Buffalo, N.Y. (WGR 550) – Eric Comrie was at practice once again on Wednesday, as three goaltenders were on the ice for the Buffalo Sabres. Comrie is full-go in practice, but isn’t ready to play after missing four weeks with a knee injury.
The Sabres have injuries, which fills some of the 23 roster spots they have. I asked general manager Kevyn Adams if he’d consider carrying three goalies, since Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen has seemed to get going, and he admitted that it’s being discussed.
Adams did say no matter what, Luukkonen has to be somewhere where he is playing.
Comrie is open to a conditioning assignment in Rochester, if Adams approaches him about it. That’s something that a player must agree to.
The 27-year-old looked fine during practice, and he sure is relieved to be back with his teammates.
“It was a lot of fun being out there, just being with the guys and being part of the group again,” said Comrie on Wednesday after practice.
Comrie says it’s not how hard he can go in practice, it's other factors that are involved before he can return to game action.
“It’s about getting used to playing hockey again," he said. "It’s tough when you take four weeks off, so it’s about getting used to playing goalie again.”
Comrie got hurt in Ottawa against the Senators on Nov. 16 when Rasmus Dahlin checked Mathieu Joseph into him. He says his first reaction was to gut it out.
“I felt a little bit of a pop in my knee, and then I tried to do the butterfly and I thought, ‘OK, I can kind of do it.’," Comrie explained. "I was thinking ‘Andy’ [Craig Anderson] played the night before, so my job is to be out there and battle as hard as I can. I tried to go a little longer and then tried to go to my post, and then I knew that this isn’t going to work.”
In 11 games this season, Comrie is 4-7-0 with a 3.62 goals-against average and an .887 save percentage. He says when the injury happened, he was starting to feel good about his game.
“I felt really good in that Ottawa game," Comrie said. "I thought I was playing pretty well, and then that happens. It’s unfortunate, and I need to keep moving forward.”
The mandatory Christmas break isn’t going to help Comrie, as the team won’t be on the ice again until the morning skate on Tuesday.
Luukkonen has vaulted himself into the mix, but chances are he’ll still likely get sent back to Rochester. Sabres head coach Don Granato understands why his 23-year-old goalie struggled in his first six games.
“You’re recalled from Rochester, and you’re now facing the greatest shooters in the world, which you’re not in the American Hockey League. The timing’s different, and everything’s different," said Granato on Wednesday. "There’s an acclimation period, especially for younger players that don’t have a lot of NHL experience, and I felt he went through the early games and had some frustration, and goals he probably wanted back. The key is you don’t want those to effect his confidence, and you don’t want doubt to creep in all the while, where everyone around him is second guessing him like, 'Are you good enough?' This league is not kind to goaltenders.”
Rasmus Dahlin, Mattias Samuelsson, Kyle Okposo and Zemgus Girgensons were all given rest days on Wednesday. Jacob Bryson returned to practice, but Owen Power did not. Both are making progress.
