Buffalo, N.Y. (WGR 550) – The Buffalo Sabres have had young players find their way as the season has worn on. First it was Owen Power, followed by JJ Peterka and then Jack Quinn.
In the last four games, Peyton Krebs has started to show the type of player that he can be.
Once head coach Don Granato stopped putting Krebs on the wing and left him at center, he’s scored a couple of goals and has been one of the team’s better forwards.
“I’ve put together a lot of solid games lately," said Krebs recently. "It’s starting a little later than I wanted it to, but I’m feeling really good with confidence, with what I’m doing out there and just trusting the process. I’m working hard every day to get better.”
While Krebs has been playing with Kyle Okposo and Zemgus Girgensons, he’s been more than just skill. He’s been hard on pucks and hard on the forecheck.
“I pride myself on keeping the puck out of the D-zone," Krebs said. "A lot of times, I might not be on the scoresheet, but I feel like I’ve played well, and helped the next line go out there and have a good shift.”
Okposo has been very happy that Krebs is his center, and the captain likes what he’s seen lately.
“He works extremely hard, and he’s hard on himself, but he’s learned to spin his attitude into a positive, come to the rink and work on his game. It’s paying off,” said Okposo of the 21-year-old.
“When you work in the middle with 'Z' [Girgensons] and I, you know what you’re going to get. He’s really made some strong plays here the last few games, and I commend him for working at it.”
It’s not just on the ice where Krebs learns from Okposo. He also sits next to him in the locker room.
“Kyle and Zemgus are unbelievable guys, and unbelievable teammates," Krebs said. "Being beside Kyle, we do similar routines before games. We’ve had some great conversations, and I try to learn as much as I can from him. He’s a big role model for me.
“I want to be like him when I’m older, for sure. That excites me, and any little thing that I see him doing, I try to replicate. The same with Zemgus.”
Krebs has seen the young guys get to their games before he did, and of course, he was getting impatient.
“It sucks, for sure," he said. "At the time, you’re going, ‘Why isn’t it going my way?' and 'What am I doing wrong?’ But you know you’re going to look back and you’re going to say that that grind helped me get here.”
Krebs says almost every day he asks Tage Thompson to go out early to shoot pucks. He said he keeps the faith that his skills haven’t gone anywhere, and he just has to figure it out.
Krebs is very good friends with Thompson and many others in the room. That is something that can’t be faked, and he says when times are tough, his best friends are always there for him.
“Thompson was in my position three years ago trying to find his way in the NHL, and he’s texted me a few times to stick with it," Krebs said.
“You don’t feel like someone’s higher than the other guy. You’re all just buddies having a great time out here. It doesn’t matter who it is, where you’re sitting at dinner or lunch, you can have a great conversation and that’s exciting.”
Rasmus Asplund got back into the lineup Saturday in Pittsburgh after sitting out for seven out of eight games. Many felt Asplund was caught up in a numbers game, but he said it was more than that.
“I just got away a little bit from my biggest assets as a player, and that’s my skating," said Asplund. "Staying on the pressure and working to get pucks back, and sometimes you get too much info that makes you go away from your game a little bit. So I just need to find my way, and do the things I do good.”
One thing that impresses Granato is players that don’t blame others.
“He’s a player that plays and practices with intent," Granato said of Asplund.
“It’s easy for me to back our guys as a coach, because they look in the mirror, they take responsibility for their positions and they stand up and look within themselves for answers. They don’t blame anybody else, and 'Aspy' epitomizes that. I’m glad he shared those comments with us, because that’s the character people we want here.”
Craig Anderson will be in goal on Tuesday, as the Sabres host the Los Angeles Kings. Anderson has faced 122 shots in his last three starts. Overall this season, he’s 5-4-1 with a 2.97 goals-against average and a .912 save percentage.
The Sabres had been getting some good results until they ran into the Pittsburgh Penguins over the weekend. Even with those two losses, Buffalo is 5-3-2 in their last 10 games.
After scoring nine goals in Columbus on Wednesday, the Sabres scored four goals in two games against the Pens.
Jeff Skinner is serving Game 2 of his three-game suspension. Casey Mittelstadt remains on the left wing with Thompson and Alex Tuch.
Los Angeles is 2-1-1 on its current six-game road trip. Kevin Fiala is the Kings' leading scorer with nine goals and 23 assists for 32 points. Gabriel Vilardi is their leading goal scorer with 13.
Jonathan Quick has played in seven of the Kings' last nine games. This season, he’s 8-8-3 overall with a 3.55 goals-against average and an .882 save percentage.
Join Schopp and the Bulldog at 6 p.m. EST for pregame coverage on WGR when you’ll hear from Granato, Thompson and Skinner.
