BUFFALO, N.Y. — The Buffalo Sabres have placed center Tage Thompson on injured reserve and is now considered week to week after sustaining an upper-body injury against the Boston Bruins on Tuesday night.
There were two separate occasions during the game where Thompson was seen leaving the ice. However, in the second period, after attempting to block a shot, he did not return to game action.
Thompson entered the game tied for second on the team with both six goals and 12 points. He has topped 37 goals in each of the past two seasons, and he is coming off a year in which he posted career-best numbers with 47 goals and 94 points.
When Sabres head coach Don Granato was asked what the team would miss in Thompson, he emphasized that Thompson's skill won't be the only reason why the team will miss his presence in the lineup.
“Obviously, we will miss him because of not only the player but the person," Granato said. "He has a real good perspective on things. He’s an ultra-competitive guy that responds with competition and work ethic to any adversity."
“You cannot have enough of that at the professional level, at the NHL level. The more competitive you get, the better you feel about everything as a coach and players, and he has been a big, big part of that, a big driver in that area, so other guys will have to step up and I think they recognize that.”
The team also announced on Friday night that they have assigned forward Lukas Rousek to the Rochester Americans and have activated both forward Zach Benson and goaltender Eric Comrie from injured reserve.
The Sabres (7-8-1) have lost two straight now and will open a three-game road trip at Winnipeg on Friday night. Puck drop is scheduled for 8 pm.