The Buffalo Sabres opened their abbreviated preseason schedule with mostly an American Hockey League lineup in Pittsburgh on Monday, dropping a 4-1 decision to the Penguins at PPG Paints Arena. Jake Richard scored for the Sabres, who split the goaltending duties between veteran Alex Lyon and Colten Ellis.
Other than the goalies, the only players that potentially could make Sabres roster when they cut down to 23 next week were forwards Jiri Kulich and Justin Danforth, possibly veteran Conor Sheary (who lost a tooth courtesy of an elbow from Justin Brazeau) and defenseman Zach Metsa. The game was the first contest for Kulich since a blood clot issue ended his season last November, while Danforth suffered a broken knee cap in mid-October.
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Kulich played nearly 20 minutes in the loss and other than Ellis, is the only player who played on Monday who will be in the lineup against the Columbus Blue Jackets. Veteran players are limited to just two preseason games, but the 22-year-old does not qualify for that restriction, and head coach Lindy Ruff indicated that his plan is to give the young Czech forward as much playing time as possible.
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“The rules have changed now. Actually, some of our guys want to play three, but they can’t.” Ruff said. “In all likelihood, I’m going to play (Kuilch) all four games. I mean, that’ll be a test for sure, but I think a year off of hockey, really highly competitive hockey, puts them in a situation to start to get comfortable on the ice.”
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In ex-Sabres news, Bowen Byram scored a hat trick in his debut for the Chicago Blackhawks in a 4-3 overtime victory over the Minnesota Wild. The news was not positive for former Sabre Jeff Skinner. After a strong start for HC Biel in the Swiss League (3 goals in his first two games), the 34-year-old suffered a muscle injury against the SCL Tigers. His status is unknown, but he will miss at least one game while the injury is being evaluated.
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