Dan Bylsma held an off ice only meeting on Wednesday. The Sabres now have four tough home games in a row, beginning Thursday night with the Steven Stamkos-less Tampa Lightning. The Tampa captain suffered a knee injury in Tampa's win in Detroit on Tuesday night. The team sent Stamkos back to Tampa for an MRI. For more on Stamkos injury, see below.
Sabres fans will have to wait until later in the season to boo Stamkos, the former UFA that Sabres GM Tim Murray was courting hot and heavily to play in Buffalo.
Which NHL team understands the debilitating effects of injuries better than the Bufalo Sabres?
Dan Bylsma spends more time these days talking about medical procedures and injury time tables that he does about fore check strategies and line combinations.
It's as if Bylsma has become a doctor rather than an NHL head coach.
Afterward Wednesday's practice, Bylsma updated the health of a quartet of his injured Sabres players.
According to Bylsma, Ryan O’Reilly is back skating again, however, is still day-to-day.
According to the team website, O'Reilly most likely will miss Thursday's home game against Tampa.
ROR has been plagued by a chronic “mid-section" injury since early October. Is it a wonky back? O'Reilly reported late to Sabres training camp after he and Team Canada won the gold medal at the World Cup of Hockey tournament. O'Reilly suffered back spasms during his truncated Buffalo training camp prompting me to wonder if he suffered the injury while playing for Team Canada.
O'Reilly's injury is a serious impediment to the success of all three phases of the Buffalo Sabres club. He has scored nine points in thirteen games this season. He scored 60 points in 71 games last season. He is a prolific face off man with a 60.5% draw win rate. O'Reilly is Buffalo's best PK and PP performer.
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Defenseman Dmitry Kulikov, is not considered to be more than day-to-day.
What is Kulikov's injury? "Undisclosed" according to the team.
Is Kulikov still feeling the ill effects of this violent collision with the inside of the bench door?
The collision with Maple Leafs forward Colin Greening sent Kulikov violently careening into the unlatched bench door causing the first year Sabres D to slam his back violently into the solid frame. There is no padding on the area where the blue bench rail attaches to the inside frame of the bench door. It's solid steel, fiberglass and rigid plastic.
Scary moment as an unlocked bench door leads to what might be a lower back injury for Dmitry Kulikov pic.twitter.com/10U3xwDJeG
— Jeff Veillette (@JeffVeillette) October 1, 2016
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Bylsma updated the status of injured forward Tyler Ennis who will now miss six weeks due to his hernia surgery. The veteran winger struggled to find his consistency at the beginning of this season. Ennis scored only one goals and one assist in twelve games. Ennis was forced to miss 59 gamse last season due to two serious concussions. Ennis, a three time 20 goal man, scored only three goals and eight assists.
It is possible that Ennis will not suit up again in 2016. His body, not his brain, will determine when he returns to the lineup.
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Jack Eichel continues to skate and is showing progress in his recovery from the high ankle sprain that he suffered on October 12.
The initial prognosis was for Eichel to recover and return to the lineup was four to eight weeks. The Sabres continue to say emphatically that Eichel is not going to rush back to the lineup until he is fully and completely healed.
Eichel scored 24 goals and 56 points last season.
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As of Wedensday morning, the Sabres have lost 77 man games due to injury.
Player (injury, first game missed) – total games missed
Cody McCormick (blood clots, 10/13; injured reserve) – 16 games Jack Eichel (high-ankle sprain, 10/13; injured reserve) – 16 games Nicolas Deslauriers (knee, 10/30; injured reserve) – 9 games Zach Bogosian (MCL sprain, 11/3) – 7 games Tyler Ennis (groin, 11/9) – 4 games Dmitry Kulikov (undisclosed, 11/11) – 3 games Ryan O’Reilly (middle body, Nov. 11/12) – 2 games
You'll recal that Evander Kane returned to the lineup last week after missing the first 12 games of the season with cracked ribs. Kane has been relatively ineffctive since returning from his serious injury. In five games played, Kane has zero points and ten penalty minutes.
Did Kane return to the lineup prematurely?
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Zach Bogosian and Nic Deslauriers are still out long term.
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Casey Nelson has been sent to AHL Rochester. It's likely a salary cap move to save Tim Murray money on his cap. The Amerks play tonight, It's poosible that Nelson will be recalled Thursady morning to play vs. Tampa.
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Like a see saw, Jake Virtanen keeps going up and down.
Last Thursday, the Canucks demoted the 20 year old former sixth overall pick to AHL Utica for some seasoning andconditioning work. Virtanen played on Saturday and Sunday and was then recalled to Vancouver on Sunday. He didn't dress Sunday night. Virtanen practiced with the Canucks on Monday, however, was sent to the Vancouver press box for the 7-2 loss to the NY Rangers on Tuesday night.
On Wednesday, the Canucks once again dumped Virtanen back to Utica.
If I were Virtanen and his agent, I'd be pissed off right about now.
The Canucks are an aging team that is trying to fill roster gaps with young, skilled kids. In my opinion, their rebuild on the fly isn't working. They needs to trade the Sedins, Alex Burrows, Alex Edler, Luca Sbisa, and Ryan Miller for young assets to invest in the rebuilding process. I think the Canucks have great young talent with Thatcher Demko, Olli Juolevi, Jake Virtanen, Brandon Sutter, Ben Hutton, Erik Gudbranson, Chris Tanev, Troy Stecher, and others.
Why not get rid of the grey beards and let the kids play?
That's my take. It's obvious that Canucks ownership and management have their own agenda.
The Canucks have been dreadful for most of the season and are 6-10-1 in their first 17 games. The Canucks started the seaosn 4-0 then lost nine straight games. I think the fans would be accepting of watching 19 and 20 year olds lose game 5-3 raher than watching 30 somethings lose 7-2.
You mean to tell me that a talented tough kid like Virtanen can''t help the listless Canucks win shifts and periods? He's so bad that he needs to be sent to the gulag in Utica? Virtanen has scored just one assist in 10 games played this season. He's averaging 10 minutes TOI per game.
When are the Canucks going to bench 30 year old UFA signee Loui Eriksson, he of the two goals for $36 million contract?
In his rookie season, Virtanen played in 55 games for Vancouver. He scored seven goals and six assists while while landing 128 hits on opponents. His ceiling is high.
I get the sense that Virtanen and his head coach are not seeing eye to eye these days.
Canucks head coach Willie Desjardins has been looking for more consistency from the 6'1" 225 lb. Virtanen, who didn't play in Sunday's 5-4 overtime victory over Dallas or a 7-2 loss to the New York Rangers on Tuesday.
How can Virtanen show his boss improvements in his game if he can't get on the ice during games?
Desjardins says that Virtanen needs more time to practice and that the Canucks don't practice enough. I'll cut Desjardins some slack because die to the World Cup tourneym the first ninety days of the schedule is smooshed together like an accordian. It's brutal when teams are plaing five games in seven days or four games in six days. NHL coaches have little quality time to coach their young and old players on the ice. Face time at the rink is few and far between.
Willie Desjardins discusses the benefits of Jake Virtanen spending some time in Utica and how it'll help him long term. pic.twitter.com/6Uk4mV1Z1Z
— Vancouver Canucks (@Canucks) November 16, 2016
On Tuesday, Canucks bench boss Willie Desjardins didn't do himself any favors when he told media why Virtanen was demoted to Utica then recalled to Vancouver so quickly at the tail end of a six game road trip.
"We were on the road, and so I don't think he had any of his stuff," Desjardins said with a straight face.
"He needed to come back to get his stuff for us to kind of make a decision on where we're going to go at with him. When you're on the road you don't have anything.
"If you're going to go down (to the AHL) for a while, you need to go back and get (your stuff)."
Are you freakin' kidding me?
You mean to tell me that Virtanen couldn't hit up a local mall to buy more fresh boxers, socks, and dress shirts? It was impearative that he fly coast to coact from Utica to Vancouver so that he could grab hsi belt, tooth brush, shower shoes, and alarm clock?
What, they don't have a Target nor Sam's Club in Utica, NY?
Sorry folks. I'm not buying Desjardin's spin. The way I read it, Willie Desjardins is no longer a fan of Virtanen. I sensing that the feeling is mutual. It's almost as if Desjardins is trying to mess with the kid by sending him down to call him up top send him back down to the minors.
I have a coupole of NHL scout friends who were in attendance to watch Virtanen play for Utica last week. In fact, they liked what they saw of big, fast power forward.
Canucks GM Jim Benning might want to package Virtanen with defenseman Ben Hutton and trade them to Buffalo for Evander Kane and a second round draft choice.
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Steven Stamkos is out indefinitely, per Steve Yzerman.
The Tampa captain suffered a lateral meniscu tera in his right knee on Tuesday night in Detroit.
Will Stamkos beed surgery?
#TBLightning captain Steven Stamkos is out indefinitely with a lateral meniscus tear, per GM Steve Yzerman. https://t.co/x7Fy2uy9lX
— Tampa Bay Lightning (@TBLightning) November 16, 2016
Speaking of surgery to repair a meniscus tear, New Jersey Devils scoring leader Taylor Hall underwent surgey on Wednesday and will be lost for 3-4 weeks. Hall tore the meniscus in his left knee.
#NJDevils LW Taylor Hall (left knee) is expected to miss approximately 3-4 weeks. Read more: https://t.co/MEMiao2Vsy pic.twitter.com/K6m7QojxX8
— New Jersey Devils (@NJDevils) November 16, 2016
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I can empathize with Stamkos and Hall. Last winter, I tore the menisus in my left knee playing ice hockey. I consulted with an orthopaedic surgeon who advised me to have surgery to repair the damage. However, I opted to decline the surgery. I rehabbed it on my own with physical therapy. Chronic pain is a common symptom of meniscus tears.
Pain is just weakness leaving the body.
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The Calgary Flames will play in Buffalo on Monday night. Star forward Johnny Gaudreau will not be in their lineup courtesy the surgery he is having on his fractured finger.
Update: Gaudreau suffered a fractured finger in last night’s game against Minnesota & will have surgery later today to repair the injury.
— Calgary Flames (@NHLFlames) November 16, 2016
Gaudreau and his good buddy Jack Eichel can have dinner together Sunday night. They just can't try to one-up one another in the ice on Monday night. That will have to wait until both injured players return to good health.
Gaudreau is expected to miss 4-6 weeks.
Eichel has been sidelined for five weeks with a high ankle sprain.