It's been a long journey back to the National Hockey League for Buffalo Sabres goaltender Dustin Tokarski.
With both Linus Ullmark and Carter Hutton going down to lower-body injuries, he has carried load for the Sabres in net, and has played well enough to earn NHL “First Star” of the Week honors.
In Tokarski's four games in the last week, he posted a record of 2-1-1 with a 2.27 goals-against average and a save percentage of .934.
Tokarski's win over the Washington Capitals on Thursday night was his first victory since Dec. 12, 2015. It was also Tokarski's first NHL win since his father passed away a few years back. He pointed skyward as the horn sounded Thursday in D.C.
With all the Sabres’ injuries in net, it's doubly impressive that Tokarski put up the numbers he did, playing four games in six nights. He'll likely continue to play the majority of the games until the Sabres get healthier.
Tokarski is the first Sabres player to earn “First Star” of the Week honors since Tyler Ennis was on the week ending Dec. 14, 2014.
Jaromir Jagr and John Scott are just a couple of players who earned “First Star” of the Week honors since the Sabres last had had one.