Storylines
1. A tale of two teams
The Sabres will divide their 57-man training camp roster across two squads, with a group of players traveling overseas to begin the NHL Global Series later this week in Munich, Germany, while the other half of the roster remains in North America. The North American Sabres will play three road games over the next five nights, beginning with Pittsburgh tonight. The team will then face Ottawa (Thursday) and Columbus (Saturday) to round out the week.
Among those remaining stateside are Konsta Helenius, Isak Rosen, Noah Ostlund, and Ryan Johnson; four first-round draft picks and all of which are looking to make their preseason debuts on Tuesday.
Buffalo will see much of its AHL affiliate present in tonight’s game, with 16 players traveling with this group having been on the Rochester Americans’ roster a season ago, including Rosen and Mason Jobst, who co-led Rochester in scoring with 50-point campaigns in 2023-24.
“It’s an unbelievable opportunity,” said Americans head coach Michael Leone on AHL players getting in NHL preseason games. “To have the experience to play in NHL games is huge. There are probably some nerves there, but you just have to go out and play your game. There’s a lot of guys that we saw get in games in rookie camp, so that should serve as a good lead-up to these games. Most importantly, we just want to be competitive. We want to play to our standard and make sure everyone is playing the right way.”
2. In goal
The Sabres will choose between prospect Scott Ratzlaff or veteran Michael Houser to take the crease in Pittsburgh. Ratzlaff is coming off his third full season with Seattle in the Western Hockey League (WHL). He finished fifth in games played (52) last season and was one of 17 WHL goaltenders to reach 20 wins on the year. He has been a presence throughout the offseason, taking part in both Sabres Development Camp as well as the Prospects Challenge.
Houser, 32, is entering his seventh season in the Sabres’ pipeline after being signed to an AHL contract in the offseason. He is 4-2 in six NHL regular season starts between 2020 and 2022, including two appearances against Pittsburgh in May of 2021. The Youngstown, Ohio native has 195 career wins across the ECHL, AHL, and NHL.
“People want him (Houser) around,” said Leone. “Any time I bring him up, people know he’s a good goalie, but they say he’s the best guy and someone you need around. It’s one of the big reasons why he’s earned all the opportunities he has. He’s a talented goalie, but he’s also an incredible teammate and person.”
3. A peek at the Pens
Jesse Puljujarvi netted a hat trick for Pittsburgh on Saturday in the team’s 7-3 loss to the Sabres, but the Penguins have been idle since their trip to KeyBank Center. Pittsburgh’s start to the preseason looks much lighter than that of Buffalo’s, with the team skating in just three games over the first eight days of exhibition play.
Prior to the preseason, the Penguins spent a weekend in Buffalo as part of the 2024 NHL Prospects Challenge, where they went 3-0, including an 8-5 win against the Sabres. In that game, Avery Hayes struck for a hat trick and registered five points (3+2). He is expected in Pittsburgh’s lineup, which will feature a mix of rookies and established NHL talent on offense, including Kevin Hayes, Cody Glass, Anthony Beauvillier, and Noel Acciari.
