Grigorenko To Russia With Love?

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When Tim Murray selects Jack Eichel later this month with the second overall pick in the NHL Draft, it will create a monstrosity of a traffic jam at center ice in Buffalo.

Adding Eichel and Samson Reinhart to a pivot posse that already includes Tyler Ennis, Zemgus Girgensons, Cody Hodgson, Johan Larsson and Cody McCormick. Too many cooks in the kitchen.

Tim Murray said earlier this week that he is considering a buyout of Hodgson. Grigorenko is RFA and Murray has emphatically said that he will be tendering a new contract offer to the 21 year old Russian.

Comes word from TSN's Bob McKenzie that Grigorenko may be headed to play in his mother Russia.

Grigorenko, 21, is coming out of his three-year, entry-level contract with the Sabres, having played 25 NHL games this past season and 68 over the last three seasons. The Sabres initially indicated to the player at season's end they wanted to re-sign him but, for now anyway, were not prepared to give him a one-way contract.

There has since been talk Grigorenko will opt to return home to Russia and take a more lucrative offer in the KHL rather than contest for a spot on the Sabres on a two-way contract next season.

Grigorenko's career timeline in Buffalo can be best described as a tragedy.

The kid will never, ever be able to live up to the high expectations that have been placed on him by Lindy Ruff, Ron Rolston, Ted Nolan, Chadd Cassidy, Darcy Regier, and Tim Murray.

Now, Dan Bylsma is running the show in Buffalo.

If there is a sympathetic figure in the two and a half years of dysfunctional hockey in Buffalo, it's Mikhail Grigorenko. The poor kid can't catch a break. He is always having to prove himself to new coaches and GMs. Maybe he wants to find solitude and continuity while developing his overall game at home in the peaceful confines of Russia. I wouldn't blame him if he did want to go home.

His Buffalo story began when made the Sabres roster after the NHL lockout in 2012. In March 2013, he was sent back to his junior club in Quebec City. Later that spring he was recalled to play in Buffalo. Last season, Sabres GM Tim Murray made Grigo one of the final cuts in training camp. Samson Reinhart stayed in Buffalo which forced Grigo to the AHL. After a strong exhibition season, Grigo was sent packing to AHL Rochester where he finally showed glimpses of consistency on the score sheet ans in all three zones of the ice.

In 68 career games with the Sabres, Grigo has scored just 5 goals and 4 assists. In 43 career games in Rochester, he has scored 14 goals and added 22 assists.

I watched Grigo play many times during the past three seasons. It appeared to my eyes that he was so preoccupied with polishing the apple and showing (insert head coach name here) and (insert GM name here) that he could be held accountable for playing the defensive side of the puck that it sapped him of the offensive creativity and booming shot tat contributed to his being selected 12th overall in the NHL Draft. In other words, Grigo kept his offensive skills in his locker stall in an attempt to show his coach and GM that he can play the D-first style that was being demanded of him.

The knock on Grigorenko has been his railroad skating style qhich to his credit he has worked on intensively with Sabres skating coach Dawn Braid. Grigo's hand-eye and stick skills are off the charts. Last season, he finally used his 6'3" 225 lb frame to fight to the danger areas for shot attempts. He also concentrated on winning faceoffs and to battle to get the puck back after losing draws.

I'm certain that Murray has been fielding calls from rival GMs looking for center depth.

Arizona and Colorado are two perfect landing spots for Grigo. Coyotes AGM Darcy Regier made Grigorenko the 12th overall pick in the 2012 draft when he was Sabres GM. AVs head coach Patrick Roy was Grigo's head coach and GM of the Quebec Remparts when the slick Russian was terrorizing the QMJHL.

If the rumor is true, and Murray is being stingy about offering Grigo a one way deal, then it's a matter of time until Grigo becomes a former Sabre. Playing in Russia will guarantee Grigo a fat, one way contract, and the kind of money he can't make right now in the NHL.

On locker clean out day, Grigorenko spoke about his experience in Rochester. Naturally, it wasn't his first choice of locales to play in 2014-15, however, he made the best of a dicey situation. He said that Ted Nolan told him that he liked the way that the youngster handled his time in Rochester. Grigo also said that he hoped to be a part of the Sabres roster in 2015-16.

Right now, the only way I see Grigo playing full time for the Sabres next season is if he plays the wing. And, I don't see that happening. Grigo is a center. He struggles when he plays wing. Once a center, always a center. Problem being, Buffalo has too many centers.

Thanks, Sabres.com

Regier selected Grigorenko instead of fabulous Finn finisher Teuvo Teravainen, Cody Ceci, Tomas Hertl, Tom Wilson, and Andrei Vasilevskiy.

Just sayin'.

Grigorenko is currently in Moscow attending the wedding of his friend and fellow Buffalo prospect Nikita Zadorov.

Much more on this story shortly.....

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The Summer Of Samson and Cheers To Nikita http://t.co/ZHqL7vPFG6 pic.twitter.com/e99yotKccC

— SabresBuzz (@SabresBuzz) June 13, 2015

I wasn't shocked nor surprised when I heard the news on Thursday that Sabres GM Tim Murray is serious when he says that his 2014 second overall pick Samson Reinhart has a real opportunity to stick and stay in Sabreland after training camp breaks this fall.

Murray said that he was impressed with the results of Reinhart's end of season testing that showed increases in his overall strength. When Murray sent Reinhart back to WHL Kootenay in early November 2014 it was for disciplinary reasons. It was simply to give Reinhart the opportunity to hit the gym and to develop his body and core strength so that he could endure the rigors of the NHL this season. Having a full suite of A+ NHL skills is one thing. Having the strength and body mass to endure body checks and to fight off Ryan Getzlaf, Patrice Bergeron, Claude Giroux, and Sidney Crosby is another. From a purely physical standpoint, Reinhart wasn't ready for the NHL last fall. I saw evidence of his struggles to assimilate into the pro game shortly after he was selected behind Aaron Ekblad at the NHL Draft. Reinhart got a not so nice welcome to teh NHL when Zemgus Girgensons plowed him down to the ice with a heavy body check during his first shift of the annual rookie and prospects scrimmage last July. Reinhart was shaken up and would go on to miss a couple of days of on ice activities as a result of his plight. As his first training camp progressed Reinhart acclimated himself well to the pace and speed of the NHL game. He held his own in the nine games that he played in Buffalo at the start of the season.

Then, on Halloween day, Murray announced his final decision. Reinhart was sent back to junior hockey in Kootenay.

At the time of his demotion, Reinhart was 18 years old. He had one point – an assist – in nine NHL games this season. He was 6'1" and 185 lbs.

Murray called the Reinhart decision one of the toughest that he's had to make in his NHL management career. Murray seemed genuinely bummed out about having to send his first ever NHL draft choice as an NHL GM back to junior hockey. Murray had high hopes for Reinhart's rookie season in the NHL. However, reality set in after Reinhart struggled to win physical battles against men who were 6-10 years older than he was at the time.

“[Reinhart] not strong or heavy enough yet. Just by getting stronger, he’s going to get quicker and faster but strength was an issue for me,… Murray said. “Watching him play, watching how important he was here, the minutes he got here, the situations he played in here told me it was time to get back.…

“…It’s about patience. It’s about doing the right thing and I believe this is the right thing.…

Reinhart was obviously disappointed and Murray said Reinhart was emotional after their meeting.

“It’s an emotional day. I told him, ‘You’re my first first-round draft pick as a GM.’ Obviously I was cheering for him, but I can’t let emotion come into play in the decision,… he said. “It has to be the decision that’s right, No. 1 for the organization and No. 2 him. It can’t be the right decision for me.

“I can’t keep him here and say, ‘Hey, hey, look what we did here. Our first-round pick played 82 games in his first year eligible.’ That’s craziness to me. It’s about doing what’s right for him and what’s right for the organization.…

Reinhart took his demotion in stride and agreed to do the work in the gym. After practices and games, Reinhart would hit the gym for weight training and core exercise work.

Murray said that after seeing Reinhart play at the NHL-level, he never considered keeping him in Buffalo for the entire year just so he could observe and play a reduced role on the ice.

“I don’t see the value of the argument of you can sit on the bench here and work out versus going back to junior, no matter what he’s accomplished in junior,… Murray said. “Great players have gone back to junior. Ninety-nine percent of the players that play here have gone back to junior. He’s still going to get something out of it. He’s going to get the World Junior.

“Hopefully his team’s a playoff team. Every playoff game you play at every level is experience that you can’t take away from him. There are a lot of short-term things that he can take.…

On Boxing Day, when the IIHF World Junior Hockey Championships began in Montreal, we were immediately reminded of how great a player Reinhart truly is when the super center led Team Canada on a full frontal assault of the best junior aged players in the world. Reinhart's 5 goals and 6 assists in 7 World Junior games played were only a part of the story. He made his linemates Max Domi and Anthony Duclair better players by feeding them pucks in scoring areas and by making plays for them to be succesful. the Domi-Reinhart-Duclair line was brilliant in the World Juniors. Were it not for their chemistry and point production, Canada would not have won the gold medal on home soil. Reinhart's line was THAT good. It was great to see Reinhart revel in the moment when he scored the game winning goal in the gold medal game versus Russia.

Reinhart scored 19 goals and added 46 assists in just 47 games with the Kootenay Ice. He added another 6 goals and 3 assists in seven WHL playoff games.

After his World Juniors success had ended, Reinhart returned to Kootenay where he led his teammates to the WHL playoffs. He continued to play with his new found confidence when he returned to junior hockey from the bright lights and big cities of the World Juniors tourney. Tim Murray was keeping close tabs on Reinhart to see if there was a dip in his production. There wasn't one. In fact, Reinhart's game soared to new levels after the World Juniors ended, which tells me that the kid took Tim Murray's advice to heart. He didn't sulk or pout. He went home and he invested the necessary work and elbow grease into his game. Today, he is a better player for having done so.

Check out this body of work that Reinhart created for himself AFTER his demotion from Buffalo to Kootenay:

2014-2015

U20 WJC All-Star Team U20 WJC Best Plus/Minus (+13) U20 WJC Gold Medal U20 WJC Most Goals (5) U20 WJC Most Points (11) U20 WJC Scorer of the Championship Winning Goal U20 WJC Top 3 Player on Team WHL (East) Second All-Star Team

Murray has raved about how Reinhart played in his three game stint with the Rochester Americans at the end his WHL season. Murray was so impressed that he said that he doesn’t foresee Reinhart playing in the AHL this year. If teh kid struggles or loses his way, the Amerks will be a great place for him to work on his game. However, Murray is looking forward to having Samson skate in Sabreland this season. The fans are ecstatic to hear this news. The thought of having Reinhart, Jack Eichel, Zemgus Girgensons, and Johan Larsson (not necessarily in this order) at center this season is exciting. Bylsma and Murray want to play a puck possession game with strength down the center of the ice and Reinhart can and will add immediate value to the Sabres in 2015-16. This Sabres team will not be finishing 30th overall, folks. When Murray adds a starting goalie and a couple of sniping veteran forwards (O'Reilly and Sharp), this team may well dupilicate the path that the 2014-15 Calgary Flames took from 26th overall last season to the playoffs this season.

"This is going to be the biggest summer of my life", Samson Reinhart said to the boys on Sabres Hockey Hotline on Friday.

Reinhart now has the essential extra strength and swagger that he will need to play bigger in Sabres training camp with this summer. Another great motivator is that Samson may be saying to himself "I was here before Jack Eichel". In other words, don't sleep on Samson Reinhart. All of this talk about Eichel this and Eichel that may well fuel Reinhart's internal combustion engine all the more. Maybe Reinhart fels like he should be centering for Evander Kane this season and not Eichel. The fact is, Reinhart was a Sabres before Eichel and he will likely do everything to remind all of his teammates, coaches, and Murray that he is the alpha dog in Buffalo. Imagine a scenario where Eichel's swagger and extroverted personality immediately rub off on Reinhart. Holy WOW! That would be amazing to have two of the most gifted centermen in the world playing on L1 and L2 in Buffalo this season.

Get ready, Buffalo.

The Samson and Jack Show is coming soon to a rink near you and it promises to be awesome!

Thanks, WGR

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Speaking of Jack Eichel, the Hobey Baker winning future Sabre visited the Stanley Cup Finals during Game 3. Eichel was accompanied by fellow draft prospects Connor McDavid, Dylan Strome, Lawson Crouse, Mitch Marner and Noah Hanifin.

Who can ever forget Eichel's epic troll job of the Pope Of Hockey, Don Cherry during Coach's Corner? Awesome!

An NHL Network camera crew documented Eichel's Stanley Cup experience.

Thanks, NHL.com

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Congratulations are in order for Sabres D monster Nikita Zadorov and his new bride.

The couple were married in Moscow on Friday.

Pictured below with the groom are Sabres teammates Mikhail Grigorenko and Andrey Makarov.