The Buffalo Sabres are set to head into Toronto still missing some key pieces, and the biggest name among them is Rasmus Dahlin.
According to Matthew Fairburn of The Athletic, Dahlin is not expected to rejoin the team for the matchup with the Maple Leafs. Buffalo is also dealing with another hit up front: Tyson Kozak is out with an upper-body injury he picked up in the Sabres’ recent game against the Florida Panthers, and he has already gone back to Buffalo. Goaltender Alex Lyon, meanwhile, has hit a snag in his recovery from an upper-body injury and will not be back on the ice for a few more days.
Of that group, Dahlin is the one Buffalo would most like to have back. The former first overall pick has posted two goals and four points in six games this season, and he has been logging 23:38 per night. The Sabres took a 3-2 overtime loss to the Montreal Canadiens last night in their first game this season with Dahlin leading the way.
There was at least some good news elsewhere in the East for the Philadelphia Flyers. Rasmus Ristolainen, who has missed the last five games with a hand injury, returned to practice this morning, according to NBC’s Jordan Hall. Even so, Hall later reported that Ristolainen and Cameron York, who is dealing with an upper-body injury, will both miss the Flyers’ game against the Detroit Red Wings tomorrow.
In Ottawa, Ridly Greig left the Senators’ game last night with what TSN’s Bruce Garrioch described as a “strain.” The Senators have not released a definitive update on Greig’s condition. Greig, who began the season suspended, has one assist in five games and is averaging 16:33 of ice time per contest.
In Other News...
Flyers Hit A Franchise Low And The Frustration Keeps Growing
The early-season slide for the Flyers kept getting heavier in Seattle, where they came away with a 3-2 shootout loss that pushed their winless start to a franchise-record eight games. Philadelphia got another solid effort in net from Dan Vladar, who stopped 29 shots, but it was not enough to overcome a Kraken team that found ways to hang around and then finish.
Bobby McMann was central to the outcome for Seattle, with his goal in regulation helping force extra time and his shootout winner sealing it in the fifth round. Philipp Grubauer turned aside 24 shots for the Kraken, and the latest missed opportunity leaves the Flyers still searching for something to turn the mood after a stretch that has already become part of team history. [Read more 🡒]
Flyers Losses Are Raising A Trade Question Fans Wont Ignore
A rough start to the season has put the Flyers in an uncomfortable early spot, and it has already started to change the way the rest of the league looks at them. With Philadelphia struggling out of the gate, general manager Danny Briere is hearing from other teams more often than he probably expected this early, as rival front offices take a closer look at whether the Flyers might be willing to move help for the present in exchange for future value.
For a club trying to build around young talent, the line between available pieces and untouchable ones matters. The Flyers are believed to have a core of prospects and young players they are not eager to discuss, but that only makes the rest of the roster more interesting to the teams calling around. Among the names that naturally come up are veterans on the blue line, the kind of players contenders tend to want when the calendar turns and needs become more obvious. [Read more 🡒]
Flyers Showed Fight Again But One Problem Still Wont Go Away
The Flyers found another way to keep themselves in a game at Xfinity Mobile Arena, but the result still looked all too familiar. Philadelphia fell 3-2 to the Seattle Kraken in a shootout, stretching its losing streak to eight, even after Christian Dvorak and Trevor Zegras pushed the game into the third period with timely goals and Dan Vladar turned aside 29 shots to keep the Flyers within reach.
For stretches, it felt like the kind of response this team has been searching for, with pressure from the Flyers eventually forcing extra drama and another chance to steal points late. Instead, Seattle held firm when it mattered most, with Philipp Grubauer finishing with 24 saves and the Kraken cashing in in the shootout, leaving Philadelphia to sort through another night of effort without the payoff that would have mattered most. [Read more 🡒]