Day 5 Notebook | Eichel joins teammates for first practice

Jack Eichel joined the Sabres for practice on Wednesday, his first skate alongside teammates after missing the first four days of training camp to nurse an upper-body injury.
The message coach Ralph Krueger relayed to his captain was one of patience.
"Jack is clearly our leader on the ice and so to have him back, his presence back, was excellent," Krueger said. "I did speak with him, the importance of him being patient now because he did miss those first four days of extremely intense practice and work.
"For him, the first time in a big crowd like that on the ice in a long time. We were kind of smiling about it at the halfway mark. But we know the genius of Jack. He'll find his way quickly."

Eichel was one of three players who returned Wednesday along with linemate Victor Olofsson and goaltender Linus Ullmark. Olofsson missed the previous two days after sustaining an upper-body injury last Saturday; Ullmark had missed the entirety of camp so far due to post-immigration quarantine.

The returns meant a first glimpse of Buffalo's projected top line of Taylor Hall, Eichel, and Olofsson. Hall, as a newcomer to the team, has eight days to begin developing chemistry with Eichel. Even Olofsson, who skated alongside Eichel throughout last season, is skating on the right wing rather than the left.
What they can do, Eichel said, is take advantage of the time they have and recognize that while things might not be perfect off the bat, other teams are in the same boat. The Sabres captain was unhappy with his level of execution on day one but echoed Krueger's optimism for the days ahead.
"I think guys have to be realistic here and understand that the beginning of the season's not going to be as clean as I think everyone probably expects, but that's just how it's gonna go and every team is in the same situation," he said.
"So, I think it's just important to get our systems down. We'll get used to being on the ice with each other. Make sure we're working hard, our conditioning's there, and we're ready to compete more than anything. For me, it's a lot of timing and making sure that my body feels ready to take on a big load this season."

Here are more notes from day five of camp.

Candidates to replace Girgensons

The Sabres announced forward Zemgus Girgensons underwent successful surgery Wednesday to repair a hamstring injury that occurred during Monday's intrasquad scrimmage. The projected timeline for his recovery is six months.
Buffalo has worked to revamp its roster with moves to acquire specialized role players during the offseason, one of which was re-signing Girgensons to a three-year deal. Girgensons played the part of tenacious forechecker and penalty killer who was also able to increase his offense during his first season under Krueger, tallying his highest goal (12) and point (19) totals since 2014-15.
"We all can feel the hole that Zemgus leaves with his injury - the character, the work ethic, the role that he has in our group is something that makes him unique," Krueger said. "I challenged the group today to chip in and to take a piece of that hole. We're going to keep Zemgus close, because how important he is in the organization, what a personality he is in the organization. We want to keep him close in the rehab and help him to get back."

Tobias Rieder, another player who joined the Sabres for his specialized skills, took Girgensons' place on the left wing alongside Cody Eakin and Kyle Okposo. That line figured to replicate the role held last season by the trio of Girgensons, Okposo, and departed centerman Johan Larsson, a group that grinded out long shifts in the offensive zone and often set the table for the team's scoring lines.
While the conversation around Rieder has mostly revolved around his ability on the penalty kill, Krueger - who coached Rieder for Team Europe during the 2016 World Cup of Hockey - said he also expects the forward to chip in offensively.
"You could see it in the playoffs [with] Calgary, with the three shorthanded goals, that he is a defensive threat to score," Krueger said. "With the loss of Zemgus' goals, we need other people to step up and we see Toby as somebody who can get into double digits offensively.
'When he's used properly and he's confident, he can be an offensive threat and definitely off the PK always a threat. So, just somebody who under these circumstances will automatically increase in value for us as we move forward."
Riley Sheahan, who is attending camp on a professional tryout, is a candidate to fill the vacant roster spot left by Girgensons. Krueger pointed to the seven-year veteran's ability on the penalty kill and in the faceoff circle as areas of strength.
"He's a very good candidate to help us fill in," Krueger said.

Cozens, Quinn to join Sabres

Krueger emphasized that first-round picks Dylan Cozens (2019) and Jack Quinn (2020) will be on different paths as they join the Sabres following their silver-medal performance with Team Canada at the IIHF World Junior Championship.
Cozens - whose 16 points at the tournament were the most by a Canadian player since Brayden Schenn in 2011 - will join the main practice group consisting mostly of Buffalo's projected regular-season lineup. Quinn will skate with the second group led by Rochester Americans coach Seth Appert.

"It's a wonderful chance to have Jack exposed to that and then make a decision on him," Krueger said. "But Dylan is clearly much advanced in his integration and … with Zemgus going down, there will be a need to integrate Dylan into the process. We look forward to that."
Krueger said that both Cozens and Quinn had arrived in Buffalo by Wednesday's practice and both are expected to be on the ice "in a few days."

Wednesday's practice sessions

Krueger said early that it was on the participants in the second group to push those in the first and earn an opportunity to make a jump. Forward Rasmus Asplund did that last week, joining the main group on Sunday, and defenseman William Borgen became the latest to enter the mix on Wednesday.
Borgen, 24, has a good showing during a four-game stint with the Sabres to end 2018-19 but spent all of last season in Rochester. Krueger said his performance during the intrasquad scrimmage warranted an evaluation alongside the team's veteran players.
"We thought he was excellent in the scrimmage and he gives us a truly classic defensive option," Krueger said. "He has the physicality to him, he has a mean streak in him, and Will has been with the organization for a few years now.
"He understands how we function and you could see it in the way he integrated himself into the practice today. I thought he was very strong and we're excited to see Will take this next step already."
Here's how the two groups lined up.
Gold group
4 Taylor Hall - 9 Jack Eichel - 68 Victor Olofsson
53 Jeff Skinner - 12 Eric Staal - 23 Sam Reinhart
13 Tobias Rieder - 20 Cody Eakin - 21 Kyle Okposo
38 Riley Sheahan - 27 Curtis Lazar - 72 Tage Thompson
74 Rasmus Asplund - 37 Casey Mittelstadt - 25 Arttu Ruotsalainen
19 Jake McCabe - 55 Rasmus Ristolainen
26 Rasmus Dahlin - 62 Carter Hutton
33 Colin Miller - 10 Henri Jokiharju
44 Matt Irwin - 88 Brandon Davidson
3 William Borgen
35 Linus Ullmark
40 Carter Hutton
34 Jonas Johansson
Blue group
Forwards: Steven Fogarty, C.J. Smith, Andrew Oglevie, Brett Murray, Brandon Biro
Defensemen: Casey Fitzgerald, Ryan Jones, Mattias Samuelsson, Jacob Bryson
Goalies: Michael Houser, Dustin Tokarski