Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen couldn’t leisurely make the drive from Rochester to Buffalo.
Once the 23-year-old goalie received word of his promotion to the NHL, he stopped at Blue Cross Arena to collect his equipment Thursday morning and headed west on the Thruway before lake-effect snow slammed Western New York.
The call to Buffalo was expected, though. Eric Comrie, the Sabres’ starting goalie, exited the game in the second period Wednesday night in Ottawa and, according to General Manager Kevyn Adams, an MRI revealed an issue that will keep him out of the lineup for weeks.
Until Comrie returns, Luukkonen will work in tandem with Craig Anderson. And it’s likely that Luukkonen will be in the crease Saturday night in Toronto's Scotiabank Arena against the Maple Leafs when the Sabres try to snap their seven-game losing streak.
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“Yeah, of course, it's always really exciting,” Luukkonen said. “And it's always the goal to play in the NHL as much as you can.”
This is the opportunity Luukkonen has been working toward since a lower-body injury abruptly ended his stint with the Sabres last January. He toiled away this summer in Finland to physically prepare for the grind of a season. His body-fat percentage was slashed, improving his agility and movements in goal.
Now 11 years into a league-record playoff drought, the Sabres are 7-10. Their top players are performing; their inexperienced ones, particularly at forward, aren’t. Those issues, combined with injuries on defense, have led to a negative-16 goal differential during the skid.
A stronger base should help him avoid the injuries that have delayed his full-time arrival in Buffalo. It was evident during his impressive training camp and nine games with the Rochester Americans this fall that he’s a better goalie now than his short time with the Sabres last season.
“Those young players are in such a huge window of development,” said Sabres coach Don Granato. “And for a goalie, if we bring UPL up here, he's no longer in that development. He's in that everybody expects him to be a number one goalie. And if he has a bad night, there's negative pressure right away. 'What's wrong with him. He's not the guy that's going to be the number one.' So, he would no longer be focused on development. He'd be focused on survival.
“So, for him to accept going back down there and see it as his opportunity to keep developing … that is really key because it has accelerated his development. He is better every time, every day down there. He's made himself better every game. He's fought harder in practices ... with the vision of once he established himself here, he's going to be judged and rated a whole lot differently.”
This isn’t an ideal time for Luukkonen to join the Sabres. They’re allowing too many odd man rushes and breakaways. Their 96 high-danger chances allowed since Nov. 4, when the skid began with a loss in Carolina, were tied for third-most in the NHL during that span entering Friday, according to NaturalStatTrick.com.
They’ve been outscored 33-17, allowing a league-worst 4.71 goals per game.
Luukkonnen hasn’t played behind a strong defensive team in Rochester, either. Injuries, recalls and inexperience have caused the Amerks to play porous defense at times. And, to his admission, Luukkonen didn’t play well in losses to Syracuse and Laval. As a result, his stat line isn’t remarkable. He registered a .898 save percentage, 3.08 goals-against average and a 6-3 record.
Two difficult nights tested Luukkonen. He allowed 11 goals on 58 shots in consecutive games. Through on-ice work with goalie development coach Seamus Kotyk, and a determination to not dwell on past results, Luukkonen delivered three outstanding performances after the brief slump. He stopped 95 of 101 shots for a .940 save percentage. The Amerks have played better defense around Luukkonen, and he’s bailed them out in key situations.
“Yeah, for sure, there was a couple of games I was not too happy about,” said Luukkonen. “But overall, I think I’ve been able to help the team win and that’s the most important thing, and kind of, most of the games be the backbone of the team. So, I feel like it’s been a good start to the season.”
Adams called Luukkonen shortly after the club signed Comrie to a two-year contract in July to explain the logic behind the decision. Adams didn’t want Luukkonen to have to be the solution in goal this season. Not after Luukkonen missed valuable development time because of injuries in recent years, including the Amerks’ playoff run in the spring.
Comrie, 27, was chosen as the bridge goalie to man the crease until a prospect like Luukkonen is ready to take the starting job. If all goes as the Sabres plan, Luukkonen will be ready for a full-time role in Buffalo next season when he can’t go to Rochester without waivers.
Though the injury limited Luukkonen to only nine NHL games last season, he performed well when asked to play behind an injury-depleted, young Sabres team. A second-round draft pick in 2017, Luukkonen recorded a .917 save percentage, which is above league average, and a 2.74 goals-against average in nine games.
He has the talent and pedigree, including a gold medal at the IIHF World Junior Championship, of a marquee goaltending prospect. Now, he wants to prove that all his summer work has prepared him to continue that success in the NHL.
“I talk a lot about confidence, and that, for sure, helps,” Luukkonen said of his time in the NHL last season. “I kind of get that feeling from those games that I’ve been able to do it before, play well at this level. It’s time to show it again. But in the end, last year doesn’t matter if you don’t play well this year. So, I think it’s important to show up well again.”
Injury updates
Sabres wingers Kyle Okposo and Zemgus Girgensons won’t play Saturday night in Toronto because of injury, and both will be evaluated again by team doctors Monday. However, rookie winger Jack Quinn is expected to play against the Maple Leafs after missing the past two games with an undisclosed injury. Quinn, 21, skated on a line with Dylan Cozens and JJ Peterka at practice Friday.
Defenseman Mattias Samuelsson (lower body) hasn’t been ruled out for the game in Toronto but is more likely to return sometime next week, Adams told reporters. Samuelsson participated in his second full-contact team skate and was paired with Henri Jokiharju during drills.
“Samuelsson, we are not in a position to rush,” said Granato. “I think he’s got to get his reps and feel good about and confident where he’s at. When that’s the case, he’ll go in.”
Sabres’ lines/pairs at practice:Skinner-Thompson-TuchQuinn-Cozens-PeterkaKrebs-Mittelstadt-OlofssonAsplund-Sheahan-HinostrozaBjork rotated in.Dahlin-PowerSamuelsson-JokiharjuBryson-LyubushkinPilut-Fitzgerald
— Lance Lysowski (@LLysowski) November 18, 2022
Contingency plans
The Sabres were exploring various practice and travel scenarios Friday morning when Erie County had a travel ban in place because of lake-effect snow. They considered practicing at Niagara University and busing from there to Toronto.
Practice was moved up to 10 a.m., only to be moved back to 11:45 a.m. Defenseman Ilya Lyubushkin and assistant coach Marty Wilford were snowed into their homes in the Southtowns, though Lyubushkin managed to hitch a ride from his neighbor to join the team for their workout in KeyBank Center.
In the end, the Sabres managed to leave town with every player and Wilford is expected to meet them in Toronto.
“It felt like we were back in Covid, it did with just so many unknowns,” said Granato.
