Practice Report | News and lineup info from Tuesday's session at KeyBank Center

Casey Mittelstadt is expected to be back at practice on Wednesday after missing Tuesday’s skate with a tweak in his upper body, Sabres coach Don Granato announced.

“We expect him to be ok,” Granato said. “… He didn’t practice today, we expect him to practice tomorrow.”

The Sabres took the ice for the middle of three straight practice days in preparation for their season opener at home on Thursday against the New York Rangers.

Here’s how the group lined up in Mittelstadt’s absence, with Tyson Jost stepping in at center on a line with Jordan Greenway and Zach Benson.

Forwards

53 Jeff Skinner – 72 Tage Thompson – 89 Alex Tuch

77 JJ Peterka – 24 Dylan Cozens – 71 Victor Olofsson

12 Jordan Greenway – 17 Tyson Jost – 9 Zach Benson

28 Zemgus Girgensons – 19 Peyton Krebs – 21 Kyle Okposo

93 Matt Savoie

Defensemen

26 Rasmus Dahlin – 23 Mattias Samuelsson

25 Owen Power – 10 Henri Jokiharju

6 Erik Johnson – 75 Connor Clifton

78 Jacob Bryson

Goalies

27 Devon Levi

31 Eric Comrie

1 Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen

Here are more notes from Tuesday’s session at KeyBank Center.

1. Benson officially made the Sabres’ opening night roster on Monday, the outcome of a dynamic preseason in which he tallied seven points in six games.

But while his offensive skill was apparent, Granato pointed to the 18-year-old’s defensive instincts and work ethic without the puck that as separating factors from a typical player his age.

“He could be as prolific as anybody offensively but if he didn't have … defensive instincts, positionally pretty sound, he wouldn't be on the roster, he just wouldn't,” Granato said.

“That's usually why players have to go to the American League. They have to learn how to play without the puck. Just the immense amount of responsibility you have in the NHL when you don't have the puck, and he has shown to be very proficient in that area and that helps him get to offense faster.”

2. Benson was informed he had made the roster on Saturday by Sabres general manager Kevyn Adams. The first person Benson spoke to after that conversation was former Sabres defenseman James Patrick, who coached Benson in the Western Hockey League.

“He was super pumped,” Benson said. “He kind of just told me to keep taking it day by day and keep working my tail off.”

3. Matt Savoie has been a full participant in practice since joining the Sabres for their morning skate on Friday. He had missed the duration of training camp prior to that skate with an upper-body injury he sustained during the Prospects Challenge finale on Sept. 18.

Granato said the improvement in Savoie’s game since his first camp last fall has been apparent even in that small sample size. The Sabres coach recalled Savoie’s exit meeting last October, when the then 18-year-old expressed disappointment that he had not done better in his first NHL setting.

“Older players have made him feel welcome and he has come back and really you can tell that he’s targeted the right areas to prepare for this camp,” Granato said.

“He’s showing his quickness, his very dynamic quickness and agility and mobility, slipping in and out and pressuring pucks and his release and shot are stronger and harder, so he’s got a little more pop or a lot more pop than a year ago. And I think a lot of had to do with the hindsight of last year’s training camp, being disappointed.”

4. The Sabres had a visitor as they came off the ice after practice. Blue, a 14-week-old Saint Bernard and Mastiff mix, was introduced as the team dog for the upcoming season. She is training to become a service dog for a local veteran as part of WNY Heroes’ Pawsitive for Heroes program.

Read more about Blue here.