The Buffalo Sabres might have lost yet another player Tuesday in their 5-0 loss to the Ottawa Senators in Canadian Tire Centre. This time, it wasn't for an injury. But it could leave them in quite a pickle for their upcoming Western Conference road trip.
Goaltender Aaron Dell is facing a suspension after leveling Ottawa winger Drake Batherson with an ultra-dicey hit with 1:02 left in the first period. The NHL's Department of Player Safety tweeted Wednesday morning that Dell will have a hearing for supplemental discipline on the play.
The hit came 10 seconds after former Sabres forward Tyler Ennis scored his second goal of the period to give Ottawa a 3-0 lead. Dell stepped out of his crease to drop Batherson with his shoulder as the Ottawa forward was skating by the net, sending him into the end boards feet first. Batherson jammed his left skate into the wall, and limped off the ice.
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"I was just trying to buy some time for my defenseman and step into his lane," Dell said. "I hope he's all right. I wasn't trying to hurt anybody."
But that's exactly what happened. Ottawa coach D.J. Smith announced that Batherson is out long-term with an ankle injury and will thus not go to next week's All-Star Game in Las Vegas.
"It's a bad play by (Dell) and he's done it before," said Smith. "It's a bad play and it's unfortunate. A young kid isn't going to be able to go to an all-star game and it's ridiculous."
Dell hit Vegas' Mark Stone in similar fashion in 2019 while playing for San Jose and became a viral sensation for coming out of the net and delivering a big hit on Nashville's Eeli Tolvanen during the Sabres' win over the Predators on Jan. 13. That hit drew an interference penalty. This one did not.
The Sabres goalie, who struggled in his first stint with the NHL club this season, exceled in his return from Rochester – and hit the highlight reel.
Asked about a suspension, Dell said simply, "I'm not sure. I haven't actually seen the clip yet so I don't even know."
"You don't want to see anybody get hurt," said Sabres coach Don Granato, who said he had not seen a replay. "You certainly don't want that to happen within a game. The league knows how to handle situations. They're watching this stuff all the time.'
Goalie Aaron Dell injures Drake Batherson pic.twitter.com/VxL6uxv7Y8
— Brady Trettenero (@BradyTrett) January 26, 2022
"I thought that play on Batherson was pretty dirty," Ennis, who finished off his second career hat trick with 29 seconds left in the game, said in an interview with TSN during the first intermission. "... the goalie looked like he kind of threw his shoulder into Drake. Pretty unnecessary."
Dell made 42 saves in the game as Ottawa outshot the Sabres 47-32. If he gets sat down by the league, it would leave Michael Houser as the Sabres' only healthy goaltender.Â
Veteran Craig Anderson is scheduled to go on the road trip, which opens Saturday in Arizona and continues Sunday in Colorado, but has not played since suffering a neck injury Nov. 2 in San Jose. Granato said earlier in the day that Anderson is taking an "aggressive approach" to push to play before the All-Star break.
"He's pushing. He wants to see if he can do it," Granato said after the game. "He's going to ramp it up over the next couple days to see where he feels. We're not sure how he's going to feel."
If Dell is suspended and Anderson is unable to go, the Sabres likely would have to sign Rochester goalie Mat Robson to an NHL contract. Robson started the season by playing 17 games at Cincinnati of the ECHL and is 4-1-2, 4.25/.868 with the Amerks.
Here's some other observations on the Sabres' day:
1. Quick strikes
The Senators took charge with three goals in a 2:55 span late in the first period. Ennis had just one goal in 30 games this season, and it came in the season opener Oct. 14 against Toronto, but he scored twice in the outburst Tuesday. Both were assisted by Adam Gaudette.
Before he was injured, Batherson scored his team-high 13th goal of the season at 17:11 of the first. Alex Formenton had a tap-in on a 2-on-1 with 8:45 left in the second for the fourth Ottawa goal.
The two prime prospects of the Sabres, along with Eric Staal, were named to the team as part of a roster that includes several minor leaguers and NHL prospects as well as a smattering of former NHL veterans.
2. Around the boards
• The Sabres appeared to score the game's first goal with 11:04 in the first period when Jeff Skinner potted his own rebound after Matt Murray stopped him on a breakaway. But officials blew the whistle because Ottawa center Dylan Gambrell was injured in the Buffalo end after a hit from Rasmus Dahlin. The ruling was that Murray had touched the puck on Skinner's initial shot, killing the play.
You hear the whistle but where's the puck touch/possession here? Can't say Murray did. Totally blown call costs #Sabres the first goal. https://t.co/5pz05F6QQJ
— Mike Harrington (@ByMHarrington) January 26, 2022
• The Sabres fell to 13-22-7 while Ottawa improved to 13-20-3 as Murray made 32 saves.
• Casey Mittelstadt and Zemgus Girgensons both returned to the lineup for the Sabres. It was Mittelstadt's first game since he had surgery for an undisclosed lower body injury Dec. 7. He played 16:52 and had one shot on goal.
3. Heritage Classic time change
The NHL has pushed the start time of the Heritage Classic between the Sabres and Toronto Maple Leafs on March 13 in Hamilton, Ont., back an hour to 4 p.m. to lessen sun impact outdoors at Tim Horton's Field.Â
Sabres general manager Kevyn Adams said earlier in the day he spoke last week with NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly to get a status report on the game. It's expected to be played in front of a capacity crowd of 40,000.
"They're obviously monitoring the situation but as of now, the plan is full steam ahead here," Adams said.Â
4. Next
The Sabres are off Wednesday and return to practice on Thursday and Friday in LECOM HarborCenter before heading west. The next home game is not until Feb. 10 against Columbus.
