Buffalo, N.Y. (WGR 550) – Buffalo Sabres general manager Kevyn Adams said Saturday that goalie Eric Comrie had a MRI for a lower-body injury that revealed he will be out for a few weeks.
Adams is hoping rookie goalie Devon Levi will be back at practice by Tuesday.
Dustin Tokarski has been injured in Rochester, which means Devin Cooley has played a lot. In four games, he’s 3-0-1 with a 3.46 goals-against average and a .903 save percentage.
Cooley will be the backup on Sunday for Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, as the 26-year-old is excited to be up for his first NHL experience.
"It’s my first official time being called up that isn’t the taxi squad (used during COVID-19), and it’s a special feeling," said Cooley on Saturday.
Cooley said he feels "average" about his season with the Amerks so far, but he thinks he can be better.
The undrafted college free agent signee played three seasons at the University of Denver before inking his entry-level contract with the Nashville Predators. From there, he played with the Florida Everblades of the ECHL, as well as the Chicago Wolves and Milwaukee Admirals. In 56 AHL games, Cooley is 29-18-5 with a 3.02 goals-against average and a .903 save percentage.
Zach Benson will be back in the lineup for Sunday’s game against the Colorado Avalanche. He’ll be on the right wing with Tage Thompson and Jordan Greenway.
That will put Dylan Cozens back at center with Alex Tuch and Victor Olofsson. JJ Peterka gets to play right wing with Casey Mittelstadt and Jeff Skinner, while Peyton Krebs is still centering Kyle Okposo and Zemgus Girgensons.
Jacob Bryson will play with Erik Johnson for his first game action of the season. He'll enter the lineup with Connor Clifton serving the first game of a two-game suspension.
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It's the first time Johnson will play against his old Colorado Avalanche teammates on Sunday. Johnson won a Stanley Cup there, and played 717 regular season games in Denver, as well as 55 playoff games. He says he’ll be fine going up against his friends.
"I don’t think it’ll be too bad here," said Johnson on Saturday. "I think going back to Denver will be a hard, but cool experience, and it’s just one of those things you go through. I don’t think it’ll be too big of a deal at all.
"I’m just looking forward to seeing all those guys again, and it’s always good to see those guys."
Buffalo walked into Denver last season and beat the Avalanche behind Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen making 39 saves on 41 shots. Sabres head coach Don Granato says there’s only one way to play the Avalanche.
“We’re a much more capable team when we’re dialed into details," said Granato on Saturday. "You know when you go into Colorado, you’d better pay attention to details, and we did that very well. Most of the time when we get ourselves into trouble, we think we can outskill, and we don’t respect and pay attention to details. "Those will always bite you, and our challenge today is going to be in direct correlation to that. You can sense my frustration in that, because that is an initiative that we will keep pounding at because it’s the net level. You have to have respect for the game itself."
Join Brian Koziol for pregame coverage on Sunday starting at 12 p.m. ET when you’ll hear from Granato, Clifton, Johnson and Cooley.
