Buffalo, N.Y. (WGR 550) – Back in July, the Buffalo Sabres took forward Matt Savoie ninth overall in the 2022 NHL Draft. Savoie was the first of three first-round picks the team had this year.
However, Savoie was unable to participate in Sabres Development Camp earlier this summer as he dealt with a shoulder injury.
Two months later, Savoie was out on the ice at full speed for practice on Wednesday, as he gets ready for the Sabres Prospects Challenge starting Thursday.
Seth Appert and his Rochester Americans coaching staff will serve behind the bench for this tournament. He was very impressed with what he saw from Savoie on Wednesday.
“He’s electric," said Appert following practice. "His pace of play is so high with and without the puck, and I was just incredibly impressed with how competitive he is on the puck, how smart he is. I told him I was excited to have him on the ice.”
As for Savoie, he couldn’t wait to be back out there for the first time wearing the Sabres colors.
“It’s exciting. I think it’s a great opportunity," said Savoie following Wednesday's practice. "It’s exciting to play alongside some new teammates. This will be my first chance to step on the ice and show the fans and management what I can do.”
Appert has Savoie with Buffalo's 2021 first-round pick Isak Rosen, as well as 2021 second-round pick Aleksandr Kisakov. Appert knows what an offensive threat Kisakov can be.
“I didn’t like coaching against him [when he played with Russia]," Appert admitted. "He’s a little bit of a magician with the puck. His creativity and his edge control is really special.”
Savoie will likely go back to the junior level after training camp in Buffalo, but he doesn’t necessarily see it that way. He’d like to pull on the Sabres sweater at some point this year.
“My goal is to take the experience for what it is, but my biggest goal is to play some NHL games this year," Savoie said. "It’s not easy to crack the roster at the start of the season, so it’s just sticking with it.”
As the Sabres get ready for Thursday's tournament opener against the Montreal Canadiens, forwards Jiri Kulich and Filip Cederqvist weren’t on the ice for practice. It’s not known if they’ll miss any time.
“They’re just day-to-day, and we’re keeping our eyes on bigger things," Appert said. "This is a prospects camp, you want them to play, and hopefully they will be able to. But we do have main camp coming up, so it’s more precautionary.”
The Canadiens are new to the Sabres Prospects Challenge, along with the Ottawa Senators. Join me, Brian Koziol and Brayton Wilson starting at 7 p.m. ET on Thursday night for all the action on WGR Sports Radio 550.
***Photo: Buffalo Sabres (@BuffaloSabres)
