Happy New Year!
The much anticipated new collaboration between Jack Eichel and newly minted Sabres sniper Taylor Hall will have to wait a day.
Moments before the Buffalo Sabres were set to take the ice for the first official team practice of the 2021 return to play training camp, the team announced that captain Jack Eichel will miss today's skate due to an upper body injury sustained during training.
Please don't panic. Don't read into this as being a crisis. Chill.
Eichel is day-to-day
— SabresBuzz (@SabresBuzz) January 1, 2021
The Sabres were one of seven teams to start training camp on Thursday.
Sabres head coach Ralph Krueger will speak with media between today's practice sessions. Krueger is scheduled to speak at 1:00pm Eastern time.
The Eichel injury will be a priority item for Krueger to give an update on. Another concern is the health of goalie Linus Ullmark, who has an immigration/quarantine challenge and will not skate today and possibly tomorrow.
While you are washing down your Advil with Pedialyte this morning, @BuffaloSabres will hit the ice for the first day of on ice practice. There will be two, 90-minue sessions.
— SabresBuzz (@SabresBuzz) January 1, 2021
Gold Group Practice
11:00 am – 12:30 pm
Blue Group Practice
3:30 pm – 5:00 pm
Eichel is a world class athlete. He trained rigorously during the nine and a half month offseason. Eichel spent several weeks in working with his skills coach Hockey Hall of Famer Adam Oates in October and November in Florida.
Eichel, 24, scored a team leading 36 goals and 42 assists in 68 games played last season. Eichel scored nine game winning goals. Eichel has scored at least 24 goals and 56 points in each of his first five NHL seasons.
Ullmark was 17-14-0-3 last season with a 2.69 GAA and .915 SV%.
Sans Eichel, here are the forward trios and D duos on Day 1 of training camp.
Lines 1 and 2 are exactly as I predicted when Eichel joins the fray #Sabres
Skinner-Staal will rock you like a hurricane!
D Duos:
— SabresBuzz (@SabresBuzz) January 1, 2021
McCabe-Ristolainen
Dahlin-Montour
Miller-Jokiharju
* Forward prospect Arttu Ruotsalainen also participating today
Sabres prospects Dylan Cozens (Canada), Jack Quinn (Canada) and J.J. Peterka (Germany) will be joining their Sabres teammates in Buffalo once Team Canada and Team Germany have completed their play at the World Junior Championships in Edmonton. Following a mandatory quarantine period, Cozens, Quinn and Peterka can participate in practices and Blue and Gold scrimmages.
Here's Taylor Hall rocking the new Blue and Gold gear. Muy caliente!
The boys are very fired up to see Taylor Hal in Royal Blue and Gold!
Hall in 👊@hallsy09 | @BCBSWNY pic.twitter.com/ueM1Fba5Nk
— Buffalo Sabres (@BuffaloSabres) January 1, 2021
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— SabresBuzz (@SabresBuzz) January 1, 2021
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@buffalosabres Playoffs âš”ï¸
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More to come.....