The Ex-Sabre Files – Pacific Division Update

The Buffalo Sabres have a number of former players spread out over the NHL. Some of them are doing quite well, while others are struggling.

Here is an update on former Sabres playing for teams in the Pacific Division:

Jack Eichel(Vegas) – Leaving Buffalo for Las Vegas appears to have been the best thing for the former second-overall pick. Eichel won a Cup, has stayed remarkably healthy since having neck surgery, and this season he is 8th in the NHL in scoring with 54 points.

Victor Olofsson(Vegas) – Eichel’s old linemate signed with the Golden Knights on a one-year deal. Olofsson missed six weeks with an ankle injury, but the 29-year-old has nine goals in 22 games.

Jeff Skinner(Edmonton) – After being bought out by the Sabres, the 32-year-old winger was signed to a one-year, $3 million contract by the Oilers, but Skinner’s first half is proof that Buffalo made the right decision, as he has only seven goals in 40 games and has played at time on Edmonton’s fourth line.

Evander Kane(Edmonton) – Kane has missed the entire season recovering from abdominal surgery, but it was announced that he will miss four to eight weeks after undergoing knee surgery, and which will interrupt the 33-year-old’s rehab of the abdominal injury. This likely means that the former Sabre will not return until the playoffs.

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This has happened, like not just once or twice, this has happened like six or seven times this year where they get up to nothing and they need that third goal to feel safe. Sometimes even the third goal or the fourth goal because they blew a 4-0 lead. They were pressing Seattle, Seattle was on the ropes, Joey DeCord made some good saves, but they started making careless plays in the second period. Seattle gets a goal like with about four or five minutes left to go in the second period and then all of a sudden you just felt, you just felt the pressure. And then Seattle ties up the game late in the second period and everybody knows, here we go. Like as soon as the tying goal happened, I said, here we go, because we've seen it so many times before. They had a power play at the beginning of the third period, nothing, and then Seattle scores three goals in the span of, two goals in 38 seconds. One was put off one of the Sabres, it was a fluky goal that went in off the defenseman. But then Kako scores two goals and immediately the fire Kevin Adams chance happened. Terry Pagula was in the building because the Bills are playing today against Denver. So it's like, you know, it just keeps happening.