the end of a four-game absence due to a lower-body injury sustained on December 3 against the Predators. The Sabres promptly announced Tuch was expected out of the lineup for roughly one week, just long enough to be eligible for IR placement. It’s the winger’s second multi-game absence of the season after an upper-body injury sidelined him for three games in November. Before exiting the lineup, Tuch had two goals and four points in his last five games and has eight goals and 17 points in 22 games on the season.

The move also ends Murray’s first call-up of the 2023-24 season, which lasted just two days. He replaced the younger Isak Rosen in the lineup Monday in the team’s win against the Coyotes, recording a -1 rating and one shot on goal in 10:41 of ice time. The 25-year-old Murray, who stands at 6-foot-5 and nearly 230 pounds, has two goals and seven points in 12 games with AHL Rochester this season.

Elsewhere from around the Sabres today:

  • Also returning to the lineup tonight is defenseman Mattias Samuelsson, per Granato. No corresponding roster move is needed because Sameulsson remained on the active roster while sidelined with an undisclosed injury, which Granato described as general soreness earlier in the week. Samuelsson did not suit up Monday against the Coyotes, his fourth injury-related absence of the season after he missed three games with a lower-body injury in early November. The shutdown blueliner has three points in 25 games this season and is averaging 20:12 per game, nearly two minutes down from last season’s average – although that number is artificially low due to Samuelsson exiting games early with injuries this season on multiple occasions.
  • One player absent from tonight’s contest will be forward Jordan Greenway, missing his sixth straight game with an upper-body injury. He did travel with the team on their road trip, but as Lance Lysowski of The Buffalo News reports, he’s not expected to play, which would mean also missing games Friday in Vegas and Saturday in Arizona. He remains on injured reserve for the time being and hasn’t played since leaving the team’s December 2 contest against the Hurricanes prematurely. He’s played in two of Buffalo’s last ten games, missing a trio of contests in November for personal reasons. The 26-year-old has seven points in 21 games in his first full season as a Sabre.

Atlantic Notes: Tuch, Samuelsson, McAvoy, Zacha, Lagesson

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Sabres head coach Don Granato informed reporters today that winger Alex Tuch won’t play tonight against the Coyotes as he remains out with a lower-body injury, although he could return for Wednesday’s game against the Avalanche (via Heather Engel of NHL.com). Tuch is on injured reserve and has missed the last three games with the injury, which he sustained on December 3 against the Predators. He is now eligible to come off injured reserve at any time after satisfying the minimum seven-day absence.

Tuch has dealt with two injury-related absences of at least three games this season, the other being an upper-body injury that sidelined him for three games in mid-November. When in the lineup, his production has lagged from last season’s 1.07 points-per-game pace, posting eight goals and 17 points with a -4 rating and 52.7% Corsi share at even strength in 22 games. The Sabres have gone 2-3-1 without Tuch in the lineup and 9-11-2 with him.

Buffalo could be without an additional regular tonight, as Granato also said defenseman Mattias Samuelsson is questionable against the Coyotes after leaving today’s practice early due to soreness. Samuelsson, who is in the first season of a seven-year, $30MM extension, missed three games with a lower-body injury in early November and was a game-time decision with an upper-body injury late last month after leaving a November 25 contest against the Devils prematurely. He’s once again leveraged heavy minutes for the Sabres, averaging over 20 minutes per game for a third consecutive season. He’s recorded a goal and two assists along with a -2 rating in 25 games, and his 49.6% even strength Corsi share is a career-high.

More from around the Atlantic Division:

  • Bruins defenseman Charlie McAvoy didn’t practice today and remains day-to-day with an upper-body injury, per Conor Ryan of The Boston Globe. McAvoy missed Saturday’s win over the Coyotes after sustaining the injury in Thursday’s game against the Sabres. This is the second time he’s been held out of the lineup this season, the first being a four-game suspension in early November for a check to the head of Panthers defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson. While McAvoy’s 0.81 points per game this season are the best of his career, he’s taken a step back defensively, posting a 51% Corsi share at even strength and a -4 rating, both career lows. Ryan also relays word from Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery that center Pavel Zacha remains day-to-day with an upper-body injury, and he, along with McAvoy, is questionable for Wednesday’s contest against his former team, the Devils. New Jersey’s sixth-overall pick in 2015, Zacha was sent to the Bruins in a one-for-one swap for Erik Haula in July 2022 and has since assumed a top-six role, posting 76 points in 108 games over the past two seasons while averaging 16:37 per game. Zacha took just eight shifts in Saturday’s game against the Coyotes before exiting.
  • Maple Leafs defenseman William Lagesson will be a game-time decision tonight against the Islanders due to illness but is likely to play, head coach Sheldon Keefe confirmed to reporters (via David Alter of The Hockey News). It’s been a tidy season for Lagesson so far, who’s been a solid injury fill-in for players such as Mark Giordano, Timothy Liljegren and Jake McCabe, who have missed significant time this season on Toronto’s back end. Signed to provide a reliable call-up option with a handful of NHL games under his belt, Lagesson has logged one assist in 14 games this season, recording a -1 rating and 49.4% even-strength Corsi share while averaging 15 minutes per game. Across 74 games with the Maple Leafs, Oilers and Canadiens dating back to the 2019-20 season, the 27-year-old is still looking for his first NHL goal.

Atlantic Notes: Klingberg, McMann, Benoit, Korpisalo, Samuelsson

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Maple Leafs defenseman John Klingberg will meet with a doctor in New York this week to determine whether surgery is required to correct his nagging hip injury, GM Brad Treliving informed the media Monday afternoon (via David Alter of Sports Illustrated/The Hockey News).

Klingberg, 31, has missed five out of the last six games with the injury and is currently on long-term injured reserve retroactive to November 11. The soonest he can return to the lineup is December 12 against the Rangers. However, all indications point to a more prolonged absence regardless of the clarity gleaned from his appointment this week. While Klingberg has reportedly been battling various hip issues for multiple seasons, Treliving confirmed Klingberg sustained a specific injury on October 19 versus the Panthers, keeping him out of the lineup. Klingberg did not miss any games immediately after sustaining the injury.

A free-agent signing by the Maple Leafs last summer, Klingberg’s presence in the lineup quickly deteriorated after a strong showing in the team’s season opener against the Canadiens. After notching two points, a +1 rating, and over 24 minutes of ice time in his Toronto debut, his defensive game again lapsed significantly. It caused head coach Sheldon Keefe to reduce his ice time gradually gradually. He has five assists through 14 games this season, and his 0.35 points per game mark is by far the worst of his NHL career. He is averaging under 21 minutes per game for a second straight season after skating over that mark in eight consecutive seasons to begin his career.

Other snapshots from the Atlantic Division:

  • Sticking with Toronto, depth forward Bobby McMann and defenseman Simon Benoit took line rushes with the Maple Leafs at practice today, Alter reports. This suggests both players will be recalled from the AHL’s Toronto Marlies before tomorrow’s game against the Panthers. In recent days, McMann and Benoit have repeatedly been ferried between leagues to extend their waiver-exempt period. Both players were placed on waivers before the start of the season, allowing the Maple Leafs to assign each player to the AHL freely until each spends 30 days on the NHL roster or plays ten games. While McMann took reps as a healthy scratch in practice today, Benoit skated on the third pairing alongside Conor Timmins and could re-enter the lineup. The 25-year-old has played six games this season, recording a +2 rating, five shots on goal, and a strong Corsi share of 57.4% at even strength while averaging 13:13 per game.
  • Senators goalie Joonas Korpisalo will be an option in goal against the Panthers tonight, Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch relays. After making 37 saves on 41 shots in the Senators’ first Global Series game against the Red Wings on November 16, Korpisalo sat out the second overseas contest against the Wild as well as last Friday’s game against the Islanders with a minor undisclosed ailment which the team described as general soreness. This was an expected development after the Senators returned top goalie prospect Mads Søgaard to the minors yesterday. The 29-year-old is improving after a rocky start to his Senators career, solidifying himself as the team’s number-one option with a 5-4-0 record, .906 SV%, and 1.3 goals saved above average through ten starts.
  • Sabres defenseman Mattias Samuelsson will be a game-time decision tonight against the Rangers as he deals with an upper-body injury, head coach Don Granato told reporters this morning (via Lance Lysowski of The Buffalo News). The oft-injured blueliner left Saturday’s blowout loss to the Devils after taking a stick to the face and receiving multiple stitches to repair a cut on his lower lip, which is still causing him significant pain. Per Granato, he was held out of the remainder of the contest to clear concussion protocol. If Samuelsson does not play tonight, it will be his second injury-related absence of the season. A lower-body issue cost him three games at the beginning of the month. The 23-year-old is averaging a diminished 19:27 per game this season through 18 games, recording one goal, two assists, a -1 rating, and a middling Corsi share of 47.6% at even strength.

Sabres Notes: Tuch, Savoie, Cozens, Samuelsson

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Buffalo Sabres winger Alex Tuch is listed as questionable for Friday’s game against the Minnesota Wild, head coach Don Granato said today. Granato said Tuch has been dealing with some “soreness,” explaining a rash of missed practices lately, and will likely only play one of two games of their back-to-back today and tomorrow.

Tuch, 27, has rebounded nicely after a slow start to the season. Recently reunited with Jeff Skinner and Tage Thompson on the team’s top line after some shuffling, Tuch has three goals and six points in his last five contests and has seen his ice time creep north of 20 minutes in the previous two games. He’s also dominating possession, recording a career-high relative Corsi share of 6.3% at even strength.

His potential absence has created some opportunity for 2022 ninth-overall pick Matthew Savoie, who Granato says will make his NHL debut Friday regardless of Tuch’s status. Savoie had a strong rookie camp but sustained a shoulder injury that kept him out for most of the preseason and the first few weeks of October. He returned to action later in the month when the Sabres assigned him to the AHL’s Rochester Americans on a conditioning stint, during which he racked up two goals and three assists in six games. The Sabres recalled him from his conditioning stint earlier this week, although he was a healthy scratch for Tuesday’s game against the Carolina Hurricanes.

Other Sabres items of interest:

  • Granato confirmed that center Dylan Cozens is returning to the lineup Friday after missing two games with an upper-body injury. Cozens sustained the injury in a fight with Philadelphia Flyers winger Garnet Hathaway late in a 5-1 loss one week ago today. The 22-year-old has three goals and four assists through 11 contests this season after breaking out for 31 goals and 68 points in 2022-23. Cozens and Savoie entering the lineup tonight means one or two out of Tyson Jost, Victor Olofsson and Lukáš Rousek will sit, depending on Tuch’s availability.
  • Lastly, Granato said defenseman Mattias Samuelsson could return to the lineup for Saturday’s road tilt against the Pittsburgh Penguins. Samuelsson will miss a third straight game with a lower-body injury tonight, which was sustained in the first period of last Friday’s loss to the Flyers. Samuelsson’s play has been okay this season after signing a seven-year, $30MM extension, recording four points through 11 games and a Corsi share of 48% at even strength. His impending return means rookie Ryan Johnson will likely return to AHL Rochester tomorrow after a three-game trial with the big club.
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