Sabres lingering questions: Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen injury uncertainty and more
The Sabres are dealing with a rash of injuries with one preseason game left before the opener against the Rangers.
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The Buffalo Sabres have one preseason game left on their schedule, and at this point they probably just want to get through it without adding to their injury list.
Through some combination of a demanding training camp and bad luck, the Sabres have a lot of key contributors nursing injuries with the regular-season opener against the New York Rangers one week away.
Zach Benson, Bowen Byram, Owen Power, Michael Kesselring and Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen are all dealing with day-to-day injuries, while Mattias Samuelsson and Jordan Greenway are week-to-week. Sabres coach Lindy Ruff sounded confident that Byram, Power and Kesselring will be available on opening night.
But the situation has created more lingering questions for a team that already had a few heading into the season.
1. Will the Sabres need to carry three goalies to start the season?
Goaltending can make or break a team’s season, and the Sabres enter the year with a shaky situation in net. Luukkonen recently returned from a lower-body injury that kept him out for the first week of training camp. He was able to play in a 5-3 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins on Wednesday, stopping 11 of 12 shots during one period of play, but left the game with the same lower-body injury. Ruff said it was precautionary, but it’s still cause for concern.Before camp started, the Sabres signed Alexandar Georgiev in case Luukkonen had to miss time. He and Alex Lyon have been in competition to be the next man up. Devon Levi has already been sent to the AHL.
Ruff has said keeping three goalies isn’t ideal, but the Sabres are getting closer to the point where it might be necessary. Georgiev and Lyon are the most proven alternatives the Sabres have. Even if Luukkonen returns to start the season, the Sabres would prefer to have veteran options ready in case he tweaks the same injury again.
That said, if Levi has a hot start in Rochester, maybe there will be an NHL opportunity for him at some point this season.
2. Is Johnson ready for his chance?
Samuelsson’s injury opened the door for Ryan Johnson to get meaningful preseason reps, and the 24-year-old has run with it. A first-round pick in 2019, Johnson has played in 44 NHL games the last two seasons, spending most of his time in the AHL. He didn’t get much of a chance to compete for a roster spot last fall because the team had an abbreviated training camp before heading to Europe for the Global Series. This year, Johnson has proven worthy of an extended look.He looks stronger in puck battles and defending the front of his net, and his skating has always been one of his best traits. The Sabres have a 21-11 advantage in five-on-five scoring chances when Johnson is on the ice this preseason. He’s looked comfortable playing next to Conor Timmins and should provide some legitimate competition for Samuelsson.
3. Will the power play improve?
If the Sabres are going to make the playoffs this season, they need to improve a power play that was below league-average last season.It’s tough to gauge too much from preseason performances with lineups being what they are this time of year. But the Sabres have four goals on the power play in five preseason games, which is sixth best in the league. That alone doesn’t tell us much. The encouraging thing is the Sabres have relied less on perimeter plays and forcing one-timers to Tage Thompson. They’ve gone behind the net more and have more variety in their puck movement. That’s a necessary change.
The other reason for optimism here is that Josh Norris has looked outstanding in the preseason. He has three goals and three assists in three preseason games. He’s shown off some playmaking skills playing next to Thompson on the top line. If he’s healthy, Norris could be a difference-maker on the power play and at five-on-five.
4. Is Quinn ready to bounce back?
Jack Quinn signed a two-year contract extension this summer and entered camp with a lot to prove. Coming off a down year in which he didn’t score a goal against a goalie until mid-December, Quinn came to camp in incredible shape, according to Ruff. He scored an empty-net goal early in the preseason for his only point in three exhibition games.Quinn’s line with Jiri Kulich and Josh Doan is the youngest line on one of the youngest teams in hockey. Quinn is one of the players expected to provide the scoring pop on that line. He’ll need to find another gear in the regular season to be someone the Sabres can count on to provide secondary scoring.
5. What’s next for Mrtka?
Radim Mrtka has been one of the surprises of the preseason for the Sabres. His skating and physicality haven’t looked out of place in the exhibition games he’s played. He hasn’t backed down from confrontation in front of the net and is a smooth skater with and without the puck.But the game is still fast for Mrtka. The Sabres are being outchanced 22-16 when he’s on the ice at five-on-five in the preseason, and no player has been on the ice for more five-on-five scoring chances against than Mrtka.
This training camp has been great for his development, and he should enter the season with a lot of confidence about the type of player he can become in the NHL. The question is where Mrtka will be playing this season. Going back to junior would give him a chance to fine-tune the details of his game in the defensive zone and dominate playing heavy minutes. There isn’t an obvious big-minute role available to him in the AHL this season with Rochester’s defensive depth chart well stocked.
But the injury situation on Buffalo’s blue line might open the door for him to hang out in the NHL at the start of the season. It has certainly already given him more opportunities than he might have gotten otherwise.