Sabres embracing spotlight entering matchups with Knights, Leafs

Alex Tuch has a wealth of playoff experience from his four seasons with the Vegas Golden Knights, including a run to the Stanley Cup Final in 2019.
It's not quite the playoffs, but the Sabres will spend the next four days in the NHL spotlight. They host former captain Jack Eichel and the Golden Knights on Thursday, a game that will air exclusively on Hulu and ESPN+. They head outdoors Sunday to face the Toronto Maple Leafs in the Heritage Classic.
Tuch hopes the experience is beneficial for a young Sabres team.
"I think more than anything, it's a really good learning experience for our group," Tuch said. "We have a lot of young guys who haven't played in really big games in the NHL, outdoor games or playoff games. And obviously, these are games that are gonna have a lot of eyes on them.
"I hope the guys feel a little bit of the pressure, but I hope that they learn from it. They've also got to know that once the puck is dropped, you got to just focus on the game."

The Sabres are in the midst of an eight-game stretch against teams that currently occupy playoff spots. They opened the run with victories over Toronto and Minnesota in which they scored a combined 10 goals. Those wins were followed with losses to Los Angeles and Florida.
Sabres coach Don Granato spent Wednesday focusing on the details that added up in the 6-1 loss to the Panthers, namely decision making upon gaining possession of the puck. The Sabres will need to apply those lessons against opponents with similar offensive firepower.
"I think the key is it the added pressure," Granato said. "It's important for us, and it's great for us to have the added pressure of that. Because we have to learn to deal with that. You know, we're not going into the playoffs. But we all know in the playoffs it's handling pressure and elevate and compete. And those are two major ingredients to playoff success.
"So, for us to be thrown in that is really a bonus for us. We want that. I would rather play the hardest schedule in the league than the easiest schedule by far and away down the stretch, because it gives us
the opportunity to learn and grow through it."
Tuch pointed to their win over the Maple Leafs as an example of the aggressive, on-their-toes style the Sabres are working to establish on a consistent basis.
"It doesn't matter if there's a million people in the building or zero or a million viewers, zero viewers, you've got to come in and play the same way each and every day because it is our job," Tuch said.
"We're paid a lot of money to come in and put this jersey on and we have to show pride in the city of Buffalo and the crest on the front of our chest."

Wednesday's practice

Granato said he will discuss the statuses of forward Zemgus Girgensons and defensemen Will Butcher, Henri Jokiharju, and Colin Miller with the team's medical staff ahead of Thursday's game. All four players practiced Wednesday as they work back from injuries.
"In likelihood, yes, guys will be back in the lineup, or a guy or two," Granato said. "If not tomorrow, based on what I just watched, they're pretty darn close."
Jokiharju practiced in his usual spot on a defense pair with Rasmus Dahlin. Butcher and Miller rotated with various defense partners.