Ottawa, Ontario (WGR Sports Radio 550) - Buffalo Sabres top prospect Noah Ostlund has been named the AHL Player of the Week. The 21-year-old had three goals and three assists for six points in three games played for the Rochester Americans.
Ostlund has scored a goal in five-straight games, which included his third shorthanded goal of the season.
In his rookie season with the Amerks this year, Ostlund has scored 18 goals and 17 assists for 35 points in 43 games. He also has 14 goals since the AHL All-Star break, which is fourth in the AHL.
The 21-year-old is 15th in rookie scoring because he missed so many games earlier in the season due to injury. His 18 goals are tied with another former Sabres first-round pick in the same draft, Matt Savoie, who now plays for the Bakersfield Condors. Savoie has played 14 more games than Ostlund.
In that 2022 NHL Draft, Buffalo took Savoie with the ninth overall pick, and then went with Ostlund with the 15th pick acquired from the Vegas Golden Knights as part of the Jack Eichel trade. Jiri Kulich was then taken 28th overall as part of the Sam Reinhart trade with the Florida Panthers.
When the Sabres took Ostlund, they knew he was going to spend two seasons playing in Sweden with Djurgardens IF in HockeyAllsvenskan, and then Vaxjo HC in the Swedish Hockey League.
That seemed to prepare him well for his first season with the Amerks.
Other first-round picks of the Sabres playing in Rochester this season include Isak Rosen (2021), Ryan Johnson (2019), Konsta Helenius (2024) and earlier in the season Kulich, who played four games before heading to Buffalo for good.
Kulich is eligible for the AHL playoffs, if general manager Kevyn Adams decides to send him to Rochester at season’s end.
The Amerks are currently in second place in the North Division, three points back of the Laval Rocket. Rochester’s 85 points is tied with the Hershey Bears for second in the American Hockey League.
The Bears and the Amerks are also tied for second in the league in points percentage at .664.
Buffalo also got goalie Devon Levi as part of the Reinhart trade, and he’s currently fourth in the AHL with 22 wins, just one off the lead. Levi is fifth in goals-against average at 2.23 and sixth in save percentage at .917. He does lead the league with six shutouts.