When the latest fast-paced, physical, spirited practice ended Sunday afternoon in KeyBank Center, Alex Tuch was encouraged by his Buffalo Sabres teammates to lead the stretch at center ice.
Tuch had yet to receive the go-ahead from coach Don Granato, but all involved knew what became clear during practice. Tuch, a Syracuse-area native, is expected to be in the lineup Monday night in Buffalo against the Columbus Blue Jackets, fulfilling the 25-year-old winger’s dream of wearing the Sabres crest in an NHL game.
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“He’s ready to go,” beamed Granato, who delivered the news to Tuch shortly after practice. “He’s as excited as anybody I’ve seen to play a game, because it’s here, because he’s putting that jersey on.”
Tuch didn’t need a calendar to know exactly how long it’s been since he underwent shoulder surgery: two days short of five months. He hasn’t played in a game since June 24, when his former team, the Las Vegas Golden Knights, was eliminated in Game 6 of a playoff semifinal series against the Montreal Canadiens.
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Finally recovered and cleared to skate in the Sabres’ top six in front of family and friends, Tuch still can’t be sure when his debut will occur. The Blue Jackets canceled practice Sunday in response to three players entering Covid-19 protocol. They still plan to hold a morning skate Monday in Columbus. They’ll fly to Buffalo for the game if cleared to do so, but their arrival isn’t certain. The NHL has shut down six teams through Dec. 26 in response to a growing number of unavailable players and coaches.
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“We are preparing for the game like it’s going to happen until we would be told different,” Granato said. “And the guys are really used to that. We did talk this morning, and guys talked, so we know it’s in the league, it’s around us, it’s in the world. But we also know we have to be prepared if the game’s on the schedule. ... As I’ve said even last year, there’s is a strong faith in the people around us that make decisions that they know what they’re doing, and whatever decisions are going forward, we just adapt and acclimate to it.”
As of Sunday morning, more than 100 players and five head coaches across the NHL were in Covid-19 protocol, causing the league to postpone all games this week involving Boston, Colorado, Calgary, Detroit, Florida and Nashville. The Sabres were scheduled to host the Avalanche on Wednesday night – the final home game before the brief holiday break – and their other scheduled game this week is Thursday in Columbus. Enhanced protocols were implemented Saturday by the NHL, including the adoption of daily testing and stricter guidelines impacting players’ social interactions at and away from the rink.
The Sabres don't have anyone in Covid-19 protocol and two players who missed time recently with non-Covid-19 illnesses, winger Anders Bjork and defenseman Will Butcher, returned to practice Sunday. Goalie Dustin Tokarski was placed in Covid-19 protocol on Dec. 1, but he’s cleared all necessary hurdles and is back skating on his own.
The only significant roster question facing the Sabres is the availability of center Tage Thompson, who was held out of practice as a precaution because he’s experiencing soreness. Thompson, the team’s leading goal scorer, was evaluated by doctors Sunday and had not been ruled out for the game Monday.
If Thompson is cleared to play, he’s expected to center Victor Olofsson and Rasmus Asplund on the top line. The spotlight will be on Tuch, who skated with Dylan Cozens and Brett Murray during practice.
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Tuch is a 6-foot-4 power forward who was acquired along with prospect Peyton Krebs and a first-round draft choice in the blockbuster November trade that sent former captain Jack Eichel to Vegas. Tuch has 66 games of playoff experience, including 20 during the Golden Knights’ run to the Stanley Cup Final in 2018. A first-round draft choice of Minnesota in 2014, Tuch has totaled 15 or more goals in three of the past four seasons, including 18 with 33 points in 55 games in 2020-21.
Tuch immediately bolsters the Sabres’ depth at forward, which took a significant hit with center Casey Mittelstadt out long-term after undergoing surgery for an undisclosed upper-body injury. Tuch averaged a career-high 16:50 of ice time last season for a top team in the NHL and should immediately help a Buffalo power play that’s in a 3-for-25 slump.
“It’s been a long road,” Tuch said. “Coming to a new team, trying to mesh with your teammates but you’re not able to go in and battle, has been difficult. At the same time, I think it’s made it really easy on me coming into a new city. They’ve been very welcoming. I’ve had some ups and downs, like any other rehab process, but I like where I’m at right now and I’m excited to get going here.”
The Sabres earned five of a possible six points during their three-game road trip to Winnipeg, Minnesota and Pittsburgh, capped by an overtime loss to the Penguins in which Buffalo overcame a two-goal deficit in regulation. Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen and Malcolm Subban have stabilized the club’s goaltending, and the Sabres are playing solid team defense in Granato’s first full season as coach.
There will be a caravan of Tuch’s family and friends traveling to Buffalo when he plays his first game in KeyBank Center. He had more than 400 in attendance during his first trip to the city with the Golden Knights in 2018. It’s a day Tuch has been clamoring for since he was a kid watching the heroics of Chris Drury, Daniel Briere and Ryan Miller.
“He grew up watching the Sabres and he has that passion for the organization and for the community, which is exactly what our guys have built,” Granato said. “When I think of guys – Mittelstadt, Thompson, (Rasmus) Dahlin – they want to be a Buffalo Sabre. They want to make this community proud of being Sabres fans. Tuch jumped right in on that. I mean, he is that. He was the fan, he was the kid in the stands watching Sabre hockey, aspiring to play for the Sabres.
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Injury updates
Winger Drake Caggiula rejoined the Sabres for practice Sunday for the first time since he last appeared in a game Nov. 22. Caggiula was listed as “week to week” on the team’s most recent injury report with an upper-body injury and has yet to be cleared for contact.
Goalie Craig Anderson made a surprising appearance in a yellow noncontact jersey, stepping on to the ice to face shots from Caggiula at the conclusion of practice. Anderson, 40, has been out with an upper-body injury since Nov. 2, and he wanted to test out his progress after previously encountering setbacks in his recovery.
“Craig was just trying it today, so we’ll see how he felt and see what he feels like as far as a progression from now,” Granato said.
