Buffalo, N.Y. (WGR 550) – We got a chance to speak with the newest Buffalo Sabres defenseman on Monday in Ilya Lyubushkin. The Russian signed as a free agent on Wednesday after spending last season split between the Toronto Maple Leafs and Arizona Coyotes.
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The Russian defenseman played 46 games with Arizona before being traded on Feb. 19, along with forward Ryan Dzingel, to the Maple Leafs for winger Nick Ritchie and a conditional pick. Ritchie, by the way, was another one of those unrestricted free agent signings that was regretted almost immediately.
After the trade, the 28-year-old played 31 games for the Leafs and seven more in the playoffs.
Lyubushkin played five games against the Sabres last season, two with the Coyotes and three with the Leafs. Buffalo played well in all five games and went 5-0-0. Lyubushkin remembers how well the Sabres played against him.
“What happened was when I played in our zone against Buffalo, it was always tough," said Lyubushkin during his introductory Zoom call on Monday. "After each game, I thought, ‘Oh my god, it was such a tough game.’ So I don’t know if that went into my decision, but they were a hard, tough team.”
Lyubushkin really focused on the Sabres' forecheck. He felt he never had the time to make plays, because players were on him quick. They are always saying quicker, but Toronto had a tough time doing it.
You’re not going to see Lyubushkin try to finesse the puck like Rasmus Dahlin, because he knows what his role is and why he was brought in.
“I try to always play tough and do my job, and nothing changes," Lyubushkin said. "I just work it every day, and I want to get better every day through hard practice. I just work it, work it, work it.”
Lyubushkin made it pretty simple that he signed with the Sabres because he felt wanted.
Lyubushkin knows that the Sabres have six young defensemen along with himself. He says he will try to help them any way he can.
“I think they’ll help me, and I can help them," Lyubushkin said. "I can see how they can play with good skill, and they can see on me on how I can play physical, and we can both teach each other."
Buffalo has been drafting Russians over the past two years, with one of them - Aleksandr Kisakov - taking part in his first NHL training camp in September. Lyubushkin says he will help out in any way he can.
“I try to help everyone that needs it," he said. "It doesn’t matter [if you're] Russian or North Americans or Swedish. It doesn’t matter with me. I still teach hockey, and if I can help some guys, that’s perfect.”
Sabres head coach Granato says Lyubushkin fits a need for the team, and what they wanted as people and competitors.
“He’s different [from the others], because he’s more hard-nosed," Granato said. "We can use him in penalty kill situations, but he’s probably more physical than the rest of the group. I think he’ll push guys in the group to be more physical, and I think our young guys will actually learn to pick up on his traits.”
In the end, Granato is happy with the additions made in free agency.
“We’ve added a lot in the last 12 months, so we didn’t need to add much in the last 12 days,” he said.
Overall, Lyubushkin is just what general manager Kevyn Adams and Granato were looking for.
“I like my game, I like my job and I know my role," he said. "I know what game I need to play to help the team, so I just enjoy and don’t think too much about it.”
Buffalo decided not to re-sign Mark Pysyk, because he plays too much like the other defensemen do.
