Video: After Tuesday's Practice: Jack Quinn\
Hinostroza has missed 16 games with a lower-body injury. He last practiced with the team in a non-contact jersey on February 8, but left midway through the session.
In his first year with the Sabres, Hinostroza has posted 17 points (8+9) in 36 games. He had three goals in six games during the month of January, including tallies in back-to-back games against Tampa Bay and Nashville.
"Vinnie plays at such a high tempo," Granato said. "He's such a competitor and we missed him in that regard and what he brings. That fierce component is part of his DNA, and it is nice to think that he's really close to being in the lineup."
Tweet from @SabresPR: Injury report: pic.twitter.com/49ZzLbfuVi
Both players are now listed on the latest injury report as day-to-day, while Quinn indicated that he feels ready to go this weekend. Rochester has games on Wednesday, Friday and Saturday this week.
Buffalo will take on the Toronto Maple Leafs on Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. on MSG and WGR 550. Pregame coverage on MSG will begin at 7.
Defenseman Henri Jokiharju is now listed as week-to-week with a lower-body injury. He did not practice on Tuesday and has missed the past three games.
Granato, however, is hopeful that Jokiharju will back sooner than later.
"I don't think there's any thought of him needing surgery at this point at all, and the hope is he could return by the end of this week," Granato said. "The medical team needs to see how he's responding to treatments, and then we'll be able to better determine where that week-to-week sits."
Video: After Tuesday's Practice: Don Granato
Granato made some adjustments to the lineup before tomorrow's game against the Maple Leafs, specifically down the middle.
Casey Mittelstadt was slotted over to play left wing on a line with Dylan Cozens and Kyle Okposo, allowing Peyton Krebs to returned to the center.
Mittelstadt has been limited to just 12 games this season due to injury.
"[Mittelstadt] hasn't played a lot of hockey in the last seven to 10 months," Granato said. "The other guys are in midseason form and he's not, so it's gonna take him time.
"We've had Krebs on the wing, and Krebs has been a center his whole career, so I figured, let's just make that shift between the two. Give Peyton that opportunity where he feels more comfortable and give Mittelstadt a little bit more support until he gets feeling more like himself."
| March 1 |
| --- |
| LW | C | RW |
| 53 Jeff Skinner | 72 Tage Thompson | 89 Alex Tuch |
| 37 Casey Mittelstadt | 24 Dylan Cozens | 21 Kyle Okposo |
| 74 Rasmus Asplund | 19 Peyton Krebs | 71 Victor Olofsson |
| 96 Anders Bjork | 20 Cody Eakin | 15 John Hayden |
| 29 Vinnie Hinostroza | 17 Mark Jankowski | 22 Jack Quinn |
| LD | RD | G |
| 26 Rasmus Dahlin | 78 Jacob Bryson | 41 Craig Anderson |
| 23 Mattias Samuelsson | 45 Casey Fitzgerald | 31 Dustin Tokarski |
| 8 Robert Hagg | 13 Mark Pysyk | |
| 4 Will Butcher | | |
