Buffalo, N.Y. (WGR 550) – After Casey Mittelstadt was traded to the Colorado Avalanche last week Wednesday, Dylan Cozens started centering Zach Benson and Jordan Greenway.
The line combination seemed to have immediate chemistry, and in the four games since the trade, the three players seem to always dominate the offensive zone.
The line also plays versus the other team’s best players.
Against the Edmonton Oilers, it was Connor McDavid. Against the Detroit Red Wings, it was Pat Kane. Against the New York Islanders, it was the line of Bo Horvat, Mat Barzal and Brock Nelson.
Greenway says it was easy to get together with those guys.
"I think we have a little bit of everything on the line, where we’re able to complement each other very well," said Greenway on Friday. "But more than that, I think we’re playing pretty simple. We’re forcing other teams to make mistakes, and typically when that happens, you create some space for yourself and your skill comes out."
Benson has been the main beneficiary, as in his last two games, he has three goals and five points. That gives the 18-year-old nine goals and 14 assists for 23 points.
Greenway says Benson amazes him with how he plays in the NHL at just 18.
"He’s just a young kid, and he’s been able to progress throughout the entire year and take in knowledge from some of the other guys and the coaching staff, and really add it to his game. It’s nice to see him getting the rewards now," he said.
Last year in juniors with the Winnipeg Ice, Benson scored 36 goals and put up 62 assists for 98 points in just 60 games. He’s always been a goal scorer, and as he gets older, Sabres head coach Don Granato says there’s no question in his mind that Benson will score at this level.
Greenway can relate, as he scored 13 goals and 35 points in just 36 games in his last season with Boston University.
"Everyone typically is older, stronger, faster, much smarter, so that goes into it. And then there’s not a lot of room out there," Greenway said of Benson. "You’ve got to find ways to create space for yourself, and scoring in this league is not easy at all. So to find those little areas where you might get more chances than others, is all a work in progress, but he’s finding it a little sooner than most."
Greenway is impressed, because with Benson’s smaller size, most guys wouldn’t get to the areas to get the tip like the goal he scored Thursday.
After Thursday’s game during his postgame comments, Benson says he’s starting to feel it, but his linemates have been big.
"My mindset coming into every game is to compete, and once you compete, your skill takes over," said Benson. "I thought as a line, me, 'Cuzy' and 'Greener' have been doing that for a couple games, and we’ve just got to keep going here.
"We all think the game kind of the same, defense first and that leads to offense. So I thought we’ve done a good job of shutting it down, and then when we get the puck in the [offensive] zone, we let our skill take over."
Granato said after Friday's practice that winger Jack Quinn skated for the first time on his own on Friday. Buffalo is headed out on a nine-day road trip, and Quinn will stay back in Buffalo to continue his rehab.
There’s still no timetable for his return.
The Sabres have another huge game on Saturday in Detroit. Join Brian Koziol and myself at an 11:30 a.m. ET pregame start, when you'll hear from Granato, Greenway and Victor Olofsson.
