Man in the middle: Mittelstadt enjoying success between Skinner, Tuch

If you ask Sabres forward Casey Mittelstadt what's been different about his game lately, he has a difficult time putting a finger on what's caused the switch to flip.
"I've been playing well since maybe the New Year or Christmas," Mittelstadt said. "I don't think too much has changed, just go try to make plays. Obviously, you see a few go in you get a little confidence and things start going."

Since Christmas, Mittelstadt has scored five goals and 29 assists for 34 points in 45 games. He scored 17 points (5+12) in 35 games prior, but admittedly something didn't quite feel right.
"I guess it was a little bit of a struggle at the beginning of the year, but I'm not really one to hang my head," Mittelstadt said. "I remember talking to my dad during some of the struggles and he just said you've got to keep persevering and the one with the most perseverance always makes it."

The game seems to be coming more naturally lately for the sixth-year pro, who's enjoying a taste of what it's like to skate on the top line. Mittelstadt has shifted to center between Jeff Skinner and Alex Tuch while Tage Thompson has battled a nagging upper-body injury.
"Obviously, you have an opportunity, you want to produce," Mittelstadt said. "But at the same time, I've played with both of them (Tuch and Skinner) quite a bit."
Mittelstadt has produced, to the tune of nine points (0+9) in his last six games, most of which have been spent between Tuch and Skinner. Over the last five games, the trio has averaged 9:16 of ice time at at 5-on-5. The Sabres have earned a 48-34 advantage in shot attempts in that time.

With Tuch creating turnovers and Skinner driving play, Mittelstadt has calmly filled Thompson's void in the middle.
"The crazy thing that Tuchy does so well that he doesn't get credit for, and it depends on the rink that you play in, he gets so many takeaways," Mittelstadt said. "I wouldn't be surprised if he's leading the league in takeaways.
"You get so many possessions, and obviously if you get a lot of possessions with good players, eventually you're going to make plays."
Even in Thompson's return to the lineup, Sabres coach Don Granato has opted to keep Mittelstadt sandwiched between Tuch and Skinner, reuninting the trio in the waning moments of a 2-1 loss to the Panthers on Tuesday in an effort to generate a spark. Thompson scored a goal and added an assist while skating on a line with Jordan Greenway and Dylan Cozens in a 7-6 shootout victory over the Red Wings on Thursday.
Mittelstadt added a pair of helpers in the wild, back-and-forth win. His confidence and swagger have always been there and now given the opportunity, he's starting to flourish.
"They make the game easy too. They're both pretty good players," Mittelstadt said. "Tuchy is flying around making plays and getting takeaways the whole game. Obviously Skinny just waddles around out there and makes a ton of plays. I'm kind of a little bit the opposite of Tommer, so credit to them for being able to adjust as well."
More notes from practice on Friday:
1.Granato held a number of players out of practice for maintenance in an "optional" skate, so the team did not take line rushes during the brief practice.
2. Thompson, who scored his 45th goal of the season in Thursday night's win over Detroit, is still dealing with an upper-body injury. He did not participate in the optional skate and will be evaluated daily but is expected to play through the injury.
"Now it's a situation where he's got to deal with it and he's going to fight through it," Granato said. "Today was a day to help that recovery so he can charge back up for tomorrow."
3.Rookie defenseman Owen Power's three assists Thursday night marked the first time a rookie blueliner recorded three or more assists for the Sabres in a single game since Tyler Myers (1+3) on March 10, 2010.
Power joined Doug Barrie, Phil Housley, Calle Johansson, Timo Jutila and Myers as the only Sabres rookie defensemen to do so.
Granato believes Power is firmly in the conversation for the Calder Trophy as the NHL's Rookie of the Year and in his mind could be considered the favorite.
"In my view he is. I think if you had an NHL Draft right now and you could only draft rookies, you could probably poll the general managers and I think they would pick Owen Power," Granato said. "The minutes he plays against top teams and top players, both defending and offensively is just spectacular."