Buffalo, N.Y. (WGR 550) – Some 42 hours after being named captain of the Buffalo Sabres, Kyle Okposo returned to practice and talked about being the new leader of this team.
Okposo was the logical choice to be captain of the team.
“It means a lot, and just knowing I have the respect of the guys means everything to me," said Okposo following Monday's practice. "I’m not going to change who I am, and I couldn’t be more proud.
“One thing, too, is if you start to act a different way or do things differently, the guys see through that in a heartbeat. You can’t fool anybody, so authenticity is definitely No. 1 on my list.”
It’s been a rough six years in Buffalo for the new captain, but he got his game where he wanted it again last year, scoring 21 goals in 74 games. He is thankful he stuck with it.
“My whole career hasn’t been a straight line," Okposo said. "You deal with life and different situations on the ice and off the ice, and to have the year that I had last year and be pretty healthy, it feels great.”
Sabres general manager Kevyn Adams presented Okposo with the "C" during a family party at the arena on Saturday. Okposo says that meant a lot to him.
“It was really special the way that they did it with my family there and with the guys," he said. "They said it was well-deserved and nobody was really surprised from the room, but just to have the people in the organization there was really special.”
Zemgus Girgensons and Rasmus Dahlin are wearing the "A" on their jerseys this season. Okposo thinks Dahlin, especially, is ready for it.
“He’s continuing to grow into a star player, and he’s only going to get better. But there’s a whole other portion that you guys unfortunately don’t get to see is how he is off the ice," Okposo said of the 22-year-old defenseman.
"He's taken it upon himself to invite people over and just make people feel comfortable, but he cares. And when he speaks, he's passionate and it's from a good place."
It sounded like Adams was sold on Okposo being captain from the start.
“Kyle is someone that has so much respect within our locker room, within the community and within the hockey world," said Adams on Monday in a press conference. "And as good of a player that he’s been in his career, he’s a better person.”
To get to the 23-man roster limit by 5 p.m. ET on Monday, Riley Sheahan was put on Injured Reserve. Lawrence Pilut and Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen were sent to the Rochester Americans, while Olivier Nadeau, who has been rehabbing an injury, was sent back to his junior team in Gatineau.
Okposo practiced on Monday, but in a non-contact jersey. He said he did have some contact and he felt good.
Sabres head coach Don Granato says they’ll be cautious with their new captain to see if he’ll play in the opener on Thursday against the Ottawa Senators.
Monday’s lines:
Forwards:
Skinner – Thompson – Olofsson
Quinn – Mittelstadt – Tuch
Krebs – Cozens – Peterka
Girgensons – Asplund – Hinostroza
Bjork – Okposo
Defense:
Samuelsson – Dahlin
Power – Jokiharju
Bryson – Lyubushkin
Pilut – Fitzgerald
