Buffalo’s injury picture got a little murkier Wednesday, and Lindy Ruff didn’t have much in the way of good news.
The Sabres coach said there is still “no real update” on Rasmus Dahlin, who was hurt in Monday’s win over the Florida Panthers and sat out Tuesday’s shootout loss to the Montreal Canadiens. Ruff called the defenseman “doubtful” for Thursday’s road matchup with the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Ruff also said goalie Alex Lyon, who is dealing with an upper-body injury, had a slight setback and will stay off the ice “for a few days.” On top of that, forward Tyson Kozak was sent back to Buffalo for further evaluation after suffering an upper-body injury.
Those are only the latest issues for a Sabres team already working through a crowded injury list. Conor Timmins and Matt Grzelcyk are both out with lower-body injuries, while Jason Zucker is sidelined after hernia surgery.
All of it has forced Ruff to keep reshuffling his lineup through Buffalo’s 3-3-1 start. Even with the absences, the Sabres found a way to battle back Tuesday night, erasing a 3-1 deficit with two third-period goals to grab a point in the rematch from the second round of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
And in the middle of that chaos, Olen Zellweger gave Buffalo a real lift.
After receiving more responsibility with Dahlin unavailable, Zellweger logged nearly 26 minutes and delivered two goals, four shots, a hit and a blocked shot in the shootout loss. He’s now starting to show the skating and puck-moving ability that stood out before he missed the start of the season in concussion protocol.
The goals themselves won’t make a season-ending reel, but they fit what Ruff wants from him: get the puck to the net, create some room in the offensive zone and stop the Sabres from over-passing. That has been a recurring issue early on, and Zellweger helped cut through it.
His performance earned him Buffalo Player of the Game honors in the club’s player grades from the Montreal matchup.
The rest of the list reflected a night with some strong individual efforts and plenty of uneven ones. Zach Benson and Mattias Samuelsson both graded well, and Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen drew a solid mark after stopping 48 of 52 shots over the past two days. He wasn’t as sharp in the shootout, though, where Montreal went three-for-three.
Even if the point totals haven’t jumped off the page, Benson and Noah Ostlund continued to do the little things that have kept Buffalo in games. That sort of detail work has mattered during a stretch where the Sabres keep having to patch together the roster on the fly.
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Sabres Open Road Trip With A Dahlin Problem Ruff Must Solve
Buffalos road trip opens with a lineup wrinkle that lands squarely on the blue line. Rasmus Dahlin is day-to-day, and the Sabres are heading out without their top defenseman as the trip begins, leaving Lindy Ruff with an early personnel decision to sort through before the games start to stack up.
For a team already trying to settle into the rhythm of life away from home, Dahlins absence changes the look and feel of the defense group right away. Ruff has to manage the opening leg without one of his most important players traveling with the team, and the next update on Dahlin will shape how Buffalo handles the rest of the trip. [Read more 🡒]
Sabres Nearly Stole A Point Despite A Growing Problem
Even with Rasmus Dahlin out injured and Matt Grzelcyk on injured reserve, the Sabres found a way to push Montreal all the way to a shootout. Olen Zellweger gave Buffalo a jolt with two goals, Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen turned aside 35 shots, and a game that could have slipped away turned into a night where the Sabres were close enough to steal a point.
The bigger concern, though, is how often Buffalo is having to patch together its blue line just to stay afloat. The Canadiens took control in the second period before the Sabres battled back to force overtime, but the defensive absences have become hard to ignore, especially with another roster move needed to cover the gap and keep the group functional. [Read more 🡒]
Devon Levi's Fast Start Is Making Buffalo's Goalie Problem Worse
Devon Levis move out of Buffalo already looks like the kind of change of scenery that can reset a young goalies career. After struggling with the Sabres, the former Buffalo prospect has opened his run with Edmonton on a strong note, giving the Oilers some early stability while reminding everyone why his long-term upside was so intriguing in the first place.
For the Sabres, it only sharpens the pressure on a position that has lingered as a problem. Buffalo has kept searching for answers in net, and the ongoing trade chatter around Connor Hellebuyck underscores how unsettled the situation still feels as the team tries to find a more reliable solution. [Read more 🡒]