Pekar, Mittelstadt among standouts at French Connection Tournament

Matej Pekar said earlier this month that as recently as last September, the idea of being drafted into the NHL seemed like a pipe dream. It makes sense, then, that the fourth-round pick had it in his mind to do anything he could to stick out at his first development camp in Buffalo.
That included getting under the skin of the most talented players on the ice, which in this case included Rasmus Dahlin and Casey Mittelstadt. That strategy put Pekar in the spotlight on Friday, when Dahlin flattened him with an open-ice hit that would spend the next 24 hours making rounds on social media.
"Even Czech national TV was posting it, so it was kind of funny," Pekar said.

So, how did Pekar respond on Saturday? By doubling down, of course. He beat Dahlin for his first goal of the annual 3-on-3 French Connection Tournament, then got Mittelstadt's attention with an early hit, leading to an afternoon full of barking and shoving between the two.
"It wasn't a point, but there was always something in the head, just try to get the good guys matched up against me and see what I can do," Pekar said, laughing. "It's way more fun when you see Casey getting pissed at you."
Mittelstadt got the last laugh; his team beat Pekar's in their semifinal matchup and went on to beat the Dahlin-led team for the tournament title. Mittelstadt scored five goals on the day, including the winning shot in the tournament-deciding shootout.
It was the kind of day one would expect from Mittelstadt, a player expected to be on Buffalo's NHL roster next season. Mittelstadt smiled at the prospect of having a guy like Pekar playing there alongside him one day.
"Oh, for sure," he said. "Everyone hates playing against them, loves having them. It was a lot of fun, it kind of woke me up."

He may not have hoisted the trophy, but Saturday's tournament was still a win for Pekar. In an interview on WGR 550 earlier this week, Sabres assistant general manager Randy Sexton said the team was impressed with Pekar's ability to create havoc in the offensive zone and turn it into offensive chances.
Pekar lived up to that billing on Saturday, scoring a pair of goals while standing out for his workmanlike persistence. He might be the first guy in Buffalo to admit this, but he said afterward that he enjoys the play of Boston Bruins forward Brad Marchand.

"I like his game, yeah," he said. "I know a lot of people don't like him. But it's my game. I'm not the super-skilled guy that just can dangle all five guys and score a goal. In order to create some offense, I need to play like Brad."
Marchand is especially unpopular amongst Sabres fans, but that's not to say the people of Buffalo couldn't get behind having a pest of their own. The packed crowd at Harborcenter certainly responded to Pekar on Saturday, and he was glad to deliver.
"It was great," he said. "I mean, look at Buffalo. We've got to play for the fanbase. … I thought I was in a different universe when I saw [the crowd]. So, that was obviously great yeah."

Mittelstadt repeats

Mittelstadt won the tournament for the second year in a row, as did teammates Eric Cornel and Brett Murray. Lawrence Pilut, Miska Kukkonen, Ivan Chukarov, Joe Snively, Andrew Peski and Jonas Johansson comprised the rest of the winning roster.
While the result was the same, Greeley said the organization was impressed with the growth Mittelstadt has shown since his first camp a year ago.
"You think about a year ago, he's playing public high school hockey," assistant general manager Steve Greeley said. "Now he's got a year of college hockey under his belt and a couple NHL games.
"I think when we got him here in the spring it opened up his eyes a little bit on what it means to be a National Hockey League player, what the guys are doing after a game in terms of workouts, what they're eating. I think the Casey we're seeing now, he's more mature. He's more refined."

Olofsson shows his shot

The best highlight this side of Casey Mittelstadt may have come from Victor Olofsson, who is readying to begin his North American career after leading the Swedish Hockey League with 27 goals last season. Olofsson is infamous for his shot, and he showed why with this far-side goal early in the day:

"I would say he's become a terrific prospect, really," assistant general manager Randy Sexton said. "It's a big step from the Swedish Elite League to the National Hockey League. But for him, what he brings is an NHL release. We saw glimpses of it today, saw lots of evidence for it during the week.
"He's got an NHL release and he's got a nose for the net. He'll need some time to transition to the North American game but we're very excited about the offensive capabilities that he brings."
The only person in the building who wasn't impressed with the goal was Dahlin, but only because he spent the last two seasons as Olofsson's teammate in Sweden.
"He makes that kind of shot all the time," Dahlin said. "You saw it, it's one of the best shots in the world I think."

Guhle named hardest worker

Brendan Guhle was the recipient of this year's Craig Ramsay Leadership Award, given annually to the player deemed as the hardest worker at camp. Guhle, participating in his fourth camp, spoke earlier in the week about rooming with Rasmus Dahlin and trying to show the way for younger players.
"I'm trying to help the younger guys along, be a good vocal guy in the room and show everyone where everything is," he said. "If they need help, ask questions and I'll be here to answer it."