BUFFALO, N.Y. — The Sabres returned home to Buffalo with an uninspiring 0-2 record after their 11-day stay overseas for the NHL Global Series.
The New Jersey Devils swept their former head coach and his new team in a two-game series in Prague late last week. The Sabres in Prague combining for two goals in two games will now have to turn the page as they look to the rest of their schedule back in the States.
“You move on to the next game," Sabres head coach Lindy Ruff said. "Whether it's a season opener, we know where we're at obviously. I really felt the energy, the enthusiasm was great, the attitude was great today. A little bit worried coming back but I guess you’re kind of looking at, you know, it’s a restart. We're back home, it's a restart and we go from here.”
“Obviously the results aren't great, right," Sabres forward Tage Thompson said. "We wanted to win two and we didn't do that. We know that but there were a lot of good things that we can take away from those games and I think those are things you gotta continue to build on and then obviously there are things you gotta correct. One of the things I thought we were good at was going to the net hard. The first game especially we probably shoulda gotten a few but their goalie made a few big saves but you continue to go to the net like that, we’re going to score a lot as a group.”
In terms of an injury update, Ruff said that forwards Zach Benson and JJ Peterka are both deemed day-to-day. Forward Nicolas Aube-Kubel, who was placed on injured reserve on Monday is expected to make a return within 3-6 weeks.
The team will now look to host the Los Angeles Kings in downtown Buffalo at KeyBank Center on Thursday at 7 p.m.