Three-game Sabres recap, Feb. 23-29

The sucking sound you hear is the wind going out of the Buffalo Sabres sails. Prior to Monday's trade deadline the Sabres posted two convincing wins and went into the break with a solid 7-3-1 record in the month of February which was enough to convince general manager Jason Botterill to reconfigure the roster a bit instead of moving pending UFA's for low-value futures. Anyone and everyone knew that the playoffs were a longshot for Buffalo but to his credit, Botterill rewarded his team for toughing out a difficult season full of inconsistencies by showing some faith in them.

Botterill's two acquisitions at the deadline--forwards Dominik Kahun and Wayne Simmonds--replaced two forwards moved out and were as advertised. Simmonds has had two starts for Buffalo while Kahun made his Sabres debut against the Vegas Golden Knights. Kahun made a quick impression as he scored on his second shift to give the Sabres the lead against Vegas. As for Simmonds, everyone and their brother knows that he's in the latter stages of a strong career and that his production is waning, but he does provide veteran leadership and an on-ice toughness that's sorely been lacking this season.

Three-game Sabres recap, Feb. 16-22

When we look at those three games below Sabres fans can't help but think, damn you Ottawa! Or should we really say, damn you Buffalo!

The Sabres rode a three-game winning streak into Ottawa and hit Canada's Capital after smoking Toronto 5-2. This would be great, right? Except for one thing. Buffalo was already 1-2 against the Senators and when they left Ottawa they finished the season 1-3 against a division foe who will end up near the bottom of the conference.

DOH!!!

Buffalo's win last night coupled with the Leafs  embarrassing 6-3 loss at home against the Carolina Hurricanes has the Sabres eight points back with two games in hand. They'll make up one of those games this afternoon as Buffalo hosts the Winnipeg Jets in their final game before tomorrow's trade deadline.

Eichel-4 Sens-2. Plus, on the Rasmus Dahlin benching, Rasmus Asplund and more

Published by hockeybuzz.com, 11-17-2019


Jack Eichel has had some big games for the Sabres dating back to December 26, 2016 in Boston where as a rookie he led the charge (2 goals, 2 assists) in a come from behind 6-3 win against his hometown Bruins. the 23 yr. old Eichel has a had hat trick before and has had more four-point games before, which includes two already this year (both games 2+2.) However, he reached another level in last night's four-goal game in the Sabres 4-2 win over the Ottawa Senators. It's not just the fact that he scored four goals or that he outscored Ottawa himself, Eichel carried his team on his back when they needed it most.

The Sabres have been struggling since getting off to a torrid start to the season, came into the game on a six-game winless streak (0-4-2) and as a team couldn't beat Sens goalie Craig Anderson last night. It's a movie Buffalo hockey fans have seen over and over again for over a decade, one in which they played a team they could or should beat, but in the end were left to lament that they worked hard and had the chances but just couldn't finish and/or didn't have puck luck. For the Sabres other 17 skaters on the ice against last night, that part of the equation was true.

What those previous teams didn't have was a player like Eichel who has the skill-level to defy that scenario.

Big challenge tonight for the fourth...err, Larsson...umm, checking line?

Published by hockeybuzz.com, 10-11-2019

A line by any other name, in this case the Johan Larsson line otherwise known as the fourth line to some, still smells like a checking line. And it's a good one.

Although Buffalo Sabres head coach Ralph Krueger says he refuses to count the lines, stating that every line has equal importance in his scheme, we all really know better. Jack Eichel leads the forwards in even-strength time on ice and his linemates Sam Reinhart and Victor Olofsson are second and third, respectively. The next three in order are Jeff Skinner, Marcus Johansson and Vladimir Sobotka, who represent a line.

Perhaps it gets a little hazy after that as the Larsson/Zemgus Girgensons/Kyle Okposo line rank seventh, eight and ninth on the team in EV ATOI which might earn them the title of Buffalo's third line. Yet Okposo had this quote when discussing the effectiveness of his line, "We're a pretty formidable line right now, he said. "You look across (as an opponent,) you see a fourth line (his line) and you say, 'What the hell am I doing in my D-zone?'"

Plenty of Sabres players to watch as Buffalo visits Columbus tonight

Published by hockeybuzz.com, 9-17-2019



Last night the Buffalo Sabres displayed some star-power in their opening preseason game at Pegula Ice Arena on the campus of Penn State University. The 'Pegula' mentioned above is the Pegula family lead by patriarch Terry who sold interests in his East Resources Energy company and donated over $100 million dollars to his alma mater to start a NCAA Division I hockey program. The crown jewel of Terry's generous donation is the 6,000-plus seat multi purpose arena that began hosting Sabres preseason games in 2016 with a game versus the Minnesota Wild. For the past three years Buffalo has opened up the home portion of the preseason against the Pittsburgh Penguins, an organization that Pegula also has ties to.

So it's not surprising that the Sabres trotted out captain Jack Eichel, 2018 first-overall pick Rasmus Dahlin, 40-goal scorer Jeff Skinner and 2019 first round pick Dylan Cozens for last nights game in the hopes of some fireworks, especially with a new head coach in Ralph Krueger. The Sabres dominated the first two periods outshooting the Penguins a whopping 37-9 and took a 4-1 lead into the third period. That would dissipate, however, as Pittsburgh scored three unanswered goals to send the game to overtime. Eichel saved the day as he scored the overtime winner with only eight seconds left in the extra session.

Building the 2019-20 Buffalo Sabres roster--The Fourth Line

Published by hockeybuzz.com, 9-15-2019


In this series we build the 2019-20 Buffalo Sabres roster one by one leading up to the season opener on October 3.


There will be a lot of competition for a role on Buffalo's fourth line as the additions of top-nine forwards Marcus Johansson and Jimmy Vesey push players down the depth chart to where they should be in the first place. Sabres general manager Jason Botterill and new head coach Ralph Krueger have a group of veteran fourth-line players that are interchangeable battling for three spots on the line and they'll be joined by a former goal-scorer who's struggled in that department, some young bucks trying to make a name for themselves and a couple of AHL scorers trying to crack an NHL lineup. 

One thing we probably won't see this season are young skilled players/scorers, like first round pick Dylan Cozens or Tage Thompson, skating in a fourth-line role as players will sink or swim with the skills, and within the roles they were drafted for.

Which is a good thing.

Draft weekend is a good time for trades, here's a look at some names out there

Published by hockeybuzz.com, 6-20-2019

Today marks the lead-in day to the NHL Draft as general managers meet to discuss various league issues before hitting the stage in what might be the second-most popular draft amongst the big-four major North American pro sports. The season finished, the NHL Awards ceremony was last night and scouting departments are putting the final touches on their list and all that's left to do is hit the floor and make your selections.

Pending, of course, whatever deals might be made between teams.

GM's burn up the phone lines leading up to this week and today in Vancouver they'll all have the opportunity to meet face-to-face with parties of interest regarding possible deals. Sure, they'll discuss issues like video review, etc. but one area of focus involves deals discussed over the phone, or even those that begin this day. The Buffalo Sabres have been in the rumor mill on many fronts for a while now and it seems as if they'll be active during a potentially busy trade weekend. 

We've all heard the rumors and all have our opinions on what the Sabres should or should not do and we've all heard from Buffalo GM Jason Botterill that he's looking to add talent to the team. Just what that talent will look like and the cost of attaining that is still up in the air, but it's safe to say that we'll here something involving the Sabres in the next two or three days. It might be a deal that involves moving up or down in the draft or it might be some kind of blockbuster, but whatever the deal may be it will illicit strong opinions from a fan-base dying for a winner.

Having said that, fans can get over-emotional as their impatience rises to high levels. Just because the fan in all of us wants something now doesn't necessarily mean it will happen no matter how well it might be backed up by stats, sound capology or opinion. Botterill is the GM of the Buffalo Sabres and it's his responsibility to structure the organization as he sees fit. What he's looking at is an obviously flawed team, with a new head coach that will be playing in a tough division and an even tougher conference. Botterill is under some pressure to do something, but the general consensus is that the high-point of prognostications would center on just making the playoffs. There is no need for the Sabres to mortgage the future for a rental-type piece at a high cost.

What we're in the middle of is...

The Process.

Impressions of, and questions concerning--RW, Kyle Okposo

Published by hockeybuzz.com, 4-23-2019

Right Wing--Kyle Okposo DOB: April 16, 1988 (Age, 31)
Draft: 2006, 1st round (7th-overall,) NYI
How acquired: 2016 FA
Last contract signed: July 1, 2016--7yr./$42M
Final year of contract: 2022-23

2018-19 Stats:  78 games | 14 goals | 15 assists | 29 points | -9 | 13:47 ATOI

Buffalo Career Stats:  219 games | 48 goals | 70 assists | -50 | 16:27 ATOI

What we wrote preseason:  The 2017-18 NHL season for Buffalo Sabres right winger Kyle Okposo is being widely regarded as a mulligan for the 30 yr. old. Okposo's health issues, stemming from treatment for a concussion, landed him in the intensive care unit in April, 2017 and as the off season hit, for him it wasn't about gearing up for the following season it was more about whether or not he'd ever be able to play the game again.

However, Okposo is now facing another hurdle--Father Time. The 30 yr. old is at a point where, generally speaking, players begin to decline. "I’ve been around this game awhile now," he said, "and you get on the other side of 30 and a lot of guys say, ‘Oh he’s past his prime’ and 'If he has a couple of bad years, he’s on the way down' and I’m very aware of that and seen it happen to many guys. 

Okposo will probably be Buffalo's No. 2 right winger with rookie Casey Mittelstadt or veteran Patrik Berglund at center. In either instance he expects, and is expected, to succeed.

What we wrote mid-season:  We all know about Okposo's contract, his health issues and his struggles scoring. The Sabres could be getting the same production of 15 points (5+19) and a minus-4 rating through 37 games from a player with a cap-hit much less than Okposo's $6 million but they're stuck with that for four and a half more seasons. It's the type of contract that could haunt Buffalo in the near future as Skinner, Reinhart and defensemen Rasmus Dahlin will all need new, and lucrative, contracts within the next two years. Buffalo desperately needs a No. 2 right wing that can score on a consistent basis and Okposo was supposed to be that guy. Outside of some solid, but somewhat modest, numbers in his first season with the Sabres that type of top-six production hasn't materialized and Housley's been forced to play him up and down the bottom-nine. Okposo is a player that's easy to pull for as he's overcome adversity and exudes professionalism on a daily basis, but there comes a point in time where said player needs to step up his game and help this team move forward. That time has come.

Impressions on his play this year:  It didn't come. Okposo finished the year with 14 goals and 15 assists, which was worse than the prior season when returned from his scary health issues. With 11 of those points (7+4) coming on the powerplay, in essence the $6 million man was a bottom-six winger/powerplay specialist for the Sabres last year. 

When it comes to his physical attributes, Okposo isn't slow but a much faster NHL game can leave him in the dust a bit and he does have a tendency to get lost in the pace of the play. He's pretty strong in the corners and below the goal line but there were many times where he tried to do too much resulting in turnovers. He has an excellent shot which we've witnessed on the powerplay however he had trouble finding open space 5v5. Open space is often difficult to find when playing in the bottom-six, but Okposo really hasn't done anything top-six worthy since his first year with the Sabres.

Buffalo is not unique when it comes to bad contracts as most teams in the league have at least one, and many can be traced to free agency. The good news for the Sabres is that they're not in a cap bind right now and don't need to hit the panic button on a $6 million bottom-six player. In an ideal world Okposo would produce like an overpaid top-nine winger but his play last season has us leaning towards a player that won't be around in a couple of years.  

Questions moving forward:  Can he work on his skating a touch this summer? Will the third coach be a charm for him? Can he at least get to 40 points, a total that's well below his career average but, unfortunately, right in line with what he's averaged the last three years with the Sabres? Does he deserve the 'A' that's sewn on his sweater? Would GM Jason Botterill trade away Buffalo's other first round pick to move him? Is there a team that would take on that contract?

Contract info via CapFriendly, stats via sabres.com and hockey reference.com.

Hello T.O. Sabres in Toronto with a little wind in their sails

Published by hockeybuzz.com, 2-25-2019


Sabres GM Jason Botterill made the big move last night in trading for Anaheim Ducks defenseman Brandon Montour. Buffalo gave up one of it's three 2019 first round picks (but not their own) and 21 yr. old d-prospect Brendan Guhle for Montour although the 24 yr. old Brampton, Ontario native won't be in the lineup tonight against his the Toronto Maple Leafs. Botterill told the gathered media that the team wasn't interested in rushing Montour to Toronto on a red-eye to play tonight but that he'll be in the lineup tomorrow night in Philadelphia against the Flyers.

In the only other move by Botterill and the Sabres, defenseman Nathan Beaulieu was traded to the Winnipeg Jets for a 2019, sixth round draft pick. Beaulieu was acquired by Botterill on June 17, 2017 from the Montreal Canadiens for a third round pick (Scott Walford) and played in 89 games for the Sabres scoring four goals and adding 12 assists with a minus-18 rating while averaging 15:32 of ice time. Beaulieu's time dwindled with Buffalo this season and he was often a healthy scratch causing him to ask for more ice-time while indirectly saying he wanted to be traded if Buffalo couldn't accommodate. His wishes came true today as the Jets added him for defensive depth.

Okposo has concussion. Florida trip has been brutal for Sabres

Published by hockeybuzz.com, 2-19-2019


The Buffalo Sabres announced today that forward Kyle Okposo has a concussion after getting one-punched to the ice in a tilt with the NY Rangers on Sunday. Reasons for why he decided to drop the gloves in the first place are now irrelevant as this concussion is something that could be very serious.

Okposo suffered a concussion late on March 21, 2017 that went undiagnosed and he eventually ended up missing the final six games of the regular season. What happened after was a ride that landed him in the neurological intensive care unit where he was left "incoherent, confused and paranoid," according to a piece by Tim Graham of The Athletic. "He strained to recognize loved ones. He thought staffers around his bedside were there to hurt him."

Win one for Kyle plus, Mitts returns and lines get a good shakeup.

Published by hockeybuzz.com, 2-17-2019


Plain and simple, Sabres forward Kyle Okposo got smoked at the hands of NY Rangers d-man Tony DeAngelo in a one-punch fight on Friday night. Props to Okposo for defending himself for a "hit" that wasn't even close to being as malicious as the Rangers took it to be, but then again, Okposo really shouldn't be dropping his gloves in the first place.

First off, fighting is just not in his makeup. At 30 years old and with over 700 NHL games played Okposo has been in a total of five fights over his 12 yr. career with his last one being over four years ago, according to hockeyfights.com. In addition, considering what he went through with his March, 2017 concussion, the follow-up treatment that landed him in the Intensive Care Unit and the long, slow process of once again playing the game without reservations, all potential hits to the head should be avoided at all costs. Yet, there he was going toe-to-toe with a young buck who's had 10 fights in just over three years.

Not a lot of time to fix all of the ills

Published by hockeybuzz.com, 10-19-2018


The Sabres have a practice scheduled for 4:30 pm ET today and it will be the last one before they play back-to-back games in Southern California this weekend. Buffalo plays the Los Angeles Kings tomorrow afternoon at 3:30 ET and will finish their five-game road trip on Sunday against the Anaheim Ducks. After a shutout against the Arizona Coyotes to start their season-long trip, the Sabres have dropped the last two games by a combined 9-2 score.

There were very few bright spots in those two losses against the Vegas Golden Knights on Tuesday and the San Jose Sharks last night. One of them was goalie Carter Hutton who was just short of brilliant in net despite giving up seven goals on 66 shots against. Sure the .894 save percentage doesn't look like much, but when you look at the tape, things could have been a lot worse.

One of the big problems haunting the Sabres right now, obviously, is scoring. The Sabres have dropped to a familiar spot in the rankings as their 1.86 goals/game ranks second-last in the league (ARI.) In three of the past five years, including last season, Buffalo has finished at the bottom of the league in scoring and once again they find themselves near the bottom of the league.Whether you're looking at the analytics or having this futility burned into your skull using the eye-test, the results are the same. Buffalo can't score 5v5, nor can they score on the powerplay.

Even strength scoring has been a problem for years and it looked as if Sabres GM Jason Botterill added enough skill to at least move the scoring needle for his team. It has moved at times but their four losses have been brutal as Buffalo has scored three goals in those games with the powerplay literally non-existent in those losses.

In 2016-17 the Sabres boasted the best powerplay in the league (24.5%) but last season it faltered, especially at the beginning of the season when the PP took a dive to 30th in the league in November and December. Buffalo managed to finish 22nd in the league at an 18/3% conversion rate but most of that headway came in the second half when the season was pretty much over.

This season began with a 4-0 shutout loss at the hands of the Boston Bruins. Buffalo went 0/2 on the powerplay. In their next three losses the Sabres scored one goal in each game going 0/7 in a 6-1 loss vs. Colorado, 0/6 in a 4-1 loss at Vegas and 0/5 in a 5-1 loss last night at San Jose. Add it all up and the Sabres have scored zero powerplay goals on 20 opportunities in their four losses.

There was dreadful special teams play on the penalty kill last night as well. The Sabres came into the game having killed 15/20 penalties and their 75% kill-rate ranked them tied for 19th in the league. Not great, but not abysmal either and they were facing a Sharks team that had converted only two of 21 powerplay opportunities (9.5%.) Last night San Jose scored on their first two opportunities courtesy of a double-minor and finished the night 3/7. Buffalo's generosity in giving the Sharks powerplay opportunities was only exceeded by their PK units which for some reason allowed San Jose players to leisurely camp in front of Hutton.

Buffalo seemed to correct one of their problems from Vegas as they came out against San Jose with a sense of urgency. That was quickly dashed as they were put on the defensive when veteran Kyle Okposo went the penalty box 1:45 into the game. It was the beginning of a long night for Okposo who may have had his worst game as a Sabre. The stat-line of six penalty minutes and a minus-1 rating in 8:28 of even-strength ice time was bad enough, but he looked lost and/or indecisive much of the night on the Sabres first powerplay unit as well.

Okposo wasn't the only one as there were many individual culprits, but one of the big set backs to taking penalties, in addition to giving the team a powerplay, is that defenseman Rasmus Dahlin is kept pinned to the bench because he's not on the kill. At only 18 yrs. old Dahlin is already showing why he's considered a franchise defenseman. And he does it with all the little things he does using the tremendous skills he has and playing the game with the poise of a veteran.

With the way the powerplay has struggled, Housley may be forced to make changes to it and one of those would likely be to get Dahlin on that top unit. Captain Jack Eichel can create a lot of space and handle the puck extremely well but in last night's contest he was double-teamed constantly and didn't receive much help from the rest of his unit. Ristolainen and Okposo man the points but they don't seem to put fear into the opposition to relieve the pressure. Dahlin's vision, skating and passing ability, especially opposite Eichel on the right point, might be just enough to open up the ice and get this powerplay going.

Other than that, those in Sabreland shouldn't expect too many changes this weekend unless an overabundance of injuries are involved. Defenseman Nathan Beaulieu took a shot to the arm in the third period last night, struggled for a bit while finishing his shift and didn't return. Sabres d-man Zach Bogosian blocked eight shots last night including one that really stung, but he was well enough to rumble at the final buzzer. And, for those expecting Buffalo to fly Rochester Americans forward Victor Olofsson or fellow winger Alexander Nylander to the west coast to help the Sabres scoring woes, it's best not to get your hopes up. Any movements like that will probably take place when Buffalo returns home next week, if it happens at all.

Can the Sabres rectify all the issues they have in one Friday afternoon practice? If they can at least work on their special teams, maybe by working in Dahlin on the powerplay, that would help. As a team that's struggling mightily any positive would help their confidence. The Sabres have some skilled players, more than they had last season, but it takes more than just adding skill to turn around a last place team. The ills that begot the Sabres last season are creeping into their game this season and Buffalo's No. 1 priority should be to do everything in their power to keep this thing from getting out of hand.

Columbus vs. Buffalo for 2018 Kraft Hockeyville in Clinton, NY

Published by hockeybuzz.com, 9-25-2018


Quick. Raise your hand if you know where Clinton, NY is?

Good for you if you knew and good for the roughly 1,900 residents of the Oneida County village just outside of Utica, NY who will be hosting the 2018 Kraft Hockeyville preseason game featuring the Columbus Blue Jackets versus the Buffalo Sabres. Not only is Clinton hosting the event but they've also secured $150,000 for upgrades to their arena.

For posterity sake, Clinton beat out Brandon, SD, third place Shreveport, LA and fourth place finisher Middlebury, VT for the win.

Buffalo is just under 200 miles from Clinton, as the crow flies east on I-90. The Sabres are the home team today and according to reports from the 2,000 seat arena, fans started were chanting 'Let's Go Buffalo!' as they took the ice for the morning skate. Clinton rolled out the red carpet for the event with players signing autographs on the way in.

Also from the rink, Paul Hamilton tweeted out these lines for the Sabres:

Jeff Skinner-Jack Eichel-Sam Reinhart
Alexander Nylander-Patrik Berglund-Kyle Okposo
C.J. Smith-Casey Mittelstadt-Andrew Oglevie
Justin Bailey-Evan Rodrigues-Danny O'Regan

Some quick notes:

--Reinhart picks up where he left off after the Toronto game on Saturday. The 22 yr. old signed a contract extension last Wednesday and started out on Buffalo's second line before replacing Tage Thompson on Eichel's line vs. the Leafs. It wouldn't be surprising to see this trio start the season opener on October 4.

--Nylander is having an excellent training camp and gets a premier spot on the second line with veterans Berglund at center and Okposo on the other wing. With LW, Conor Sheary out, Nylander has a prime opportunity to not only land on the opening night roster, but also skate in a top-six role. So far Nylander looks as if he's taken that opportunity to heart.

--Props to Okposo who has looked much better so far this camp. We had vague ideas as to how serious his bout with concussion treatment went but Tim Graham of The Athletic took us into the deep, dark recesses of just how bad it was for Okposo. He looks as if he's back to where he was prior to the problems he suffered through in the Spring of 2017.

--The third line is interesting in that Mittelstadt has been meh so far this camp while Smith and Oglevie have been excellent. It's a line featuring three college players--Mittelstadt who was selected eighth overall (2017) before attending the University of Minnesota and college free agent signees Smith (UMASS-Lowell, 2017) and Oglevie (Notre Dame, 2018.) This might be the line to watch tonight.

--Rodrigues has been on the wing all camp and has floundered. Last season he played much better at center than he did on the wing yet head coach Phil Housley put him on the wing in camp. We'll see if the change back to center can get Rodrigues going.

--O'Regan will probably be dropped off in Rochester on the way back to Buffalo as the waivers-exempt forward will continue his development with the Amerks. As for Bailey, he's been pretty good but has yet to do anything to set him apart from the rest of the Sabres bottom-six forwards. Unlike O'Regan, Bailey is not waivers-exempt and if his so-so camp continues, Buffalo will have a tough decision to make when they pare their roster to 23.

Clintonians are in for a treat as not only will they see the likes of Eichel, Skinner and Reinhart up front, but they'll also get a close up view of defenseman Rasmus Dahlin who, according to Sabres.com, will be on the top-pairing with Casey Nelson. The other d-pairings are Jake McCabe/Zach Bogosian, a duo that played very well together when both were healthy, and Brendan Guhle/Will Borgen.

The Guhle/Borgen pair is interesting. Guhle has been struggling all camp while Borgen and his stay-at-home style seems to provide a solid anchor for anyone who's paired with him. Borgen's almost assured of starting out in Rochester while Guhle was considered a possibility for the big club before camp. As of now, both could end up with the Amerks.

The goaltenders are Jonas Johansson and Scott Wedgewood.


Game time is 7 pm on NBCSN.

Building the 2018-19 Buffalo Sabres roster--RW, Kyle Okposo

Published by hockeybuzz.com, 9-4-2018


Kyle Okposo
30 yrs. old
6'0" 220 lbs.
2006, 7th-overall (NYI)
Signed as a free agent July 1, 2016

Career stats:  670 games | 173 goals |  285 assists | 458 points | -101


The 2017-18 NHL season for Buffalo Sabres right winger Kyle Okposo is being widely regarded as a mulligan for the 30 yr. old. Okposo's health issues, stemming from treatment for a concussion, landed him in the intensive care unit in April, 2017 and as the off season hit, for him it wasn't about gearing up for the following season it was more about whether or not he'd ever be able to play the game again.

Okposo did recover and when he was seen skating in Da Beauty League,  an annual charity tournament in his home state of Minnesota, there was a strong sense that everything would be OK with him. But in addition to losing the last chunk of the 2016-17 regular season, Okposo missed a lot of off-season workouts geared towards being ready for the upcoming season. And it affected him immensely.

"Last summer was just a lot about working on my mind and making sure I could play the game again," he told the gathered media after a recent informal workout with some team mates. "Now it's like, OK, I can play, let's get back to trying to be an elite player. That's something that I just didn't have the base last year and excited that I put the work in this summer to get it back.

"It was a big relief to where I could just train the way I want to and do the things that I know make me a successful hockey player."

The successes that Okposo had on the ice translated into career averages of 21 goals and 56 points per 82 games but last season he had only 15 goals and 44 points in 76 games. It took him six games to register his first point and 11 games to register his first goal and during the 2017 portion of the season, Okposo had scored only six goals and 16 points in 36 games.

After finishing the season strong, a pensive Okposo said at locker cleanout that the 2017-18 campaign for him was more about being able to play the NHL game again. "Looking back on this year, " he told the gathered media, "and looking back to where I was a year ago, all things considered I'm pretty happy that I played a full season.

"I didn't know if I was going to be able to at this time last year and honestly I wasn't even thinking about hockey at that time."

Considering that he did play a full season (minus a handful of games) and managed to produce nine goals and 28 points through the final 40 games while looking like old self in the process, a mulligan for the season is certainly warranted.

However, Okposo is now facing another hurdle--Father Time. The 30 yr. old is at a point where, generally speaking, players begin to decline. "I’ve been around this game awhile now," he said, "and you get on the other side of 30 and a lot of guys say, ‘Oh he’s past his prime’ and 'If he has a couple of bad years, he’s on the way down' and I’m very aware of that and seen it happen to many guys.

“I’m not going to be happy just riding off into the sunset."

Buffalo hopes he doesn't do that either as the contract he has with the Sabres still has five more years left on it (all with a modified no-trade clause,) at a $6 million cap-hit, which is second on the team only to Jack Eichel and his $10 million cap-hit that begins this year. GM Jason Botterill was left with a lot of dead weight by his predecessor and he doesn't need another anvil weighing his franchise down.

The good news is that Okposo started out his first year in Buffalo leading the team in scoring through 63 games with 43 points (19+24.) The bad new is that it all went downhill with his health issues. This year things are looking up and if he can hit his career averages it will be a pretty strong accomplishment for him.

Unless there is some problem with Sam Reinhart and his contract negotiations Okposo will probably be Buffalo's No. 2 right winger with rookie Casey Mittelstadt or veteran Patrick Berglund at center. In either instance he expects, and is expected, to succeed.


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

G, Carter Hutton



Kyle Okposo 2017 locker cleanout via Sabres.com:

Impressions of, and questions concerning--RW, Kyle Okposo

Published by hockeybuzz.com, 4-16-2018


Right Wing--Kyle Okposo
DOB:  April 16, 1988 (Age, 30)
Draft:  2006, 1st round (7th-overall,) NYI
How acquired:  2016 FA
Last contract signed:  July 1, 2016--7yr./$42M
Final year of contract:  2022-23

2017-18- Stats:  76 games played | 15 goals | 29 assists | 44 points | -34 | 17:01 ATOI

Buffalo Career Stats:  141 games | 34 goals | 55 assists | 89 points | -41 | 17:55 ATOI

Buffalo Sabres 2017-18 Individual Stats Leaders--January

Published by hockeybuzz.com, 1-31-2018


After going through a terrible health scare last April and spending months trying to get back to his former self, Buffalo Sabres right winger Kyle Okposo looks as if he's finally gotten his feet under him. Okposo put together a three-game point-streak (1g +3a) bridging the calendar year then went silent for three games.

With the Sabres returning home from a very unsuccessful three-game road trip, head coach Phil Housley did some line juggling and Okposo wound up on Jack Eichel's wing. It proved to be quite the elixir for his scoring woes as he busted out with 10 points (3+7) in eight games. The 29 yr. old finished the month second on the team in scoring for the with 12 points and was tied for the team lead with nine assists. Okposo also lead the Sabres with seven primary assists, far outpacing the rest of the team.

Perhaps more importantly, for those of us viewing the team on a nightly basis, was the way Okposo was playing. Sure, having Eichel as your center is plenty motivation and can up every part of your game, but Okposo looked like he had finally said good-bye to the health scare he was recovering from.

That's good news for him and good news for the team as he's locked into a contract through 2022-23.

Eichel himself had a big month as he continued what he started with in December, either leading or tying for the lead in points, goals and assists. His 30 points in 25 games through the last two months shot him to the top of the Sabres leadearboard and now places him 21st in the league in scoring as of today.

Center Ryan O'Reilly continued his solid, steady improvement after a very rough go of it early in the season. He had four goals and six assists for the club in January while also clipping another two points off of his plus/minus rating. For the second month in a row he lead the team with a plus-2 rating bringing his overall plus/minus down to a minus-13.

The rise of Rasmus Ristolainen marked the month of January as the defenseman tied for the team lead in assists (9) and was third in points with 11. Ristolainen logged his usual top-pairing minutes and was one of three players (Marco Scandella, Jake McCabe) with an even rating that came in second behind O'Reilly in plus/minus.

Buffalo's goaltending took a hit this past month as the duo of Robin Lehner and Chad Johnson were giving up goals by the bushels in the first three weeks. Both managed to stage a comeback as the Sabres went on their first three-game winning streak of the season, but for Lehner the damage had been done as he saw his goal-against rise and his save percentage drop despite recording back-to-back shutouts. He also recorded a career-long 145:15 without allowing a goal. It all added up to a 2-5-1 record for the 26 yr old native of Gothenburg, Sweden.

In January we also saw the season debut of goaltender Linus Ullmark who got the nod on the last game before the Sabres went into their bye-week. Ullmark was superb in net in leading the Sabres to a surprising 3-1 win over the Columbus Blue Jackets.

February looks to be a very trying month for the team as 11 of the 14 teams they face are either in or very close to a playoff spot as of today. Also in the mix during the shortest month of the year is the upcoming February 26 NHL trade deadline which almost certainly will see the departure of forward Evander Kane and another player of two (maybe more) from the Sabres lineup.

Kane's stats for the month--12 games, 1 goal, 1 assist, minus-3.


Buffalo Sabres 2017-18 Individual Stats leaders:


Points

--October: Pominville, Kane, Eichel, 12; O'Reilly, 8
--November: Kane, 11; Okposo, 9; O'Reilly, 8
--December: Eichel, 16; Kane, 11; O'Reilly, 8
--January:  Eichel, 14;  Okposo, 12;  Ristolainen, 11


 Goals

--October: Pominville, Kane, 6; Eichel, O'Reilly, 4
--November: Kane, 6; Pouliot, 4; Eichel, O'Reilly, Reinhart, Okposo, 3
--December: Eichel, 8; Kane, Okposo, 3; six with 2
--January:  Eichel, Reinhart, 5;  O'Reilly, 4;  Okposo, 3


 Powerplay Goals

--October: O'Reilly, 3; Pominville, Kane, Reinhart, 1
--November: O'Reilly, Pouliot, Reinhart, Okposo, 1
--December: Eichel, Kane, Pominville, Rodrigues, 1
--January:  O'Reilly, Reinhart, 3;  Okposo, 2


 Assists

--October: Eichel, 8 Pominville, Kane, 6
--November: Okposo, 6; Kane, O'Reilly, 5
--December: Eichel, Kane, 8; O'Reilly, 6; Scandella, 5
--January:  Eichel, Okposo, Ristolainen, 9;  O'Reilly, 6


 Powerplay Assists

--October: Kane, Ristolainen, 2; six players with 1
--November: Kane, 3; Okposo, 2; three players with 1
--December: Eichel, Ristolainen, 2; Kane, Reinhart, Okposo, 1
--January:  Eichel, 7;  Ristolainen, 6;  Okposo, 4


 Primary Assists

--October: Eichel, 7; O'Reilly, Ristolainen, 4; Kane, Beaulieu, 2
--November: Eichel, 4; O'Reilly, Okposo, 3; four players with 2
--December: Eichel, Kane, O'Reilly, 5; Scandella, 3; McCabe, 2
--January:  Okposo, 7;  Eichel, O'Reilly, Ristolainen, Scandella, 3


 Plus/Minus

--October: Pominville, +3; Girgensons, Gorges, +1; Pouliot, even
--November: Reinhart, Nolan, Scandella, Antipin, even; Kane, Griffith, Gorges, -1
--December: O'Reilly, +2; Girgensons, Wilson, +1; Larsson, McCabe, even
--January:  O'Reilly, +2, Ristolainen, Scandella, McCabe, even


 Plus/Minus (Bottom)

--October: O'Reilly, -9; Reinhart, -8; Okposo, -7
--November: O'Reilly, Larsson, -8; McCabe, -7; Beaulieu, -6
--December: Kane, Pominville, -7; Ristolainen, -6; Rodrigues, -5
--January:  Girgensons, -7;  Eichel, Beaulieu, Falk, -6

Goalies (composite)

Robin Lehner

--October: 4-2-1; 2.78 GAA; .911 Sv%; 1 shutout
--November: 5-11-2; 2.92; .906, 1
--December: 9-14-5; 2.74; .915; 1
--January:  11-19-6;  2.85;  .912; 3


 Chad Johnson

--October: 1-3-1; 4.06 GAA; .879 Sv%; 0 shutouts
--November: 1-4-2; 3.59; .885; 0
--December: 1-6-3; 3.78; .881; 0
--January:  2-8-3;  3.64;  .884;  0


Linus Ullmark

--January:  1-0-0;  1.00 GAA;  .978 Sv%; 0 shutouts

Wake up! There's a Sabres game this afternoon.

Published by hockeybuzz.com, 1-20-2018


Sure is. The Buffalo Sabres are hosting the Dallas Stars at 1 pm today and it's a game they have a good chance of winning. Despite the huge disparity in points (Dallas-56 and Buffalo-31) and the Sabres lackluster 3-7-0 record vs. Dallas in their last 10, Buffalo is 7-2-1 vs. the Stars at home. During the last four seasons, which includes the 2013-15 tank years, the Sabres are 2-2-0 vs Dallas alternating losses and wins beginning October, 2013.

The Sabres may have gotten a break today as the Stars are starting Kari Lehtonen in net as Dallas finishes up a four-game road-trip. Starter Ben Bishop was in net for Thursday's 2-1 shootout loss at Columbus and with the Stars going 2-0-1 on the trip so far and set to face a struggling Sabres team, Lehtonen gets the call. Not that it's any worry for the Stars as they thumped Buffalo 5-1 back in November with Lehtonen in net, but Bishop is 10-0-0 vs. Buffalo over the last five years allowing only 16 goals in the process.

It's no secret that the Sabres have had trouble scoring goals for...well...years and this matchup doesn't look all that great. But Sabres fans should take some solace in that it's a home game vs. the Stars and that their own star, Jack Eichel, is really heating up. The No. 2 overall pick in 2015 is on a three-game multi-point streak (3 goals + 4 assists) and has racked up 10 goals and nine assists in his last 13 games.

Sabres winger Kyle Okposo is also on a three-game multi-point streak (2+5) and seems to have finally recovered from his health-scare last April. Okposo has eight points (3+8) in his last nine games.

Buffalo is coming off of a tough loss at NY vs. the Rangers on Thursday night. Three times they battled back from a one-goal deficit to tie the score but the eventually lost 4-3. The Sabres came off of their bye week a little slow but found their legs as the game progressed and made it very difficult on the Rangers. Were it not for some stellar goaltending by future Hall of Famer Henrik Lundqvist, the game may have gone to overtime.

Despite the loss, the takeaway from that game should be that they found a way to beat a premier goalie who was on his game. For years the Sabres have been having trouble beating both starwers and back-ups mainly due to their insistence on perimeter play. From Lindy Ruff to Ted Nolan to Dan Bylsma to Phil Housley, coaches have begged them to get to the dirty areas and create some havoc in front of the net. When the players did so, good things would happen but when they didn't, which has happened far too often, Buffalo ended up on the wrong end of the score.

Against Lundqvist and the Rangers, the Sabres had a strong net-front presence resulted in two of the Sabres goals from defensemen (Justin Falk and Rasmus Ristolainen) through traffic. They also had great movement on the powerplay as they went 2/4 with the man advantage.

Things are starting to click a bit more with the Sabres and despite their 11-25-9 record, as the Rangers found out, they're not a pushover when playing to their individual skill-levels.


*****

The Sabres recalled winger Nicolas Baptiste yesterday, but it doesn't look as if he'll be in the lineup this afternoon. According to Jourdon LaBarber of Sabres.com Housley's going with the same lineup he had vs. the Rangers:

Pouliot-Eichel-Okposo
Kane-O'Reilly-Pominville
Girgensons-Rodrigues-Reinhart
Wilson-Larsson-Nolan

Scandella-Ristolainen
McCabe-Falk
Gorges-Nelson

Robin Lehner looks to get the start for the Sabres.

Baptiste said yesterday about his call-up that he's been doing the right things away from the puck in Rochester and that it got the attention of the coaching staff in Buffalo as well. "I've definitely improved my game, I think, defensively and on the walls and penalty killing and all those things," Baptiste said yesterday to the gathered media at KeyBank Center. "I'm up here to show Coach Housley that he can trust me in the D-zone and I think that's part of the reason I'm up here.

"I don't think it's a change in my role. I think it's finding a way to play at this level and being able, if you're not scoring, being able to provide physical play, speed and helping in my D-zone. I think I've just developed my game."

Both he and defenseman Victor Antipin, who has been out of the lineup since December as a healthy scratch and because of the flu, are in the press box today.

Will health help the Sabres climb out of the morass their in?

Published by hockeybuzz.com, 11-22-2017


The 5-12-4 record says it all and the attendance figures at KeyBank Center lately (announced attendance for the last game was 16,551 but looked like a lot less) backs up the notion that the product on the ice in Buffalo isn't really that good.

So much for the Captain Obvious moment.

Why this Buffalo Sabres team is off to such a horrible start is varied, dependent upon who you ask, and it's a multitude of things that are keeping this team to depths of the standings right now.  The tangibles include a lack of overall team speed and talent, namely in the support roles while lack of compete and leadership headline the intangible side of the equation. Other aspects like injuries and a rookie head coach should also be factored in as well.

With that said, the Sabres head into tonight's matchup against the Minnesota Wild a little healthier up front as center Jacob Josefson is expected to return to the lineup. Josefson went down in a game at Anaheim back in October.

It's not like the return of the 26 yr. old center is expected to single-handedly turn this thing around, but he adds positive elements to a team in need of all the positives they can get their hands on. Josefson will once again anchor the fourth line and will stabilize the middle of the ice. "[Josefson] is somebody you can trust to play in any situation, especially on our penalty kill," said Housley to the gathered media yesterday after practice. "He can relieve some minutes off of our top guys.

"He provides speed and positionally he's one of the best on our team. Very reliable."

Josefson, a former first round pick (20th-overall, NJD) was signed on July 1 by Sabres GM Jason Botterill, had zero points in five-plus games for Buffalo before his injury. At yesterday's practice Housley had him centering Jordan Nolan and Kyle Okposo.

Okposo was dropped by Housley to the fourth line due to largely ineffective play. As we saw with the demotion of Jack Eichel to the third line, only to be back up on the first line at practice yesterday, it might simply be an attempt to jar him out of his slump.

"Kyle's a tremendous competitor," said Housley of Okposo. "He evaluates his game and really gets down on himself. Obviously he would really like to contribute more offensively and he holds that burden on himself. But I think if he continues to work at both ends of the rink and [take] what the game can give him and keep going hard to the net he's going to continue to get those opportunities."

Okposo has two goals and eight points in 19 games this year and is a second-worst minus-12 on the team.

The Sabres had an optional skate today, but these were the lines from yesterday's practice according to Sabres.com:

Kane-Eichel-Pominville
Pouliot-O'Reilly-Reinhart
Girgensons-Larsson-Criscuolo
Nolan-Josefson-Okposo

Matt Moulson and Seth Griffith were the extras.


*****

Reports from the rink had two inured defensemen skating at today's optional practice--Zach Bogosian and Rasmus Ristolainen.

Bogosian has yet to play this season and Ristolainen has missed the last eight Sabres games.

Buffalo's blueline has been ravaged by injuries this season to the tune of 10 defensemen dressing for the club so far this season with another in Casey Nelson who was called up but has yet to play. Players like Matt Tennyson (who is currently injured) and Justin Falk (who started the season on IR) have played as good as can be expected considering they were placed in positions well above their talent-level. Buffalo's ninth and 10th d-men--Zach Redmond and Taylor Fedun (who is also on the injured list)--were also place in difficult positions and did the best they could with Fedun looking like a legit NHL'er.

Having Bogosian go down is one thing as not only was this a seemingly annual trip to IR for the 27 yr. old, he was also slated for second-pairing duties, but losing Ristolainen really hurt.

Most will say that Ristolainen was having a rough year both in production and overall play, but he was a workhorse once again for the Sabres on the back-end averaging 27:09 a night, 20:24 at even strength. When he went down with his upper body injury he was tied with d-partner Marco Scandella at a minus-4 plus which was tops amongst Sabres defensemen.

As was mentioned in the last blog, the Sabres have been atrocious in his absence. A quick update has them on a six-game winless streak (0-4-2) and are 1-5-2 without him in the lineup. The team has scored 14 goals and has allowed 26 goals against.

Falk has been skating on the top pair in Ristolainen's absence and has been doing yeoman's work despite playing a role that's a couple spots higher than where he should be, which is true for all the defensemen not named Scandella.

At yesterday's skate, here's what the pairings were:

Falk-Scandella
McCabe-Antipin
Gorges-Beaulieu


*****

Robin Lehner took part in the optional skate today, according to John Vogl of The Buffalo News. Vogl tweeted that the others on the ice were Ristolainen, Bogosian, Tennyson, Nelson, Nolan, Griffith, Criscuolo, Josefson, Moulson.


*****

One final note, forwards Tyler Ennis and Marcus Foligno are back in town to face off against their former team for the first time. The duo was traded to the Minnesota Wild for Scandella and Pominville on June 30th.

Ennis, who was a first round pick for Buffalo (26th, 2008) has five points (3+2) in 20 games for Minnesota while Foligno has seven points (3+4) in 19 games.

While Foligno chose his father Mike's old number 17 to wear in Minnesota, Ennis will be donning a more familiar #63.

One line at a time. (Beniot Pouliot)

Published by hockeybuzz.com, 11-3-2017


The Buffalo Sabres started out the season with one forward line rolling and the rest non-existent. The line of Jack Eichel centering left wing Evander Kane and right wing Jason Pominville did all the scoring in the first four games. Granted some of the goals were scored on the powerplay, and Kane was a beast with three shorthanded goals, but after four games, Kane and Pominville each had four of the Sabres nine total goals and Eichel had the other while also getting the primary assist on four of those goals.

Zemgus Girgensons would finally break that trend with a goal in the first period at Los Angeles in Buffalo's fifth game of the season yet Eichel would account for the Sabres only other goal that night with assists from, who else, Kane and Pominville.

Is it any wonder the team started the season 0-4-1?

Sabres head coach Phil Housley had a bear of a time trying to figure out how to get his other scorers going. Housley's line juggling included a number of combinations, some of which had Pominville changing lines and Sam Reinhart moving from center back to wing, a position he played most of the past two seasons. In Anaheim, Housley came up with an interesting trio as he moved Reinhart and center Ryan O'Reilly to the wings on either side of Girgensons.

However, call-up Justin Bailey to ignite Buffalo's secondary scoring as he scored his first goal of the season just 1:26 into the game against the Ducks. Bailey took advantage of some extended zone-time created by the Girgensons' line, barreled to the net on a change and buried a rebound near the paint. Reinhart would score his first goal of the season late in the second period and Johan Larsson would add an empty-netter in the third period for his first as well.

It was the first time all season, the Eichel line would be held off the scoresheet and ironically the Sabres got their first win of the season.

It wasn't long after that game that O'Reilly began to turn things around, mostly on the powerplay to start, but after landing only one assist through the first five games, he went on a point streak. Beginning in Anaheim he collected six points (3+3) in four games and after being shut out in the next two, he's was good for four points (1+3) in his last two games. O'Reilly sits fourth on the team in scoring with 11 points.

Housley bounced new Sabre Benoit Pouliot around much of this season after he began the season on the second line with O'Reilly and Okposo. It took him nine games to net his first goal of but after a two-goal performance last night, Pouliot has now four goals (plus an assist) in his last five games.

Perhaps no Buffalo forward has gone through a tougher stretch than Kyle Okposo. It was so bad that at one point for Okposo that Housley benched him for all but one shift in the third period against the Vancouver Canucks. However, Okposo would come back with a very strong game against the Boston Bruins the next night and even though he didn't score a goal, it was widely considered his best game of the year. "Kyle was fantastic," said Housley post-game, "moving his feet, winning a lot of puck battles."

Although still goal-less through his first nine games, that Boston game punched Okposo's ticket back into the top-six, first on the Eichel/Kane line then back to a more familiar position as O'Reilly's right wing. Okposo had an assist against the San Jose' Sharks last Saturday and netted his first goal of the season at Arizona last night as he scored with  0.9 seconds left in the first period to tie the score. Okposo added an assist to finish with two points and was a plus-2. O'Reilly had three assists and was also a plus-2 while the game's first star, Pouliot, had two goals and an assist and was also a plus-

It took a number of games but Buffalo's top-six is back to where they began the season with lines of Eichel-Kane-Pominville and O'Reilly-Pouliot-Okposo. If Housley can keep those lines mostly intact, while getting production from them, perhaps he can turn his attention more to the bottom-six in the hopes that he can get them moving a little more. Reinhart has shown signs of life in his role as a third-line center (although he still might be better off on the wing) and his winger Seth Griffith scored his second goal of the season last night as well.

The Sabres as a whole have been playing much better of late and are beginning to make a dent in the win column. They're 4-3-1 since that five-game losing streak to start the season and it looks as if they've evolved into a two-line team. Although two scoring lines is enough to beat a team like the Coyotes, who have only one win on the season, as the game against a very deep Columbus Blue Jackets club revealed, they'll need much more than that to compete with the better teams in the league.

That said, Buffalo seems to be headed in the proper direction and they look to be getting on track, at least up front, one line at a time.

Will the Sabres take a page out of the Bills playbook?

Published by hockeybuzz.com, 10-28-2017


Buffalo Bills defensive tackle Marcell Dareus and his bloated contract were traded to the Jacksonville Jaguars yesterday. Although the return for the former third-overall pick in 2011 was a conditional sixth-rounder that could end up being a fifth, expunging Dareus from the team should be good for both the team and the player himself.

When Bills owners Terry and Kim Pegula brought in a new coach and GM after a disappointing season, a big reason behind the move was to change the culture of the team. Dareus was a two-time Pro Bowler with the size and skill to be a difference maker on the interior line but unfortunately he had a couple of suspensions and some off-field issues that drew the ire of those at One-Bills Drive.

In addition, he didn't buy into what the Bills were now doing and the new regime showed no hesitation in showing him the door when the opportunity arose. The biggest obstacle facing Bills GM Brandon Beane in the case of Dareus was the six-year, $96.6 million contract extension he signed in 2015. Reports had Dareus on the block all summer but finally the Jaguars came forward and the deal was done.

Buffalo will still be on the hook for $24 million in dead cap space through 2018, according to reports, but to them the cap-hit and low return was worth it just to move him.

The Buffalo Sabres are in a similar situation cap-wise to the Bills in that they have some high salaried players with low production whom they'd seemingly like to move. Although the NFL and NHL salary cap structure varies immensely, the bottom line is that there is only a limited amount of money for the roster. And, just like with the Bills, the Sabres have a new GM and head coach this season and are trying to change the culture at the foot of Washington St.

Sabres GM Jason Botterill inherited a number of contracts from the previous regime that will become thorny issues beginning next season. Although he still has flexibility this season while being a least $4 million under the NHL cap-ceiling, according to CapFriendly.com, next year Jack Eichel's $10 million cap-hit will be on the books and they'll need to do some financial finagling.

A lot of the near and long-term cap decisions this club needs to make have to do with the performance of the team and the individual players and this season the Sabres are off to a rough start. A 3-6-2 record isn't exactly ideal for a team that's headed towards the middle of the pack age-wise while having the 19th largest projected cap-hit amongst the 31 NHL teams.

Back in 2014, then GM Tim Murray brought three veterans on board to help stabilize and guide the team through impending troubled waters. Brian Gionta, Josh Gorges and Matt Moulson went into the 2014-15 season pretty hefty salaries but then it didn't matter too much as they fit easily into a team that filled with young players and journeymen players on low-paying contracts. But as Murray began building his team, he added higher priced players and things got tighter financially to the point where they were watching every penny last season.

Heading into this season, the Sabres have some bloated contracts that are beginning to weigh them down. Although Gionta and his $4.25 million cap-hit is off the books, the Sabres are paying Gorges $3.9 million in this the final year of his contract and are on the hook for $5 million to Moulson through the end of next season. That's $8.9 million for two players who've been healthy scratches for a combined 12 games in the Buffalo's short 11-game season thus far.

The Gorges contract will eventually take care of itself sometime between now and July 1 as he will either be traded before or at the NHL Trade Deadline or not re-signed come season's end. Moulson, on the other hand, is more of a problem.

No doubt the Sabres would move him in a heartbeat if someone would take on his contract and there is precedent for something like that happening. The Arizona Coyotes made three trades for bloated contracts over the course of the past two off seasons while on the other side of the equation,  Toronto Maple Leafs offloaded some pretty hefty contracts in 2015 and 2016 to help their rebuild.

Ideally Botterill could work something out with another team that has the cap-space for Moulson's contract without having to give up too much in return but if that doesn't happen, it's expected that the Sabres will buy him out and stretch out his buyout-hit over two seasons with a cap-hit of $3.67 million next season and $667K in 2019-20.

Those three contracts were expected to come off the books but the Sabres may also have unintended trouble on the horizon with a couple other contracts should things not turn around.

Defenseman Zach Bogosian was part of a blockbuster deal by Murray on February 11, 2015. The former third-overall pick (2008) came to Buffalo barely removed from signing a multi-year extension with his former team, the Winnipeg Jets. Bogosian has a cap-hit of $5.1 million through  2019-20 and was still part of the deal despite Murray knowing that injuries were becoming a part of the equation. The young vet as he had not played in over 70 games since the 2010-11 at the time the deal was made. In his first full season with Buffalo, Bogosian missed 18 game while last season he missed 26. He’s yet to play a game for Buffalo this season and is presently listed as week-to-week according to head coach Phil Housley.

Kyle Okposo was the best free agent on the market last season and Murray signed him to a 7-year/$42 million contract. Okposo had a good first season in Buffalo scoring 45 points (19+26) in 65 games, however it was cut short by a concussion. He had an adverse reaction to medication and was in the Intensive Care Unit before beginning his return to the ice in July.

Okposo is off to a rough start this season with only one assist in nine games thus far. Much of his slow start could be attributed to him trying to get up to game-speed, which may have taken a little longer than some anticipated, but uneasiness with his contract has begun to seep into the conversation.

Some may also look to defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen's $5.4 million cap-hit for the next five seasons and there will always be questions as to whether Ryan O'Reilly's can achieve and maintain a top-level, two-way consistency to justify his $7.5 million cap-hit. Right now neither seem to be serious cause for concern, but things may change if the team can't turn things around within the next year or two.

However, those are the contracts of the future for Botterill and the Sabres to worry about. It doesn't look as if they'll be going for broke on a Stanley Cup run this year so the need for immediate cap-relief doesn't seem to be of the utmost importance. But next season, if things go as planned and desired, it might be different.

As the Dareus situation, and many in the NHL over the past couple of years, proves, an unwanted contract can be moved if a team is willing to do so and is willing to pay a price to get it done.

Will the Sabres be interested in taking a page out of the Bills' playbook?


*****

A quick note.

Today the Sabres are at home to take on the San Jose' Sharks. Game time is 1:00 pm.

*****

Quick note Part 2:

Today is Jack Eichel's 21st Birthday.