BUFFALO, N.Y. ā The Buffalo Sabres introduced a new member of their team on Monday.
Nikki, a Golden Retriever, is part WNY Heroes' Pawsitive for Heroes program that will train her to be a service dog for a local veteran.
Nikki is eight-months-old and was donated to WNY Heroes by the Warden Family. She is named after Nicholas Warden, a US Army Veteran from Depew who was killed in Syria in 2017.
Where will you be able to see Nikki? She'll be at some of the Sabres' home games and other team events to meet fans.
Once Nikki is trained, she will be paired with a veteran and the two will train together to build a bond.
Nikki is not the first Sabres dog.
Rick, the team's first dog, spent last season with the team training and is working as a service dog for U.S. Coast Guard veteran Chris Kankiewicz.
You can follow Nikki's progress on the Sabres' social media pages.