Buffalo, N.Y. (WGR Sports Radio 550) - JJ Peterka continues to be at practice for the Buffalo Sabres, but head coach Lindy Ruff says he’s not quite ready yet after suffering a concussion last Saturday in Prague. Ruff adds he’s been getting good workouts, and he anticipates him to be ready for the next game on Wednesday in Pittsburgh against the Penguins.
Devon Levi will get the start in goal for Buffalo on Saturday. He played very well in his first game last week in Czechia, but still suffered a loss. He’s 0-1-0 this season with a 3.17 goals-against average and a .919 save percentage.
Owen Power and Jordan Greenway both took part in the optional morning skate after missing Friday’s practice. Ruff said both should be ready to play come Saturday night.
Dylan Cozens leads the Sabres with 14 shots on goal, yet, he hasn’t been in on any of the three goals Buffalo has scored this year.
In the last 85 games, the Sabres have scored 2.91 goals per-game, which is 23rd in the NHL. The biggest reason why? Buffalo’s power play is 29th at just 15.8%.
A player that hasn’t played anywhere near to his ability is defenseman Rasmus Dahlin. The new captain missed most of training camp, and appeared to be playing hurt as the season started.
"I take a look at a guy like Dahlin, who missed a good piece of camp, and I’m a little concerned with he missed all that camp and is just getting back into it. I don’t think I’ve seen his best where he can get up and help us create too," said Ruff following Saturday's skate.
After Thursday’s loss to the Los Angeles Kings, Cozens smashed his stick over at the bench in disgust. Cozens is a player who wears his emotions on his sleeve.
"When you have a game like that where you have the number of opportunities, and at the end of the night as a group you’ve done a great job of penalty killing but you give them the freebie 5-on-3, I understand the frustration," Ruff said.
"These guys from Day 1 of camp have bought into playing the right way, and getting up ice and playing with physicality. There’s really not a lot that I’ve asked that I haven’t got. We just need to be maybe a little more selective inside the offensive zone. We have to make a few more plays and it’ll give us better opportunities."
Cozens' right winger, Jack Quinn, only has one shot on goal in three games. Last season in 27 games, Quinn’s shooting percent was 16.1%. He has an elite shot, and Ruff is looking for ways for him to get that shot off.
"We actually talked about that, and I probably wouldn’t be afraid to juggle some people around," he said. "Quinn’s the type of guy where we need to get the puck on his stick. So when I’m talking offensive, I’m talking about finding the right person in the right place."
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Mattias Samuelsson gave the Kings that "Freebie 5-on-3" by committing a slashing penalty when he broke one of Los Angeles' sticks.
"We addressed it. Some of it is pure emotion," Ruff said. "It’s not a penalty he wanted to take, and I’ve addressed where we need to be as a team with penalties. You don’t take offensive zone penalties or needless penalties, and if you want to close out a game, you have to be diligent at not taking late penalties. I had a great conversation with him about that."
The Florida Panthers will be without their captain for a while.
Aleksander Barkov got hurt late in Thursday’s loss to the Ottawa Senators. Head coach Paul Maurice expects him out 2-to-3 weeks.
Maurice also said Saturday that star winger Matthew Tkachuk is sick, and also won’t play on Saturday.
Ruff knows how big of a loss Barkov is for the Panthers.
"It changes parts of their game," he said. "I think the power play will be a little bit different, and we know it hurts them. But I think at the same time, it gives somebody else the opportunity to step in and play well."
One thing you know when you play the defending Stanley Cup champions is you’re in for a tough, heavy game.
"We’ve looked at how they play, how they crash the net, and our physicality inside the dots defensively has to be strong. And offensively, the same thing: We’ve got to get off the walls and to the net, and be willing to pay a price to get there," Ruff said.
Spencer Knight will be in net for the Panthers on Saturday night.
Knight has had some personal problems, and hasn’t played an NHL game since Feb. 18, 2023. That was a 30-minute relief appearance in Nashville against the Predators.
In 57 career NHL games played, the former first-round pick has gone 32-17-6 with a 2.91 goals-against average and a .906 save percentage.
Join Brian Koziol for pregame coverage on WGR starting at 6 p.m. ET when you’ll hear from Ruff, Quinn and Peterka.