BUFFALO, N.Y. — I wish you all could’ve seen the smiles down at the arena on Monday and Tuesday.
First, the team was so happy to be back together. Their last practice had been Dec. 19 and their last game was Dec. 17.
The Sabres had no new positive COVID-19 tests so they were able to practice on those two days. Of course, the six that are in NHL COVID-19 protocols were not there. They are Zemgus Girgensons, Vinnie Hinostroza, Jeff Skinner, Dylan Cozens, Mark Jankowski and head coach Don Granato. All but Girgensons were asymptomatic and Girgensons talked to general manager Kevyn Adams on Christmas Eve and told him he feels great and no longer has symptoms.
All can test out with two consecutive negative PCR lab-based tests which means if they had tested out, they would’ve been available for Wednesday’s game against the New Jersey Devils, but assistant coach Matt Ellis said on Tuesday their list is their last and nobody will have tested out in time for Wednesday’s game.
With all those players out, Arttu Ruotsalainen, J.J. Peterka and Peyton Krebs were called up. If you could’ve seen the smiles on Peterka who will play his first NHL game and Krebs, who will play his 14th NHL game and first with the Sabres, it was exciting. The other player in the Jack Eichel trade, Syracuse’s own Alex Tuch is also excited as he’s ready to come back from shoulder surgery and make his Sabres debut too.
The excitement has leaked over to the fans. Ever since Twitter came into being no matter who is the coach, every single time a tweet out the lines, many think they know better and want the coach fired. Tuesday, when I tweeted out that Tage Thompson would center Peterka and Tuch, all but one person couldn’t wait to see it happen. Peterka latched onto Thompson the whole practice while Tuch did the same thing with Kyle Okposo who is his new linemate.
Amerks winger Jack Quinn is fighting mono. Adams said they got him home for a while to recover, but he’s back in Rochester now. Adams said he lost a fair bit of weight, but he’s doing well, just not ready for hockey yet. Had he been healthy, he definitely would’ve been one of the three called up.
Dustin Tokarski has had some trouble coming back from COVID-19 so he isn’t an option in goal which means Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen remains in the position that he has earned. Speaking of earning a spot, Casey Fitzgerald played his first NHL game in Pittsburgh and was superb. Colin Miller aggravated an old injury in practice on Tuesday, so Fitzgerald could be up on Wednesday to play against the team that employs his dad as the general manager.
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The question I have is what happens if Krebs and Peterka do what Luukkonen has done and play so well, that they’ve earned a spot and deserve to stay? Once all the players are back they all can’t be here so will Adams take the easy way out and send the kids back down or would he waive guys like Jankowski and maybe Cody Eakin so they could stay?
Buffalo has played really well in its last five games and much of it has been because they’ve gotten the big save at the big time from Luukkonen and Malcolm Subban. Fans seem to be really excited about this Devils game because Tuch, Krebs, and Peterka are making their debuts. If the Sabres are going to be good in the future, these guys are the future. Krebs said it best, “It’s exciting, you want to create those relationships that you hope that we’re here, all of us until we’re 30 or 35-years-old and we’re all kind of around the same age, so our families can grow and be together which can be really cool and we’re cheering for each other for sure.
That my friend is exactly the type of player Adams is looking for. It’s very obvious Krebs is not pining to be back with the Vegas Golden Knights and is looking forward to being a key part of the Sabres for years to come.