With three games shelved for the week, the Buffalo Sabres were hoping for one more practice Tuesday before the players dispersed for the holiday week. It didn't happen, and now you have to seriously question when they'll be back on the ice.
The Sabres and Blue Jackets were scheduled to meet here Monday night and again Thursday in Nationwide Arena.
Vinnie Hinostroza went on the Covid protocol list Monday and practice was canceled Tuesday about 45 minutes before it was scheduled to start in LECOM Harborcenter after positive tests landed Zemgus Girgensons and Jeff Skinner on the list as well.
As part of the NHL's revised holiday schedule that allows teams to return a day earlier than originally planned, the Sabres are slated to return to practice Sunday. They're supposed to host the New York Islanders on Monday in KeyBank Center. The virus may have other ideas.
General Manager Kevyn Adams spoke on the team's current predicament and several other topics during a video call with reporters Tuesday afternoon. Here were some of the major takeaways:
1. The Covid situation
Adams said Girgensons is experiencing mild symptoms, much like goaltender Dustin Tokarski did when he landed on the list a couple of weeks ago. Hinostroza and Skinner are not. One player on Monday became three players on Tuesday. Teams with outbreaks are seeing their numbers rise each day and that has to be the Sabres' fear.
"The whole world is dealing with this. And obviously, as a sports league, we're part of that," Adams said. "The protocols are in place, you're doing your best to follow everything, but you get up every day and see what the day brings. We've talked all year to our players about being vigilant with the rules, and really making sure that we do everything we can to keep ourselves and each other safe. But it's just the reality of the the world we're living in right now. So you just adjust where you have to."
2. A possible return
Is it feasible for the NHL to return to practice Sunday and games on Monday with the Omicron variant running roughshod through several teams in the league? Tough call. There were two games left on the schedule Tuesday and one (Washington at Philadelphia) was bagged when the Capitals learned of Covid issues during their morning skate. The Tampa Bay at Vegas game was the league's final one on the schedule until Monday. Provided the league actually comes off its pause then.
"I do believe that the doctors are working really hard at this to analyze the data, make decisions that are right for the safety and the health of everyone involved," Adams said. "What I have learned is you just adjust with what you have to adjust to, and you focus on what you can control. And for us, those type of decisions aren't in our control. So we'll have this break, hope that we can get everybody back in healthy and re-energized and then go to work when we get back on the 26th."
3. Non-Covid issues
Adams was encouraged by the news from MRI exams on center Tage Thompson, who has been dealing with a couple of issues that were probably exacerbated by a fight in Pittsburgh on Friday against Penguins forward Zach Aston-Reese. The GM said Thompson would have been a game-time decision had the Sabres-Columbus game taken place Monday night.
Adams said he's encouraged by the progress of long-term injuries to goalie Craig Anderson, center Casey Mittelstadt and defenseman Robert Hagg and discounted the notion that any of them are done for the season.
Adams noted how the team's November dip started when Anderson – who had a 2.50 goals-against average and .921 save percentage – suffered what's believed to be a neck injury in the Nov. 2 loss to San Jose.
"What an unbelievable veteran he's been with this team," Adams said. "And we dearly missed him when he went out of the lineup, not just because of the play that he had. When he was backing up, he was like having a coach on the bench. He was talking to the defenseman pointing things out. That's really powerful when it comes from your own teammate. And we've missed that.
"He's doing much better. He's started to turn a corner. With his injury, it's every day you have to kind of reevaluate and see where he's at. But there is hope that he's on a better path right now."
4. The recent run
The Sabres have points in four straight games (2-0-2) for the first time since 2019 and have given up just 14 goals in their last six games. They got five out of six points on last week's grueling road trip to Winnipeg, Minnesota and Pittsburgh, which Adams hopes can be a seminal moment to springboard their season after a terrible 3-14-3 run that saw their defense and goaltending collapse.
"We started seeing our team playing the way we need to play to have success," the GM said. "We're possessing the puck, attacking, playing really aggressive, not just offensively but defensively. Certainly (rookie goaltender Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen) came in and was really solid for us. And even though the result right away maybe wasn't there, you could see us playing the way the process of our game was right and then you started to see results."
Adams said coach Don Granato, his staff and the players kept a next-day mindset in place through their struggles. Granato has said he only felt the team's focus and confidence waning during the 6-2 loss Dec. 4 in Carolina but that it's clearly rebounded with the play of Luukkonen in the net.
"We have a really, really good locker room right now, which is exciting for me," Adams said. "You see the culture here is turning and it's a positive, it's players that want to be here. It's players excited about where we're headed. So let's just focus on today, let's get better. And I think when you have that mindset, then you can work through the tough times. And that's what I felt really good about over the last handful of games."
“It was a little bit of disbelief because I used to sit and watch Sabres games growing up, and from the time I was five years old until I was drafted by Minnesota, I was a Buffalo Sabres fan," Tuch said.
5. Tuch's delayed debut
Adams said Syracuse-area native and lifelong Sabres fan Alex Tuch was "crushed" that his debut with the team was postponed Monday night but all sides hope he won't have too much longer to wait. The GM said that the Vegas winger acquired in the Jack Eichel trade has jumped head-first into embracing the organization.
"We've talked a lot about what he means as a hockey player and we're excited about that," Adams said. "But what he means off the ice and the character and the leadership is really powerful, too. So I'm excited. I hope our fans are excited. It'll be nice to get him in the lineup."
Adams said when Tuch first arrived in town after the trade, he texted the GM and asked to do a walk-through of the team's offices so he could introduce himself to employees from different departments outside of hockey operations.
"He went around to the entire staff, and just introduced himself and learned what people do," Adams recounted. "It's such a big deal when someone that works in operations or finance understands that Alex Tuch knows who they are and appreciates the job they do every day. It's how you can build a really powerful organization, in terms of the culture and what people mean to each other. And I give Alex a lot of credit. So that's just the type of person we're talking about here."
