BUFFALO - The Sabres could be getting a boost on multiple fronts Wednesday against the Philadelphia Flyers, with captain Rasmus Dahlin and winger Jason Zucker both trending toward returns.
Dahlin was back on the ice for practice this morning after missing the last three games with an upper-body injury, and he sounded confident about his status for Wednesday.
“I think I’ll be ready,” Dahlin said this afternoon in KeyBank Center.
The Sabres managed just fine without their top defenseman on the road trip, going 1-0-2. Dahlin hasn’t played since he shot the puck and reached for his lower back as he exited last Monday afternoon’s 5-3 win over the Florida Panthers.
Coach Lindy Ruff said the team wanted to see how Dahlin responded after a couple of days away.
“He had a couple good days while we were gone and then got him back in practice, and see how he handles that today,” Ruff said. “But I thought he looked good.”
Zucker appears to be next in line for a season debut after offseason sports hernia surgery kept him out through the start of the year. Ruff said the winger is likely to be available Wednesday if the next two days go well.
“The plan is if a good day today and a good day tomorrow, he should be ready to go,” Ruff said. “So we know what he can bring. He’s had real good success with different players.”
On Tuesday, Zucker worked on the left side with center Josh Norris and Konsta Helenius.
There was also a setback on the injury front, as Justin Danforth missed practice with what Ruff described as “a little bit of an upper-body (injury).”
“Just did some work with him off ice, and we’ll see how he is,” he said.
Tyson Kozak, meanwhile, was back on the ice after missing the last three games with an upper-body injury, and Ruff came away encouraged by what he saw.
“I thought he skated well in practice,” Ruff said.
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