Buffalo, N.Y. (WGR 550) – Anders Bjork came out of the NHL's COVID-19 protocols on Sunday and joined his teammates for practice.
Bjork hasn’t had the season he envisioned during training camp, as he’s been a healthy scratch from time-to-time this year.
The 25-year-old came to the Buffalo Sabres from the Boston Bruins in the Taylor Hall trade. In 44 games with the Sabres, Bjork has seven goals and four assists for 11 points. Over 82 games, that translates to 13 goals and seven assists for 20 points.
In his last season at the University of Notre Dame, Bjork had 52 points in 39 games. He was excited at being traded to Buffalo last season, because he felt he could get better ice-time and improve his scoring.
Head coach Don Granato talked in general, but he said there’s a process into becoming a better offensive player.
“A lot of times they’re thinking about things, and they haven’t been able to narrow down and keep a focus on what will get them more points," Granato explained following Sunday's practice. "If he’s consistent to using his attributes better, that will lead to more scoring chances."
As far as Bjork goes, he still thinks he can score in the NHL.
"I think that’s a part of my game that I do have, and have to figure out a way to show [it]," the winger said on Sunday. "Part of that is earning more trust from the coaching staff and earning more ice-time, so that’s the next step that I’m focusing on."
“If you’re focused on scoring more, you might be out there working on your shot, but you’re never going to get to the front of the net," Granato said of Bjork. "Sometimes you can jump too far ahead of yourself when you set a goal, and that’s why I’m not big on setting goals. For 'Bjorkie,' it’s understanding his own assets and fitting them into the game better for consistency reasons.”
With there being a possibility of more players coming out of protocols on Monday, Granato isn’t going to think about lineup decisions until after Monday’s practice. That includes defensemen Jacob Bryson and Robert Hagg, or maybe a call up from the Rochester Americans like Brett Murray.
Granato didn’t sound real comfortable playing anybody on Tuesday that comes out of protocols on Monday, but we’ll see.
Granato has been very pleased with what he’s gotten out of Murray in his 16 games with the Sabres. He said Murray got sent back down so he could play in a couple of games.
“Part of the process for him, based on watching him here, is there’s still a benefit to him playing minutes in Rochester," Granato said. "That is an avenue that can help him become a full-time NHL player.”
Bjork did look to be slowed down by COVID-19.
“It wasn’t really bad for me," he said. "I maybe felt a little off one of the days, but besides that, I was fine. Just pretty bored.”
Tuesday’s game against the Tampa Bay Lightning will only be Buffalo’s second game in 10 days.
SUNDAY’S LINES:
Forwards:
Skinner – Thompson – Olofsson
Bjork – Cozens – Asplund
Caggiula – Eakin – Hayden
Girgensons – Jankowski – Hinostroza
Defense:
Dahlin – Jokiharju
Butcher – Pysyk
Bryson – Hagg – Miller
