@boosbuzzsabres
An injury to left winger Conor Sheary may end up affecting the opening night roster as will play from rookies up-front like Alexander Nylander, Tage Thompson and Rasmus Asplund. The roster built here thus far has a couple of rookies down the middle flanked by seasoned veterans and if that were to occur, the Sabres would have to make a difficult choices on players they'd need to expose to waivers after filling out the roster. Should Sheary miss the opener on October 4, that would open up a spot as would the probability of a waiver-exempt Asplund being sent to Rochester, which opens up another spot.
However, since the roster here has been built as such, we're going to continue to build it and lay out the fourth line.
C, Zemgus Girgensons
24 yrs. old
6'2" 211 lbs.
2012, 14th-overall (Trade-up with Calgary)
Career stats: 348 games | 44 goals | 57 assists | 101 points | -41
It's the type of move that many in Sabreland will hate simply because Girgensons has gone from a hard-working, fan-favorite who looked promising in a top-nine role to the guy who's often seen falling on the ice and missing what few opportunities he and his linemates generate. Add in that he was the guy who got tangled up with (and injured) Jack Eichel the day before the 2016-17 opener, is the longest continuously-tenured Sabres player and has known more losing than any other player and you can understand why many want to move on from him.
Girgensons started as an 18 yr. old in the AHL, hit the Sabres the following year and was with Buffalo for both tank years. As the Sabres added talent, he dropped down the depth chart and was found mostly in the bottom-six the past three seasons. Yet during those three years both coaches--Dan Bylsma and, now, Phil Housley--moved him around from line to line, position to position. What we've learned from it all is that Girgensons right now is best suited in a fourth line energy role with the way this edition of the Sabres is constructed and that he has a good chance of succeeding in that role while also being a part of Buffalo's penalty kill.
After being benched for two games last season, Girgensons came back and earned a promotion to the top-six, according to Housley, with the coach saying, "He was just tenacious on the forecheck, really physical, demanding the puck, making the right decisions in the neutral zone and just brought a really good energy to our team,” This preseason has been a continuation of that and there's no reason to believe that he won't continue that in a fourth-line role.
Of note: Since 2013-14, the Sabres have had 16 players score shorthanded goals and only six have scored multiple. Girgensons leads them with six shorties.
LW, Scott Wilson
26 yrs. old
5'11" 186 lbs
2011 seventh round (207th overall,) PIT
Acquired in a trade with the Detroit Red Wings, December 4, 2017
Career stats: 172 games | 19 goals | 27 assists | 46 points | -20
The Sabres were really struggling last season and despite a 6-15-4 record through the first two months, GM Jason Botterill did nothing. After watching his team look like Bantams against the Pittsburgh Penguins in back-to-back games to start December, Botterill pulled the trigger on a trade for Wilson sending a fifth round pick to the Wings for a player he knew well. Buffalo went 2-0-2 immediately after the trade.
Botterill had been with Pittsburgh when they selected Wilson in 2011 out of the Junior-A Georgetown Raiders, and watched him turn into a point/game player at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton in 2015-16, his second AHL season. Wilson got the call to Pittsburgh that year and responded with five goals and an assist in 24 games. He played three games for the Pens in the playoffs and got his name on the Stanley Cup. The following year he played in 78 regular season games for the Pens and 20 in the playoffs and had his name etched on the Cup again.
Botterill said of Wilson when acquiring him, "Scott is a hard-working, young player that will be a great fit for our club. As a two-time Stanley Cup Champion, his experience will be an asset both on and off the ice."
Wilson signed a two-year contract extension with the Sabres and is yet another player that can move up and down the lineup. He's in Buffalo for a reason and one would have to believe he'll be in the starting lineup come October 4.
Vladimir Sobotka
31 yrs. old
5'11" 189 lbs.
2005 fifth round (106th overall,) BOS
Acquired from the St. Louis Blues, July 1, 2018
Career stats: 463 games | 47 goals | 108 assists | 155 points | -4
It's been a long journey for the 31 yr. old Sobotka, one that includes now three NHL teams and professional contracts that had him play on two different continents in the middle of his career as he bolted to the KHL after becoming a restricted free agent in 2014.
Sobotka was drafted as an excellent skating, high-energy player that could play sound defense, was proficient on the dot and could get physical. He could also score a bit and he was as advertised his first few seasons in St. Louis. When he went to the KHL, he played more of a scorer's role and upon returning to the Blues, he felt that's how he'd fit in. His versatility had him playing up and down the lineup last season and he responded with a career-high 11 goals.
After a workout this summer Sobotka, who can play all forward spots, stopped and
talked briefly with Viktor Maudr about the trade to Buffalo and where he expects to play. He told Maudr, "I think I don't care. I'm more involved in the game when I play center. I'm on faceoffs and also play more with the puck. On the other hand, when I play wing, I have more time and space with the puck. I don't prefer one more than the other." The discussion continued about where he'd play in the lineup and he responded, "I've come back from the KHL to confirm that I'm a guy for the second or third line. I definitely won't play on the fourth line."
Sobotka has shown well in the preseason playing in all situations, scoring a goal and adding an assist in his first outing against Pittsburgh then playing over 21 minutes at Toronto, which was tops amongst forwards that game. Buffalo could easily switch around Jason Pominville and Sobotka on the right side of the bottom-six and dependent upon how the rest of the preseason plays out (with injuries and such,) Sobotka could end up playing center. He said in the Maudr interview that he prefers the right side, but the bigger question might be how he envisions himself within this lineup and if he can accept a role that might not be to his liking.
All-in-all, no matter how the bottom-six shakes out, the three players mentioned here give the Sabres plenty of versatility at forward as they can play center or wing and/or can move up and down the lineup.
Building the 2018-19 Buffalo Sabres roster:
LW, Conor Sheary /
C, Jack Eichel /
RW, Sam Reinhart
LW, Jeff Skinner /
C, Casey Mittelstadt /
RW, Kyle Okposo
LW, Patrik Berglund /
C, Rasmus Asplund /
RW, Jason Pominville
LW, Scott Wilson / C, Zemgus Girgensons / RW, Vladimir Sobotka
LHD, Marco Scandella /
RHD, Rasmus Ristolainen
LHD, Rasmus Dahlin /
RHD, Zach Bogosian
LHD, Jake McCabe /
RHD, Casey Nelson
G, Carter Hutton
G, Linus Ullmark
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