Published by hockeybuzz.com, 9-16-2018
RHD--Casey Nelson
26 yrs. old
6'1" 185 lbs.
2016 undrafted free agent
Career stats: 55 games | 3 goals | 9 assists | 12 points | -16
At 26 yrs. old Buffalo Sabres defenseman Casey Nelson is far from being a wide-eyed rookie in the NHL. Yet with only 55 games played he still has a lot to learn at the NHL-level. The cool part about Nelson is the middle ground where his long development curve has allowed for definitive progress while still allowing for upside to his game.
Nelson was an under-the-radar signing by Buffalo in 2016 out of Minnesota State University (Mankato) but caught the attention of Sabreland with four assists in his first three pro games. The smooth skating, offensive defenseman showed well on NHL ice to the point where a good camp would mean a knocking on the door of a spot on the opening night roster for 2016-17. Because of injuries Nelson was on the blueline in the opener and was a minus-1 in 1:47 of ice-time. He would have a rough go of it in the NHL, was sent down and spent most of his first full pro season in Rochester.
Last season went much better for Nelson as he started out in Rochester playing 37 games for the Amerks (2 goals, 9 assists, +11 rating) before getting the call to Buffalo where he showed much year-over-year improvement. In 37 games for the Sabres he scored three goals and added five assists in averaging 18:47 of ice-time before rejoining the Amerks just prior to the Calder Cup playoffs. What might have stood out most for him in Buffalo was how he and defenseman Marco Scandella clicked as a second-pairing duo for a short stint.
Nelson's journey to full-time NHL duty, should it play out that way, was marked by smack-downs and revivals from college onward. He was benched as a freshman at Minnesota but, according to coach Mike Hastings, used that as motivation. "I think you learn the most about people once they get knocked down, once you face that adversity," the coach told me a couple years ago. "He could have thrown a pity-party and I didn't see it. He just went back to work." He also had a rude awakening two years ago when the NHL smacked him down and he was sent to Rochester. After gathering his senses Nelson was, according to long-time Amerks broadcaster Don Stevens, probably Rochester's most improved player that year.
A numbers game kept Nelson in Rochester for most of last season and from a development standpoint it worked out rather well. He will face a similar situation this year. Buffalo GM Jason Botterill signed Nelson to a two-year contract extension in May and without waiver eligibility for the defenseman, one would expect he and coach Phil Housley expect Nelson to be in the lineup for the opener on October 4.
Building the 2018-19 Buffalo Sabres roster:
LW, Conor Sheary / C, Jack Eichel / RW, Sam Reinhart
LW, Jeff Skinner / C, Casey Mittelstadt / RW, Kyle Okposo
LW, Patrik Berglund / C, Rasmus Asplund / RW, Jason Pominville
LHD, Marco Scandella / RHD, Rasmus Ristolainen
LHD, Rasmus Dahlin / RHD, Zach Bogosian
LHD, Jake McCabe /
G, Carter Hutton
Monday, September 17, 2018
Sunday, September 16, 2018
Building the 2018-19 Buffalo Sabres roster--LHD, Jake McCabe
Published by hockeybuzz.com, 9-15-2018
LHD--Jake McCabe
24 yrs. old
6'1" 210 lbs.
2012, 44th-overall
Career stats: 215 games | 10 goals | 37 assists | 47 points | -15
There's a lot to be said for Jake McCabe that won't show up on the scoresheet. The very fact that head coach Phil Housley has him next to first overall pick Rasmus Dahlin to start camp says a lot about the type of leadership McCabe exudes and the trust Housley has in him to start Dahlin's career off on the right foot.
Housley and McCabe's hockey relationship date back to 2012 when the coach tabbed McCabe to be captain of Team USA at the 2013 IIHF World Junior Championships. It was Housley's first head coaching job outside of Stillwater (MN) high school and he was impressed with the 19 yr. old Wisconsin Badger's demeanor and named him captain of the team. "I really liked what he brought in Lake Placid in August [at evaluation camp]," he said of McCabe at the time. "He's just a very calm demeanor in the locker room, on the ice. He says the right things at the right time; I think he can control the locker room.
"He's very mature, probably mature beyond his years."
Since he first hit the ice for a seven-game stint late in the 2013-14 season McCabe has made his mark as a player that isn't heard from very much outside the rink or after games but he's managed to make some noise on the ice. At Boston he leveled Bruins forward Daniel Paille with a clean check in the second to last game of the season and in January, 2017 he walloped Winnipeg's Patrick Laine with a fierce open-ice check in the neutral zone that's worth another looks (thx, Sportsnet):
McCabe is a fierce defender who's made (and still makes) his mistakes although he's always had a penchant for bouncing back nicely from them. He's also paid his dues and has gotten a good handle on the speed of the NHL while focusing on the defensive aspects of his game since he turned pro. When you put it all together, pairing a defensive-minded young vet like McCabe with an offensive-minded rookie like Dahlin seems like a good way to start things off at camp.
"I just felt it was a good combination," Housley told the gathered media after their first practice of the season yesterday. "I just felt it was a good mix. You have a veteran guy trying to mentor a young guy and Jake is a good player for that."
Housley also mentioned the obvious in that Dahlin will have a lot of different d-partners leading up to the season. When all's said and done Dahlin will be in the top-half of the d-corps while McCabe will probably be in the bottom half but with McCabe's ability to play either side (and Dahlin's as well,) if the pairing shows promise right now, Housley could go back to them at some point during the season.
Right now there are 15 defensemen at camp and by the end of it only eight or so will by vying for spots in the lineup. McCabe will be in the d-corps somewhere and as of right now he looks to be starting out the season on the bottom-pairing, which is a good sign for Buffalo. The 24 yr. old has shown that he can be a solid second-pairing defenseman so having him here means there are some quality defensemen in front of him.
Building the 2018-19 Buffalo Sabres roster:
LW, Conor Sheary / C, Jack Eichel / RW, Sam Reinhart
LW, Jeff Skinner / C, Casey Mittelstadt / RW, Kyle Okposo
LW, Patrik Berglund / C, Rasmus Asplund/ RW, Jason Pominville
LHD, Marco Scandella / RHD, Rasmus Ristolainen
LHD, Rasmus Dahlin / RHD, Zach Bogosian
LHD, Jake McCabe /
G, Carter Hutton
LHD--Jake McCabe
24 yrs. old
6'1" 210 lbs.
2012, 44th-overall
Career stats: 215 games | 10 goals | 37 assists | 47 points | -15
There's a lot to be said for Jake McCabe that won't show up on the scoresheet. The very fact that head coach Phil Housley has him next to first overall pick Rasmus Dahlin to start camp says a lot about the type of leadership McCabe exudes and the trust Housley has in him to start Dahlin's career off on the right foot.
Housley and McCabe's hockey relationship date back to 2012 when the coach tabbed McCabe to be captain of Team USA at the 2013 IIHF World Junior Championships. It was Housley's first head coaching job outside of Stillwater (MN) high school and he was impressed with the 19 yr. old Wisconsin Badger's demeanor and named him captain of the team. "I really liked what he brought in Lake Placid in August [at evaluation camp]," he said of McCabe at the time. "He's just a very calm demeanor in the locker room, on the ice. He says the right things at the right time; I think he can control the locker room.
"He's very mature, probably mature beyond his years."
Since he first hit the ice for a seven-game stint late in the 2013-14 season McCabe has made his mark as a player that isn't heard from very much outside the rink or after games but he's managed to make some noise on the ice. At Boston he leveled Bruins forward Daniel Paille with a clean check in the second to last game of the season and in January, 2017 he walloped Winnipeg's Patrick Laine with a fierce open-ice check in the neutral zone that's worth another looks (thx, Sportsnet):
McCabe is a fierce defender who's made (and still makes) his mistakes although he's always had a penchant for bouncing back nicely from them. He's also paid his dues and has gotten a good handle on the speed of the NHL while focusing on the defensive aspects of his game since he turned pro. When you put it all together, pairing a defensive-minded young vet like McCabe with an offensive-minded rookie like Dahlin seems like a good way to start things off at camp.
"I just felt it was a good combination," Housley told the gathered media after their first practice of the season yesterday. "I just felt it was a good mix. You have a veteran guy trying to mentor a young guy and Jake is a good player for that."
Housley also mentioned the obvious in that Dahlin will have a lot of different d-partners leading up to the season. When all's said and done Dahlin will be in the top-half of the d-corps while McCabe will probably be in the bottom half but with McCabe's ability to play either side (and Dahlin's as well,) if the pairing shows promise right now, Housley could go back to them at some point during the season.
Right now there are 15 defensemen at camp and by the end of it only eight or so will by vying for spots in the lineup. McCabe will be in the d-corps somewhere and as of right now he looks to be starting out the season on the bottom-pairing, which is a good sign for Buffalo. The 24 yr. old has shown that he can be a solid second-pairing defenseman so having him here means there are some quality defensemen in front of him.
Building the 2018-19 Buffalo Sabres roster:
LW, Conor Sheary / C, Jack Eichel / RW, Sam Reinhart
LW, Jeff Skinner / C, Casey Mittelstadt / RW, Kyle Okposo
LW, Patrik Berglund / C, Rasmus Asplund/ RW, Jason Pominville
LHD, Marco Scandella / RHD, Rasmus Ristolainen
LHD, Rasmus Dahlin / RHD, Zach Bogosian
LHD, Jake McCabe /
G, Carter Hutton
Saturday, September 15, 2018
Building the 2018-19 Buffalo Sabres roster--RW, Jason Pominville
Published by hockeybuzz.com, 9-14-2018
RW--Jason Pominville
35 yrs. old
6'0" 180 lbs.
2001, 2nd round (55th-overall)
Re-acquired by Buffalo from the Minnesota Wild on June 30, 2017
Career stats: 987 games | 277 goals | 419 assists | 696 points | +48
If you need vets to cover for, and help guide the youngins, there are plenty of them in Buffalo for training camp right now and at 35 yrs. old, right wing Jason Pominville is the senior member of this group. At least for now.
Pominville has been in the league 13 seasons now and is approaching 1,000 NHL games played. If you don't know him by now you will never, never, never know him. The Repentigny, Quebec is about as solid as they come and has had the skill, skating, smarts and maneuverability to produce consistently throughout his career while also avoid serious injury. In his 13 full seasons he's played all 82 games in eight of them, 73 or more games three times and was one game shy of a full 48-game schedule during the 2012-13 lockout shortened season. He played in only 57 games during his rookie campaign in 2005-06 but that was due to his time in Rochester after clearing waivers.
To think, that a player with nearly 1,000 games played and nearly 700 career points could have been had by any team in the league that season.
However, the years have begun taking their toll, albeit slowly and with his production dipping well below his career averages the last three years, Pominville is slated for bottom-six duty from here on in. With nearly 14 goals and 41 points per 82 games, he's still producing, but far from his 23 goals and 58 points/82 game career average.
Buffalo has a lot players at training camp this year vying for spots on the roster. Young wingers Tage Thompson, Justin Bailey, Nicholas Baptiste and Alexander Nylander along with forwards C.J. Smith, Evan Rodrigues and Andrew Oglevie plus younger vets like Zemgus Girgensons and Johan Larsson as well as vets Scott Wilson and Vladimir Sobotka are all shooting for spots in the bottom six. Of that group Thompson, Nylander, Smith and Oglevie are waivers exempt this year while rest will have question marks surrounding their future should they not land in the remaining spots.
That's the cool part about camp this year--there are a lot of different scenarios all dependent upon the individual players, the type of chemistry they have with their linemates and how much they'll be able to produce during camp. No need to worry about Pominville in any of those areas as he's played with a number of linemates and always developed enough chemistry to continue to produce well into his 30's.
And that's what might make him attractive to a contender.
Although it's not a sure thing that he'll be traded at some point, should the Sabres be out of contention and/or should Pominville be in a second-half slump like he was last season, odds are that he'll be moved by the end of trade deadline day. Which isn't such a bad thing for either him or the team. With most of his $5.6 million cap-hit paid by then, a contender might be interested in his services giving him a shot at the Stanley Cup and the Sabres could get themselves a mid-upper round pick in return.
Unless he's traded this preseason, which seems unlikely at this point, Pominville will probably be in the opening night lineup on October 4 and he'll be in the bottom-six somewhere. In the scenario laid out here, he and fellow vet Patrik Berglund can cover for and/or mentor a rookie center like Rasmus Asplund. Should Asplund head to Rochester and Berglund move to center, Pominville might be shifted to fourth-line duties with PP time while a younger player like Thompson, Bailey, Baptiste or Nylander takes on third-line duty.
Regardless of where he is in the lineup, GM Jason Botterill and coach Phil Housley love the professionalism he brings to the table so a spot on the roster is almost a sure thing. Where he ends up is the question mark at this point.
Building the 2018-19 Buffalo Sabres roster:
LW, Conor Sheary / C, Jack Eichel / RW, Sam Reinhart
LW, Jeff Skinner / C, Casey Mittelstadt / RW, Kyle Okposo
LW, Patrik Berglund / C, Rasmus Asplund / RW, Jason Pominville
LHD, Marco Scandella / RHD, Rasmus Ristolainen
LHD, Rasmus Dahlin / RHD, Zach Bogosian
G, Carter Hutton
RW--Jason Pominville
35 yrs. old
6'0" 180 lbs.
2001, 2nd round (55th-overall)
Re-acquired by Buffalo from the Minnesota Wild on June 30, 2017
Career stats: 987 games | 277 goals | 419 assists | 696 points | +48
If you need vets to cover for, and help guide the youngins, there are plenty of them in Buffalo for training camp right now and at 35 yrs. old, right wing Jason Pominville is the senior member of this group. At least for now.
Pominville has been in the league 13 seasons now and is approaching 1,000 NHL games played. If you don't know him by now you will never, never, never know him. The Repentigny, Quebec is about as solid as they come and has had the skill, skating, smarts and maneuverability to produce consistently throughout his career while also avoid serious injury. In his 13 full seasons he's played all 82 games in eight of them, 73 or more games three times and was one game shy of a full 48-game schedule during the 2012-13 lockout shortened season. He played in only 57 games during his rookie campaign in 2005-06 but that was due to his time in Rochester after clearing waivers.
To think, that a player with nearly 1,000 games played and nearly 700 career points could have been had by any team in the league that season.
However, the years have begun taking their toll, albeit slowly and with his production dipping well below his career averages the last three years, Pominville is slated for bottom-six duty from here on in. With nearly 14 goals and 41 points per 82 games, he's still producing, but far from his 23 goals and 58 points/82 game career average.
Buffalo has a lot players at training camp this year vying for spots on the roster. Young wingers Tage Thompson, Justin Bailey, Nicholas Baptiste and Alexander Nylander along with forwards C.J. Smith, Evan Rodrigues and Andrew Oglevie plus younger vets like Zemgus Girgensons and Johan Larsson as well as vets Scott Wilson and Vladimir Sobotka are all shooting for spots in the bottom six. Of that group Thompson, Nylander, Smith and Oglevie are waivers exempt this year while rest will have question marks surrounding their future should they not land in the remaining spots.
That's the cool part about camp this year--there are a lot of different scenarios all dependent upon the individual players, the type of chemistry they have with their linemates and how much they'll be able to produce during camp. No need to worry about Pominville in any of those areas as he's played with a number of linemates and always developed enough chemistry to continue to produce well into his 30's.
And that's what might make him attractive to a contender.
Although it's not a sure thing that he'll be traded at some point, should the Sabres be out of contention and/or should Pominville be in a second-half slump like he was last season, odds are that he'll be moved by the end of trade deadline day. Which isn't such a bad thing for either him or the team. With most of his $5.6 million cap-hit paid by then, a contender might be interested in his services giving him a shot at the Stanley Cup and the Sabres could get themselves a mid-upper round pick in return.
Unless he's traded this preseason, which seems unlikely at this point, Pominville will probably be in the opening night lineup on October 4 and he'll be in the bottom-six somewhere. In the scenario laid out here, he and fellow vet Patrik Berglund can cover for and/or mentor a rookie center like Rasmus Asplund. Should Asplund head to Rochester and Berglund move to center, Pominville might be shifted to fourth-line duties with PP time while a younger player like Thompson, Bailey, Baptiste or Nylander takes on third-line duty.
Regardless of where he is in the lineup, GM Jason Botterill and coach Phil Housley love the professionalism he brings to the table so a spot on the roster is almost a sure thing. Where he ends up is the question mark at this point.
Building the 2018-19 Buffalo Sabres roster:
LW, Conor Sheary / C, Jack Eichel / RW, Sam Reinhart
LW, Jeff Skinner / C, Casey Mittelstadt / RW, Kyle Okposo
LW, Patrik Berglund / C, Rasmus Asplund / RW, Jason Pominville
LHD, Marco Scandella / RHD, Rasmus Ristolainen
LHD, Rasmus Dahlin / RHD, Zach Bogosian
G, Carter Hutton
Friday, September 14, 2018
Building the 2018-19 Buffalo Sabres roster--LW, Patrik Berglund
Published by hockeybuzz.com, 9-13-2018
F--Patrik Berglund
30 yrs. old
6'4" 219 lbs.
2006, 25th-overall (STL)
Acquired in a trade with the St. Louis Blues, July 1, 2018
Career stats: 694 games | 168 goals | 154 assists | 332 points | +10
Yesterday, in what might be considered a reach, we put rookie Rasmus Asplund at third-line center in this roster-building exercise. Asplund has the two-way acumen, skating and stick skills, as well as the mental makeup and on-ice vision to do the job and do it well. However, at only 20 yrs. old and with a projected one-two center punch of 21 yr. old Jack Eichel and 19 yr. old Casey Mittelstadt, the concern wasn't so much about Asplund's attributes as it was about his age and inexperience in North America as well as the overall youth down the middle.
The obvious option for this edition of the Buffalo Sabres would have been to put 30 yr. old Patrik Berglund and his 10 years of NHL experience in the three-hole. With his two-way game and solid faceoff skills, a grey beard like Berglund could add veteran stability to the lineup and carry much of the two-way load that was lost when Ryan O'Reilly went the other way in the trade with the St. Louis Blues. Berglund might also be looked at to take some pressure off of Mittelstadt in the top-six for brief stints.
It's a sound logic that could very well come to fruition. However, there are a number of factors that could/should lead Berglund to a winger role on a line with fellow Swede, Asplund.
Buffalo GM Jason Botterill has touted the versatility of the forwards he has and Berglund certainly fits that description. He was drafted out of Sweden as a big center with a solid all-around skill set who could score, set up and be a two-way No. 2 or No. 3 center for the Blues. But by the end of the 2013-14 season, St. Louis had loaded up at center pushing Berglund to the wing. Couple that with consistency issues and it was a formula that eventually put his name into the rumor mill.
As his career progressed expectations were lowered and as he moved down the depth chart his production was near career lows but he did, however, score a career-high of 23 goals in a 2016-17 contract year and signed a five-year extension just before the 2017 trade deadline. Yet the rumors still persisted and when he was injured to start the 2017-18 season, the natives were getting restless.
"Patrik Berglund should have been traded during the offseason," wrote Dan Buffa in a scathing piece for SB Nation, St. Louis titled, 'The disappearance of Patrik Berglund should baffle no one." Buffa rips Berglund as "ordinary" and "a decent yet unremarkable talent" that could use a change of scenery in his February 11, 2018 piece and his thoughts were echoed when Berglund was given a C-rating by Todd Panula of fansided's Bleeding Blue.
"The fact that St. Louis Blues fans are still wondering what the real Patrik Berglund is and can accomplish," wrote Panula at the end of last season, "is quite astounding. He is 29 and just played his 10th NHL season.
"He gives you just enough to think there is more in there. He disappoints you just enough to figure there is no way he will reach his full potential. Then the juicy middle ground is normally where he falls."
All of this is not to bag on Berglund for who he is or the path his career has taken. Bloggers (myself included) have a tendency to get overzealous and may or may not have the proper insight at to why a player may or may not be performing up to expectations which might differentiate from what others see. What it intended to highlight is that Berglund might not be the best choice as the third line center. When you factor in that his set-up skills may have been overrated, that he never was the fastest skater to begin with and add in that he's offensively streaky while his defensive game might be a little more suspect than originally thought, perhaps having him on the wing might not be that bad of an idea.
In his 23-goal season Berglund played in all 82 games for St. Louis and scored on at a 15% shot-rate. The year prior his shooting percentage was 12.5% and last year it was a career-high 15.2%. In all three of those seasons Berglund's goal to assist ration was roughly 2:1. The guy can still shoot the puck but as his assists and plus/minus might indicate (minus-12 the past two seasons,) he and the Sabres might be better off having a player like Asplund dishing to him as opposed to Berglund trying to set someone up.
Berglund seems as if he'd be a great mentor for Asplund and his versatility could give Asplund the requisite time down the middle to develop as a center. Conversely, Asplund's hockey IQ and on-ice vision could be very helpful in getting Berglund to another 20-goal season.
How it all plays out is up in the air as there's a lot of competition in the bottom six and we're really not sure how far Asplund can take it during training camp. He has all the tools and if he continues to impress, or impress even more, then he could crack the lineup and do so as their third-line center. If that's the case, Berglund would be forced to move to Asplund's wing. Which isn't such a bad proposition.
Building the 2018-19 Buffalo Sabres roster:
LW, Conor Sheary / C, Jack Eichel / RW, Sam Reinhart
LW, Jeff Skinner / C, Casey Mittelstadt / RW, Kyle Okposo
LW, Patrik Berglund / C, Rasmus Asplund /
LHD, Marco Scandella / RHD, Rasmus Ristolainen
LHD, Rasmus Dahlin / RHD, Zach Bogosian
G, Carter Hutton
F--Patrik Berglund
30 yrs. old
6'4" 219 lbs.
2006, 25th-overall (STL)
Acquired in a trade with the St. Louis Blues, July 1, 2018
Career stats: 694 games | 168 goals | 154 assists | 332 points | +10
Yesterday, in what might be considered a reach, we put rookie Rasmus Asplund at third-line center in this roster-building exercise. Asplund has the two-way acumen, skating and stick skills, as well as the mental makeup and on-ice vision to do the job and do it well. However, at only 20 yrs. old and with a projected one-two center punch of 21 yr. old Jack Eichel and 19 yr. old Casey Mittelstadt, the concern wasn't so much about Asplund's attributes as it was about his age and inexperience in North America as well as the overall youth down the middle.
The obvious option for this edition of the Buffalo Sabres would have been to put 30 yr. old Patrik Berglund and his 10 years of NHL experience in the three-hole. With his two-way game and solid faceoff skills, a grey beard like Berglund could add veteran stability to the lineup and carry much of the two-way load that was lost when Ryan O'Reilly went the other way in the trade with the St. Louis Blues. Berglund might also be looked at to take some pressure off of Mittelstadt in the top-six for brief stints.
It's a sound logic that could very well come to fruition. However, there are a number of factors that could/should lead Berglund to a winger role on a line with fellow Swede, Asplund.
Buffalo GM Jason Botterill has touted the versatility of the forwards he has and Berglund certainly fits that description. He was drafted out of Sweden as a big center with a solid all-around skill set who could score, set up and be a two-way No. 2 or No. 3 center for the Blues. But by the end of the 2013-14 season, St. Louis had loaded up at center pushing Berglund to the wing. Couple that with consistency issues and it was a formula that eventually put his name into the rumor mill.
As his career progressed expectations were lowered and as he moved down the depth chart his production was near career lows but he did, however, score a career-high of 23 goals in a 2016-17 contract year and signed a five-year extension just before the 2017 trade deadline. Yet the rumors still persisted and when he was injured to start the 2017-18 season, the natives were getting restless.
"Patrik Berglund should have been traded during the offseason," wrote Dan Buffa in a scathing piece for SB Nation, St. Louis titled, 'The disappearance of Patrik Berglund should baffle no one." Buffa rips Berglund as "ordinary" and "a decent yet unremarkable talent" that could use a change of scenery in his February 11, 2018 piece and his thoughts were echoed when Berglund was given a C-rating by Todd Panula of fansided's Bleeding Blue.
"The fact that St. Louis Blues fans are still wondering what the real Patrik Berglund is and can accomplish," wrote Panula at the end of last season, "is quite astounding. He is 29 and just played his 10th NHL season.
"He gives you just enough to think there is more in there. He disappoints you just enough to figure there is no way he will reach his full potential. Then the juicy middle ground is normally where he falls."
All of this is not to bag on Berglund for who he is or the path his career has taken. Bloggers (myself included) have a tendency to get overzealous and may or may not have the proper insight at to why a player may or may not be performing up to expectations which might differentiate from what others see. What it intended to highlight is that Berglund might not be the best choice as the third line center. When you factor in that his set-up skills may have been overrated, that he never was the fastest skater to begin with and add in that he's offensively streaky while his defensive game might be a little more suspect than originally thought, perhaps having him on the wing might not be that bad of an idea.
In his 23-goal season Berglund played in all 82 games for St. Louis and scored on at a 15% shot-rate. The year prior his shooting percentage was 12.5% and last year it was a career-high 15.2%. In all three of those seasons Berglund's goal to assist ration was roughly 2:1. The guy can still shoot the puck but as his assists and plus/minus might indicate (minus-12 the past two seasons,) he and the Sabres might be better off having a player like Asplund dishing to him as opposed to Berglund trying to set someone up.
Berglund seems as if he'd be a great mentor for Asplund and his versatility could give Asplund the requisite time down the middle to develop as a center. Conversely, Asplund's hockey IQ and on-ice vision could be very helpful in getting Berglund to another 20-goal season.
How it all plays out is up in the air as there's a lot of competition in the bottom six and we're really not sure how far Asplund can take it during training camp. He has all the tools and if he continues to impress, or impress even more, then he could crack the lineup and do so as their third-line center. If that's the case, Berglund would be forced to move to Asplund's wing. Which isn't such a bad proposition.
Building the 2018-19 Buffalo Sabres roster:
LW, Conor Sheary / C, Jack Eichel / RW, Sam Reinhart
LW, Jeff Skinner / C, Casey Mittelstadt / RW, Kyle Okposo
LW, Patrik Berglund / C, Rasmus Asplund /
LHD, Marco Scandella / RHD, Rasmus Ristolainen
LHD, Rasmus Dahlin / RHD, Zach Bogosian
G, Carter Hutton
Thursday, September 13, 2018
Building the 2018-19 Buffalo Sabres roster--C, Rasmus Asplund
Published by hockeybuzz.com, 9-12-2018
C--Rasmus Asplund
20 yrs. old
5'11" 189 lbs.
2016, second round (33rd overall)
Rasmus Asplund had himself a helluva Prospects Challenge tournament and the traits he displayed while arguably being the best player on the ice for Buffalo, and possibly the entire tournament, won't all of a sudden disappear. Asplund led the tournament with six points and his lone goal was a beauty as he undressed four Pittsburgh Penguins at the blueline. The attributes that had the two-way center as a first round pick before dropping to the early second round are what have been constants throughout his professional career which includes competing against men for almost four full seasons in the Swedish Hockey League.
At 5'11" 189 lbs. Asplund doesn't have the ideal size for an NHL'er, but he isn't small and actually looks bigger on the ice. And at 20 yrs. old, with 170 SHL games under his belt, he's not a kid anymore either. The Sabres decided that it was best for him to spend one more season in the SHL last year, a decision that Asplund initially didn't agree with, but by the end of the season had warmed to. "I was a little mad that I didn't get over," he told the gathered media at the rookie showcase in Toronto last month, "but after the season, I'm happy that I stayed another year. I feel more ready than ever now to get over here and play."
That wasn't the first good move the Sabres organization made concerning Asplund. The first one was trading up to get him.
Asplund was widely considered a mid-lower first round talent but at the end of Day-1 at the 2016 NHL Draft, he was still on the board. Buffalo had the 38th pick and prior to the second round they consummated a trade with the Florida Panthers of defenseman Mark Pysyk for Dmitry Kulikov with Sabres GM Tim Murray insisting that they swap second-rounders. Buffalo had to throw in the 86th pick to get the deal done but in the end, much to the delight of their scouting department, they were able to move up to No. 33 and select Asplund.
Kris Baker of sabresprospects.com who had him ranked as the 21st best prospect in the 2016 draft. "Slippery and competitive," wrote Baker, "Asplund’s ability to hound the puck, force turnovers and quickly transition into offense with a smooth playmaking sense makes him an attractive candidate to mature into a quality NHL forward. Asplund may tote around an average frame and not appear to be the most physical player on the ice, but he’s very detail oriented with an ability to do the little things like winning faceoffs, jamming shooting lanes with his stick, and making short passes from deep in his zone to spark the transition game.
"Teams looking for a sneaky playmaker who will comfortably slot into a workmanlike role will likely have Asplund on their radar."
All of that was on display at the Prospects Challenge last weekend and what also really stood out for those in attendance was Asplund's vision and hockey sense. The Athletic's Corey Pronman noted in his 'Standout Performances at rookie camps' recap yesterday that Asplund, "showed his standard high-end hockey sense in how he can see the ice, slow the game down and make plays." His colleague at The Athletic, Joe Yerdon, said that if there was an MVP of the tournament, Asplund "would probably be a unanimous selection" while noting he was "a tenacious forechecker with speed, and a dynamite penalty killer.
"He showed aggressiveness with the puck and without it," continued Yerdon, and "his hockey IQ was also on display all weekend."
There is some danger slotting Asplund as a rookie No. 3 center for the team overall. Twenty-one year old Jack Eichel will continue as the team's top center while 19 yr. old rookie Casey Mittelstadt looks like he'll be No. 2. Having another rookie centering the third line could make for a precarious situation but that's why your have seasoned vets on the team.
Jeff Skinner and Kyle Okposo are two veteran wingers slotted for the top-six and while 26 yr. old winger Conor Sheary may not have the vast experience of those two, he's played on two Stanley Cup winning teams for Pittsburgh and was a strong contributor to the first one. Botterill traded a way veteran second line center Ryan O'Reilly who had taken many of the tough assignments for the Sabres but received two vet forwards in return--Patrik Berglund and Vladimir Sobotka--who have combined to play in over 1,100 regular season games and 111 playoff games. Plus there's 35 yr. old Jason Pominville who has nearly 1,000 regular season games and 81 playoff games.
You want experience, there it is.
The cool part about this year's roster building exercise is that there will be a lot of difficult decisions to make in the bottom-six forward group and that it probably won't be sorted out until the final game of the preseason. Slotting Asplund here as third line center might be a reach at this point when you base it upon a three-game tournament against a group of players that had many low-end prospects, AHL'ers and undrafted players. However, of the remaining centers on Buffalo, Asplund is more of a complete package than any of them, he's hungry and has a high compete-level and seems to have the smarts to be able to play and adapt as he goes along.
The SHL is no slouch league and some would argue that with the way the NHL is played today, it might be a better development league than the AHL. Asplund will be fighting against bigger, stronger, meaner opponents in North America and will be doing so on a smaller rink. Yet he seems to have the skating ability, the faculties and the mental toughness to make it work, not to mention the drive. "I've been working for the NHL," Asplund said at the showcase, "and that's the goal I'm going to go for, and we'll see how far it goes."
Building the 2018-19 Buffalo Sabres roster:
LW, Conor Sheary / C, Jack Eichel / RW, Sam Reinhart
LW, Jeff Skinner / C, Casey Mittelstadt / RW, Kyle Okposo
_____________ / C, Rasmus Asplund / ______________
LHD, Marco Scandella / RHD, Rasmus Ristolainen
LHD, Rasmus Dahlin / RHD, Zach Bogosian
G, Carter Hutton
C--Rasmus Asplund
20 yrs. old
5'11" 189 lbs.
2016, second round (33rd overall)
Rasmus Asplund had himself a helluva Prospects Challenge tournament and the traits he displayed while arguably being the best player on the ice for Buffalo, and possibly the entire tournament, won't all of a sudden disappear. Asplund led the tournament with six points and his lone goal was a beauty as he undressed four Pittsburgh Penguins at the blueline. The attributes that had the two-way center as a first round pick before dropping to the early second round are what have been constants throughout his professional career which includes competing against men for almost four full seasons in the Swedish Hockey League.
At 5'11" 189 lbs. Asplund doesn't have the ideal size for an NHL'er, but he isn't small and actually looks bigger on the ice. And at 20 yrs. old, with 170 SHL games under his belt, he's not a kid anymore either. The Sabres decided that it was best for him to spend one more season in the SHL last year, a decision that Asplund initially didn't agree with, but by the end of the season had warmed to. "I was a little mad that I didn't get over," he told the gathered media at the rookie showcase in Toronto last month, "but after the season, I'm happy that I stayed another year. I feel more ready than ever now to get over here and play."
That wasn't the first good move the Sabres organization made concerning Asplund. The first one was trading up to get him.
Asplund was widely considered a mid-lower first round talent but at the end of Day-1 at the 2016 NHL Draft, he was still on the board. Buffalo had the 38th pick and prior to the second round they consummated a trade with the Florida Panthers of defenseman Mark Pysyk for Dmitry Kulikov with Sabres GM Tim Murray insisting that they swap second-rounders. Buffalo had to throw in the 86th pick to get the deal done but in the end, much to the delight of their scouting department, they were able to move up to No. 33 and select Asplund.
Kris Baker of sabresprospects.com who had him ranked as the 21st best prospect in the 2016 draft. "Slippery and competitive," wrote Baker, "Asplund’s ability to hound the puck, force turnovers and quickly transition into offense with a smooth playmaking sense makes him an attractive candidate to mature into a quality NHL forward. Asplund may tote around an average frame and not appear to be the most physical player on the ice, but he’s very detail oriented with an ability to do the little things like winning faceoffs, jamming shooting lanes with his stick, and making short passes from deep in his zone to spark the transition game.
"Teams looking for a sneaky playmaker who will comfortably slot into a workmanlike role will likely have Asplund on their radar."
All of that was on display at the Prospects Challenge last weekend and what also really stood out for those in attendance was Asplund's vision and hockey sense. The Athletic's Corey Pronman noted in his 'Standout Performances at rookie camps' recap yesterday that Asplund, "showed his standard high-end hockey sense in how he can see the ice, slow the game down and make plays." His colleague at The Athletic, Joe Yerdon, said that if there was an MVP of the tournament, Asplund "would probably be a unanimous selection" while noting he was "a tenacious forechecker with speed, and a dynamite penalty killer.
"He showed aggressiveness with the puck and without it," continued Yerdon, and "his hockey IQ was also on display all weekend."
There is some danger slotting Asplund as a rookie No. 3 center for the team overall. Twenty-one year old Jack Eichel will continue as the team's top center while 19 yr. old rookie Casey Mittelstadt looks like he'll be No. 2. Having another rookie centering the third line could make for a precarious situation but that's why your have seasoned vets on the team.
Jeff Skinner and Kyle Okposo are two veteran wingers slotted for the top-six and while 26 yr. old winger Conor Sheary may not have the vast experience of those two, he's played on two Stanley Cup winning teams for Pittsburgh and was a strong contributor to the first one. Botterill traded a way veteran second line center Ryan O'Reilly who had taken many of the tough assignments for the Sabres but received two vet forwards in return--Patrik Berglund and Vladimir Sobotka--who have combined to play in over 1,100 regular season games and 111 playoff games. Plus there's 35 yr. old Jason Pominville who has nearly 1,000 regular season games and 81 playoff games.
You want experience, there it is.
The cool part about this year's roster building exercise is that there will be a lot of difficult decisions to make in the bottom-six forward group and that it probably won't be sorted out until the final game of the preseason. Slotting Asplund here as third line center might be a reach at this point when you base it upon a three-game tournament against a group of players that had many low-end prospects, AHL'ers and undrafted players. However, of the remaining centers on Buffalo, Asplund is more of a complete package than any of them, he's hungry and has a high compete-level and seems to have the smarts to be able to play and adapt as he goes along.
The SHL is no slouch league and some would argue that with the way the NHL is played today, it might be a better development league than the AHL. Asplund will be fighting against bigger, stronger, meaner opponents in North America and will be doing so on a smaller rink. Yet he seems to have the skating ability, the faculties and the mental toughness to make it work, not to mention the drive. "I've been working for the NHL," Asplund said at the showcase, "and that's the goal I'm going to go for, and we'll see how far it goes."
Building the 2018-19 Buffalo Sabres roster:
LW, Conor Sheary / C, Jack Eichel / RW, Sam Reinhart
LW, Jeff Skinner / C, Casey Mittelstadt / RW, Kyle Okposo
_____________ / C, Rasmus Asplund / ______________
LHD, Marco Scandella / RHD, Rasmus Ristolainen
LHD, Rasmus Dahlin / RHD, Zach Bogosian
G, Carter Hutton
Wednesday, September 12, 2018
Buffalo finishes 2018 Prospects Challenge strong. On to training camp.
Published by hockeybuzz.com, 9-11-2018
Buffalo defenseman Rasmus Dahlin did not play in the final game of the 2018 Prospects Challenge at HarborCenter in downtown Buffalo, but the Sabres still iced some star power with Casey Mittelstadt and Alexander Nylander. The two forwards were joined in the lineup yesterday by Rasmus Asplund, who made a name for himself throughout the tournament, and a group of players that featured eight undrafted players and a slew of lower-round picks.
The Pittsburgh Penguins prospect roster was that of a team only one year removed from back-to-back Stanley Cups. It featured only one player, Calen Addison (2018, 53rd overall) drafted in the top three rounds, one player drafted in the fourth round (Sam Lafferty, 2014, 113th) and 12 undrafted players. It's the price you pay for winning Stanley Cups and there's not a person in Sabreland who wouldn't trade positions with Pittsburgh.
But as we well know, hockey in Buffalo right now is about the future, and the future looks very bright.
Dahlin had a whale of a tournament as he busted out of the gate with two goals and an assist in the first game and looked every bit as advertised against his peers. His d-partner, Will Borgen, was a beast reveling in his role as a physical, stay-at-home defenseman while forward Tage Thompson (2016, 26th, STL) looked strong wearing the Blue and Gold for the first time.
With those players out of the lineup and the Sabres playing against a weak Penguins squad, it was time for players like Mittelstadt and Nylander, a pair of eighth-overall picks (2017 and 2016, respectively) to take over the game, which they eventually did.
Mittelstadt centered Buffalo's top line with Nylander on his left wing and undrafted forward Cole Coskey on the right. Although it took Mittelstadt and Nylander two periods to click, when they did it was pretty magical. Nylander scored his first goal just :20 seconds into the third period with a nasty wrister that picked the top corner to make it 4-0 and he finished off a nifty give-and-go with Mittelstadt to make it 6-2 at the 6:21 mark. Nylander also had two assists, both primary, to finish the day with four points.
The driving force on both of Nylander's goals was Mittelstadt who admittedly wasn't at his best through the first two games and the first two periods of this one. "The first two games and a little bit of the third (game) I might have been pushing it a little bit," he said post-game yesterday. "There were times I should have been shooting it or make a quicker play but I think I'm getting back into it. Even in the third (period) I started making plays I normally make with my hands and feet."
That he did.
The first of his three consecutive primary assists came on Nylander's first goal when Mittelstadt controlled the puck along the wall and drew two Pens defenders to him before slipping a short pass to his winger who stealthily split the d. The second came when he sent a pass through the slot right on the stick of defenseman Nicholas Welch who was pinching in on the play and the last was that give-and-go with Nylander.
Buffalo GM Jason Botterill liked a lot of what he saw over the weekend and into Monday and has been talking about having more internal competition for roster spots at training camp. This tournament was the first opportunity for players to put their names into the conversation and perhaps no one did so more than center Rasmus Asplund.
The 2016 draft pick (33rd overall) just came over from his native Sweden and impressed at the Challenge. We'd read about his strong two-way game playing in the SHL and he brought that with him this weekend but he showed off some skill and moxie on his goal yesterday as he undressed four Pens at the Pittsburgh blueline before finishing strong. Asplund also brings a very high hockey IQ to the table, some great on-ice vision and a lot of compete as well.
"You see the play he made on his goal," said Mittelstadt of Asplund, a teammate he's spoken highly of this off season. "You see him do things like that but there are a lot of other things he does that people miss. Winning faceoffs, he's always in the right spot defensively and in the neutral zone."
One of the things that you won't see on the highlight reel was his compete on Buffalo's first goal yesterday. After picking up the puck inside his own blueline he fought through a check, got through an entanglement with the ref in the neutral zone and fought off another check at the Pens blueline before hitting defenseman Devante Stephens who was trailing on the play. Stephens then sent a shot to the net with Andrew Oglevie potting the rebound.
Asplund looks bigger than his 5'11" 189 lb. frame and skates extremely well. He finished with a tournament-high six points (1+5) and may be in the mix for a bottom-six slot on the Sabres.
In addition to Dahlin, Mittelstadt (for a full season) and Asplund, there's a big wave of talented players coming into the organization this year. Forward Victor Olofsson (2014, 181st) will be making his North American debut as will defenseman, and fellow Swede, Lawrence Pilut whom the Sabres signed to a free agent contract. Borgen, who played eight games with Rochester last season after leaving school early, leads a group of college players that includes Brandon Hickey, who's rights came over in a trade with the Arizona Coyotes and who signed with Buffalo, and forward Oglevie (an FA signee) who will be battling for spots in Buffalo and/or Rochester. And, although Botterill didn't commit to any training camp invites amongst veteran players and/or Challenge invitees "right now," they have talked to players about that possibility which would further the competition for spots.
"We've talked a lot as a group about bringing in more internal competition and giving [head coach] Phil [Housley] more options at different positions," said Botterill yesterday. "We think we've done that this summer, especially at forward, bringing in some guys but also having some young guys who are going to be competing for positions."
And by the looks of it, they've done pretty good job.
The 2018 Prospects Challenge is in the books and it's on to the opening of training camp on Thursday with physicals and Friday they start practice. Here's the schedule:
Buffalo's first preseason game is Monday at 7 pm in Columbus vs. the Blue Jackets.
Buffalo defenseman Rasmus Dahlin did not play in the final game of the 2018 Prospects Challenge at HarborCenter in downtown Buffalo, but the Sabres still iced some star power with Casey Mittelstadt and Alexander Nylander. The two forwards were joined in the lineup yesterday by Rasmus Asplund, who made a name for himself throughout the tournament, and a group of players that featured eight undrafted players and a slew of lower-round picks.
The Pittsburgh Penguins prospect roster was that of a team only one year removed from back-to-back Stanley Cups. It featured only one player, Calen Addison (2018, 53rd overall) drafted in the top three rounds, one player drafted in the fourth round (Sam Lafferty, 2014, 113th) and 12 undrafted players. It's the price you pay for winning Stanley Cups and there's not a person in Sabreland who wouldn't trade positions with Pittsburgh.
But as we well know, hockey in Buffalo right now is about the future, and the future looks very bright.
Dahlin had a whale of a tournament as he busted out of the gate with two goals and an assist in the first game and looked every bit as advertised against his peers. His d-partner, Will Borgen, was a beast reveling in his role as a physical, stay-at-home defenseman while forward Tage Thompson (2016, 26th, STL) looked strong wearing the Blue and Gold for the first time.
With those players out of the lineup and the Sabres playing against a weak Penguins squad, it was time for players like Mittelstadt and Nylander, a pair of eighth-overall picks (2017 and 2016, respectively) to take over the game, which they eventually did.
Mittelstadt centered Buffalo's top line with Nylander on his left wing and undrafted forward Cole Coskey on the right. Although it took Mittelstadt and Nylander two periods to click, when they did it was pretty magical. Nylander scored his first goal just :20 seconds into the third period with a nasty wrister that picked the top corner to make it 4-0 and he finished off a nifty give-and-go with Mittelstadt to make it 6-2 at the 6:21 mark. Nylander also had two assists, both primary, to finish the day with four points.
The driving force on both of Nylander's goals was Mittelstadt who admittedly wasn't at his best through the first two games and the first two periods of this one. "The first two games and a little bit of the third (game) I might have been pushing it a little bit," he said post-game yesterday. "There were times I should have been shooting it or make a quicker play but I think I'm getting back into it. Even in the third (period) I started making plays I normally make with my hands and feet."
That he did.
The first of his three consecutive primary assists came on Nylander's first goal when Mittelstadt controlled the puck along the wall and drew two Pens defenders to him before slipping a short pass to his winger who stealthily split the d. The second came when he sent a pass through the slot right on the stick of defenseman Nicholas Welch who was pinching in on the play and the last was that give-and-go with Nylander.
Buffalo GM Jason Botterill liked a lot of what he saw over the weekend and into Monday and has been talking about having more internal competition for roster spots at training camp. This tournament was the first opportunity for players to put their names into the conversation and perhaps no one did so more than center Rasmus Asplund.
The 2016 draft pick (33rd overall) just came over from his native Sweden and impressed at the Challenge. We'd read about his strong two-way game playing in the SHL and he brought that with him this weekend but he showed off some skill and moxie on his goal yesterday as he undressed four Pens at the Pittsburgh blueline before finishing strong. Asplund also brings a very high hockey IQ to the table, some great on-ice vision and a lot of compete as well.
"You see the play he made on his goal," said Mittelstadt of Asplund, a teammate he's spoken highly of this off season. "You see him do things like that but there are a lot of other things he does that people miss. Winning faceoffs, he's always in the right spot defensively and in the neutral zone."
One of the things that you won't see on the highlight reel was his compete on Buffalo's first goal yesterday. After picking up the puck inside his own blueline he fought through a check, got through an entanglement with the ref in the neutral zone and fought off another check at the Pens blueline before hitting defenseman Devante Stephens who was trailing on the play. Stephens then sent a shot to the net with Andrew Oglevie potting the rebound.
Asplund looks bigger than his 5'11" 189 lb. frame and skates extremely well. He finished with a tournament-high six points (1+5) and may be in the mix for a bottom-six slot on the Sabres.
In addition to Dahlin, Mittelstadt (for a full season) and Asplund, there's a big wave of talented players coming into the organization this year. Forward Victor Olofsson (2014, 181st) will be making his North American debut as will defenseman, and fellow Swede, Lawrence Pilut whom the Sabres signed to a free agent contract. Borgen, who played eight games with Rochester last season after leaving school early, leads a group of college players that includes Brandon Hickey, who's rights came over in a trade with the Arizona Coyotes and who signed with Buffalo, and forward Oglevie (an FA signee) who will be battling for spots in Buffalo and/or Rochester. And, although Botterill didn't commit to any training camp invites amongst veteran players and/or Challenge invitees "right now," they have talked to players about that possibility which would further the competition for spots.
"We've talked a lot as a group about bringing in more internal competition and giving [head coach] Phil [Housley] more options at different positions," said Botterill yesterday. "We think we've done that this summer, especially at forward, bringing in some guys but also having some young guys who are going to be competing for positions."
And by the looks of it, they've done pretty good job.
The 2018 Prospects Challenge is in the books and it's on to the opening of training camp on Thursday with physicals and Friday they start practice. Here's the schedule:
Friday, Sept. 14
Session one: 9:45 – 10:20 a.m. (New Wave Energy Rink) / 10:25 – 11:15 a.m. (KeyBank Rink)
Session two: 11:45 a.m. – 12:20 p.m. (New Wave Energy Rink) / 12:25 – 1:15 p.m. (KeyBank Rink)
Saturday, Sept. 15
Session one: 9:45 – 10:20 a.m. (New Wave Energy Rink) / 10:25 – 11:15 a.m. (KeyBank Rink)
Session two: 11:45 a.m. – 12:20 p.m. (New Wave Energy Rink) / 12:25 – 1:15 p.m. (KeyBank Rink)
Sunday, Sept. 16
Practice: 9:45 – 10:15 a.m. (Both rinks)
Scrimmage: 10:30 – 11:15 a.m. (KeyBank Rink)
Buffalo's first preseason game is Monday at 7 pm in Columbus vs. the Blue Jackets.
Tuesday, September 11, 2018
Building the 2018-19 Buffalo Sabres roster--RHD, Zach Bogosian
Published by hockeybuzz.com, 9-9-2018
Zach Bogosian
28 yrs. old
6'3" 221 lbs.
2008, 3rd-overall (ATL)
Acquired in a trade with the Winnipeg Jets, February 11, 2015
Career stats: 552 games | 49 goals | 121 assists | 170 points | -82
Dependent upon how things shake out at camp, 28 yr. old veteran defenseman Zach Bogosian will probably be the first one to hit the ice as a d-partner for Buffalo Sabres rookie phenom Rasmus Dahlin. That is, of course, if nothing happens to Bogosian along the way, which unfortunately is always a possibility.
Bogosian, a third-overall pick in 2008, was drafted for his size, skating ability and skill and was thrown right into the fray in Atlanta as one of the Thrashers top defensemen for the 2008-09 season. However, in what would become a harbinger of things to come, Bogosian left a game vs. the Philadelphia Flyers on October 28, 2008 with a broken leg and would miss a big chunk of his rookie campaign. Outside of the 2009-10 season where he would miss only one game, Bogosian was injured for huge chunks for most of the ensuing eight seasons playing in only 424 of a possible 622 games.
Last year because of injury Bogosian's season didn't start until December 1 and it ended 18 games later as he and the rest of his season was done in by a hip injury. Bogosian underwent hip surgery in early February and with a 4-6 month recovery time now past, he's ready to go for the upcoming season.
Other than the 21 games he played for Buffalo in 2015 after being acquired as part of the Evander Kane trade, Bogosian has been the butt of jokes concerning his injury problems and/or his play. However, people tend to forget that he had a good first full (for him) season for Buffalo in 2015-16. Bogosian and the Sabres seemed to be on the rise and that season he took rookie Jake McCabe under his wing with the duo forming a very solid second-pairing. McCabe scored four goals and 14 points in his first full season and lead the team with a plus-6 rating.
Much has been said about the hiring of Phil Housley as coach of the Sabres and what he'll be able to do for mobile defensemen like Bogosian. Housley likes active defensemen who can join the rush and at last year's training camp he said (via Bill Hoppe of the Olean Times,) "[Bogosian] can be part of the rush. I can definitely see him pinching down walls and keeping pucks in, and when you say that, it means you have to get up ice.” Housley also noted that the veteran defenseman was "doing all the right things out there" while helping the young players.
The young player Bogosian might be helping this season is Dahlin, at least until the 18 yr. old Swede gets acclimated enough to take on a top-pairing role.
Dahlin can do everything that Housley wants without a hitch and can do so at top speed but what he and the team might need is a player that can hold the fort while he's getting up ice. During the first Prospects Challenge game that guy was Will Borgen who was said to be punishing players throughout the 6-4 win while Dahlin was busy scoring two goals and adding an assist. Bogosian can play that role. It's something he did for Dan Bylsma when he was the Sabres coach for two seasons, but it's not something he was thrilled with.
As a veteran who's never made the playoffs in his 10-year career, and as a player who's missed a lot of time due to injury, one would think that any role, especially alongside a franchise defenseman would suit him moving forward. Bogosian's spent a lot of time either injured or playing for bad teams but this Buffalo team offers a lot of upside and a reduced role may actually keep him on the ice more.
Sure, Bogosian has the skill set to be the one jumping up into the play and he should have enough veteran experience to pick his spots more judiciously, but at least to start, he may be the one watching Dahlin take control of the ice on offense. It's not to say that he won't be activated, but moreso Bogosian will be expected to cover for the rookie as he gets a feel for the North American game at the NHL level.
One should have every reason to believe that Bogosian will take on that role and relish helping Dahlin, just as he did with McCabe. And who knows, if they click real well and he stays healthy, Bogosian has enough skill and skating to ride shotgun with Dahlin in a top-pairing role.
However, maybe it's best to entertain more modest goals for Bogosian like a 70-game season in a second-pairing role for a team that's a playoff contender for at least a good portion of the season. And even that might be asking too much.
Building the 2018-19 Buffalo Sabres roster:
LW, Conor Sheary / C, Jack Eichel / RW, Sam Reinhart
LW, Jeff Skinner / C, Casey Mittelstadt / RW, Kyle Okposo
LHD, Marco Scandella / RHD, Rasmus Ristolainen
LHD, Rasmus Dahlin / RHD, Zach Bogosian
G, Carter Hutton
Zach Bogosian
28 yrs. old
6'3" 221 lbs.
2008, 3rd-overall (ATL)
Acquired in a trade with the Winnipeg Jets, February 11, 2015
Career stats: 552 games | 49 goals | 121 assists | 170 points | -82
Dependent upon how things shake out at camp, 28 yr. old veteran defenseman Zach Bogosian will probably be the first one to hit the ice as a d-partner for Buffalo Sabres rookie phenom Rasmus Dahlin. That is, of course, if nothing happens to Bogosian along the way, which unfortunately is always a possibility.
Bogosian, a third-overall pick in 2008, was drafted for his size, skating ability and skill and was thrown right into the fray in Atlanta as one of the Thrashers top defensemen for the 2008-09 season. However, in what would become a harbinger of things to come, Bogosian left a game vs. the Philadelphia Flyers on October 28, 2008 with a broken leg and would miss a big chunk of his rookie campaign. Outside of the 2009-10 season where he would miss only one game, Bogosian was injured for huge chunks for most of the ensuing eight seasons playing in only 424 of a possible 622 games.
Last year because of injury Bogosian's season didn't start until December 1 and it ended 18 games later as he and the rest of his season was done in by a hip injury. Bogosian underwent hip surgery in early February and with a 4-6 month recovery time now past, he's ready to go for the upcoming season.
Other than the 21 games he played for Buffalo in 2015 after being acquired as part of the Evander Kane trade, Bogosian has been the butt of jokes concerning his injury problems and/or his play. However, people tend to forget that he had a good first full (for him) season for Buffalo in 2015-16. Bogosian and the Sabres seemed to be on the rise and that season he took rookie Jake McCabe under his wing with the duo forming a very solid second-pairing. McCabe scored four goals and 14 points in his first full season and lead the team with a plus-6 rating.
Much has been said about the hiring of Phil Housley as coach of the Sabres and what he'll be able to do for mobile defensemen like Bogosian. Housley likes active defensemen who can join the rush and at last year's training camp he said (via Bill Hoppe of the Olean Times,) "[Bogosian] can be part of the rush. I can definitely see him pinching down walls and keeping pucks in, and when you say that, it means you have to get up ice.” Housley also noted that the veteran defenseman was "doing all the right things out there" while helping the young players.
The young player Bogosian might be helping this season is Dahlin, at least until the 18 yr. old Swede gets acclimated enough to take on a top-pairing role.
Dahlin can do everything that Housley wants without a hitch and can do so at top speed but what he and the team might need is a player that can hold the fort while he's getting up ice. During the first Prospects Challenge game that guy was Will Borgen who was said to be punishing players throughout the 6-4 win while Dahlin was busy scoring two goals and adding an assist. Bogosian can play that role. It's something he did for Dan Bylsma when he was the Sabres coach for two seasons, but it's not something he was thrilled with.
As a veteran who's never made the playoffs in his 10-year career, and as a player who's missed a lot of time due to injury, one would think that any role, especially alongside a franchise defenseman would suit him moving forward. Bogosian's spent a lot of time either injured or playing for bad teams but this Buffalo team offers a lot of upside and a reduced role may actually keep him on the ice more.
Sure, Bogosian has the skill set to be the one jumping up into the play and he should have enough veteran experience to pick his spots more judiciously, but at least to start, he may be the one watching Dahlin take control of the ice on offense. It's not to say that he won't be activated, but moreso Bogosian will be expected to cover for the rookie as he gets a feel for the North American game at the NHL level.
One should have every reason to believe that Bogosian will take on that role and relish helping Dahlin, just as he did with McCabe. And who knows, if they click real well and he stays healthy, Bogosian has enough skill and skating to ride shotgun with Dahlin in a top-pairing role.
However, maybe it's best to entertain more modest goals for Bogosian like a 70-game season in a second-pairing role for a team that's a playoff contender for at least a good portion of the season. And even that might be asking too much.
Building the 2018-19 Buffalo Sabres roster:
LW, Conor Sheary / C, Jack Eichel / RW, Sam Reinhart
LW, Jeff Skinner / C, Casey Mittelstadt / RW, Kyle Okposo
LHD, Marco Scandella / RHD, Rasmus Ristolainen
LHD, Rasmus Dahlin / RHD, Zach Bogosian
G, Carter Hutton
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