Buffalo, N.Y. (WGR 550) – The Buffalo Sabres returned to practice on Tuesday after having seven days off for the NHL All-Star break.
Rasmus Dahlin was back in Buffalo after participating in All-Star Weekend in Las Vegas.
Others returning to practice were goalie Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen and forward Vinnie Hinostroza for a short time. The winger didn’t feel right and left midway through. Meanwhile, Luukkonen said back on Jan. 11, his skate blade got wedged against the post again and he hurt his knee. The good news it felt good at practice on Tuesday.
Sabres head coach Don Granato was hoping to get Casey Mittelstadt and Zemgus Girgensons back on Tuesday, but didn’t.
“Mittelstadt has gone through rehab skates, and he’ll rejoin us for practice [on Wednesday in a non-contact way]," Granato said following Tuesday's session.
“As far as what he was dealing with, it was not a re-injury of what happened. It was not directly related to the surgery, the surgery’s fine. But it was muscles and fluid around it, because of the intensity.”
Granato didn’t know what that means for when he’ll play again. They want to be sure that he's ready this time.
Girgensons is now week-to-week with his lower-body injury. This injury just keeps getting longer and longer for the veteran forward.
“He will not join us this week in practice, but I would expect probably by the end of the week or early next week we’ll probably have a date on him,” Granato said.
Drake Caggiula is still month-to-month, and Granato says he’s undergoing more opinions, because his body has not responded to the rehab.
Dahlin is 10 years younger than Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Victor Hedman. The Swedish blue liner is quite a bit older than Dahlin, and the kid enjoyed being in the locker room with him and on the bench.
“It was great," Dahlin said following Tuesday's practice. "It was awesome just to be able to talk to him and hang out with him. I just asked him a couple of questions, so it was a lot of fun.”
Granato is pretty sure what this experience is going to do for him.
"I’ve got to think it’s going to help him immensely," he said. "His self image has got to go to another level when you’re hanging around with that company, and you realize that you belong.
For the past month or so, Dahlin and Henri Jokiharju have played much better together. As far as when Granato felt Dahlin belongs, he definitely believes so.
“Probably when he elevated his competitive grit with physicality and determination on the defensive side of the game, where he just doesn’t like to lose, it bothers him,” Granato explained.
Being an All-Star is nice and all, but it doesn’t mean much if your play doesn’t live up to it. Dahlin is very well of that.
“Being able to talk to those guys and hang out with them makes you confident for sure, but it’s about showing up in the games," Dahlin said. "It is a push for sure, but I have to show it too.”
Before the break, Dahlin tested positive for COVID-19 and missed the game in Arizona against the Coyotes. The team quarantined him and left him in Glendale, but they came to find out that there was a lab mistake and Dahlin was negative.
With a game in Denver that following night, Dahlin had to move fast.
“That day was not fun, to be honest," he said. "It’s a part of it, so I was just happy I wasn’t positive. But in the middle of the day, we got the call and were told to fly to Colorado. I missed half of the warm-up, so it was a new experience, but I learned a lot.”
Dahlin said it is a big deal to miss part of warm-up. He said his first shift was off and it was different.
The Sabres next play on Thursday at home against the Columbus Blue Jackets. Columbus is on the road to play the Washington Capitals on Tuesday.
