Buffalo, N.Y. (WGR 550) - The smell of hockey is in the air, as the Buffalo Sabres returned to the ice on Thursday for the team's first practice of training camp at KeyBank Center in Downtown Buffalo.
Buffalo is licking its chops to return to game action this season, as many players are eager for a return to the playoffs for the first time since the 2010-11 season.
Sabres head coach Don Granato is looking forward to seeing how the youth on his roster takes another step forward heading into the upcoming campaign. This includes the goaltending position, where Granato believes that rookie goaltender Devon Levi has all of the right tools to be a starting-calider NHL netminder, despite being 21-years-old.
"I think about it and I think about so many goalies, young goalies, who are rookie-type goalies - guys without a lot of experience that have won Stanley Cups in the last 10 years. Look at last year with Vegas. Was the goalie they used in the Final their first choice three or four months prior? He wasn't their first or second choice, from what I understand. Devon has that psyche in order, he has skill, he takes experience in faster than most," said Granato when speaking with members of the media after Thursday's practice.
Something that comes with all sports are the highs and lows a team and its players might face over the course of a season. Granato spoke specifically about Levi in this aspect, but also related it to the whole team, and how some newfound veteran presence can help boost confidence.
"We watch sports, there's ups-and-downs. You work to limit them, but there's ups-and-downs," Granato explained. "Some nights you walk out on that rink and the other team is way fresher than you, and you just can't do a damn thing. It can hit your confidence. Any ups-and-downs and challenges that [Levi] goes through, as anyone else, has to become greater experience. That's the beauty of adding [Connor] Clifton and Erik Johnson. They have more experience and hindsight. They can calm the rest of the group, and re-calibrate them, re-focus them, and help us do that faster."
A player that has been very polarizing for much of the last few years has been forward Casey Mittelstadt. The 24-year-old had a career year this past season with 15 goals and 44 assists for 59 points in a full 82 games played.
Granato knows this kind of player has been in Mittelstadt this whole time.
"He really did finish impressively strong. He moved up to a line with [Alex] Tuch and [Jeff] Skinner, and they were dominate," Granato noted of the 2017 first-round pick. "It showed how much Casey persevered and was ready for more opportunity, it showed his growth. He is an ultra-competitive guy, which may be hard for other people to understand. This guy is ultra-competitive."
Hear more of Granato's comments with the media on Thursday available in the player below:
