Luukkonen's commitment to growth has earned him opportunity as Sabres' No. 1 goalie

Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen has seen an increased role on the Buffalo Sabres’ roster this season and has quietly emerged as coach Don Granato’s No. 1 goaltender.

Luukkonen has appeared in 27 of the Sabres’ 50 games so far this season after playing in 33 games during the 2022-23 campaign. The 24-year-old has posted a 12-12-2 record in 2023-24, including a 6-4-0 record in his last 10 games, which began with a 3-2 overtime win over Columbus on Dec. 30.

Since that game, Luukkonen currently ranks second among goalies with five or more games played with a .940 save percentage and a 1.61 goals-against average, behind only Edmonton’s Stuart Skinner.

The Espoo, Finland native believes that his production has been the result of confidence in his game as well as help from his teammates in front of him.

“I feel great,” Luukkonen said. “I think there’s been a lot of good games now and I feel like the team is playing well in front of me. You know, the results are not what we want, but from my perspective, I feel like we’ve been pretty solid defensively. So, that helps my game too.”

Luukkonen went 3-0-1 from Dec. 30 through Jan. 11, which included a 40-save performance in a 3-1 win in Pittsburgh on Jan. 6. As a result of that stretch, he earned starting goaltender duties in seven of the Sabres’ last eight games. He recorded two consecutive shutouts in that span with 3-0 victories over San Jose and Chicago during Buffalo’s six-game homestand in January.

Following Thursday’s practice at KeyBank Center, Luukkonen shared how the consecutive starts have allowed him to find a rhythm and remain consistent.

“Once you get a couple good starts in a row, it’s easy to keep it rolling,” Luukkonen said. “I have worked for it, and I have earned it. It’s kind of something that every goalie wants, and I enjoy to play behind this team. The guys are awesome, so it’s always fun to come to the rink. It’s fun to play on this team. So, I’m just trying to do as well as I can every day and hopefully keep it going.”

Granato identified Luukkonen’s hard work with goaltending coach Mike Bales and his commitment as the main reasons he has emerged as the team’s top goaltender.

“It’s been a continual growth with him through his commitment to becoming better and studying his own game with Mike Bales,” Granato said.

Luukkonen played in 13 games for Buffalo during the 2020-21 and 2021-22 seasons before officially securing his spot on the Sabres roster in November 2022. He posted a 17-11-4 record in 2022-23, which included a 6-2-1 stretch where he earned NHL Rookie of the Month honors last January.

He feels great knowing his hard work has earned him the opportunity to be the No. 1 guy in Buffalo and can feel the confidence the coaching staff has in him.

“I’ve been here a couple years now and there’s a lot of games and a lot of practices behind me," he said. "I’ve known the coaches here a long time too. So, it feels good to kind of get the response and confidence from their side to get those starts.”

Luukkonen also shared that despite a win or loss, his focus is always on the things he did right and wrong so he can continue his growth and development.

He has seen gradual growth over the years after spending time with the Cincinnati Cyclones of the ECHL in 2019-20 and stints with the Rochester Americans in the American Hockey League.

Defenseman Jacob Bryson, who spent time in Rochester with Luukkonen, has witnessed the young goaltender’s progression in the last few years.   

“I think he’s one of those goalies that puts in a lot of work and obviously the results follow,” Bryson said. “I feel like through every league he’s played in, he brings his best every day and he’s a really good goalie. He’s tough to score on in practice, and I feel like he never takes shortcuts. I feel like that’s a big thing for him. … I think he’s driven, and he knows how to be a pro. And I think it’s really shown.”

Bryson has noticed Luukkonen’s growth in communication on the ice and confidence with the puck, which he said gives defensemen confidence.

“I think something for him that’s picked up a lot is communication and playing the puck,” Bryson said. “He’s gotten a lot better at that too, which helps his D-men and makes it a lot easier for us just knowing you have someone back there that’s consistently going to stop the puck. … I feel like as a team, when you have that, it helps with success and gives you every opportunity to play at your best when you have a goalie back there that can stand on his head.”

Sabres alternate captain Rasmus Dahlin echoed Bryson’s praise for Luukkonen after practice.

“He’s been unbelievable for us,” Dahlin said. “He’s having a really good calm in the net. His growth is unbelievable, and he just continues to get better. So, I’m really happy for him.”

Here's more from Thursday's practice.

1. The Sabres practiced with the same lines and pairs that they skated with against the Stars on Tuesday. 

Here's how they lined up: 

Forwards

53 Jeff Skinner – 72 Tage Thompson – 21 Kyle Okposo

9 Zach Benson – 24 Dylan Cozens – 77 JJ Peterka

12 Jordan Greenway – 37 Casey Mittelstadt – 89 Alex Tuch

28 Zemgus Girgensons – 19 Peyton Krebs – 50 Eric Robinson/71 Victor Olofsson

Defensemen

26 Rasmus Dahlin – 10 Henri Jokiharju

25 Owen Power – 75 Connor Clifton

33 Ryan Johnson – 6 Erik Johnson/78 Jacob Bryson

Goalies

1 Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen

31 Eric Comrie

2. Buffalo’s penalty kill ranks fourth in the NHL since Jan. 1 as the Sabres have successfully killed off 33-of-38 penalties in that span for a penalty-kill percentage of 86.8.

The Sabres’ PK unit has been led by defenseman Erik Johnson and forward Jordan Greenway. Johnson has logged 134:05 of shorthanded ice time in 42 games played this season while Greenway has posted 115:34 in his 38 games.

Following practice, Granato shared the impact the duo has had on the rest of the team by playing aggressive and assertive on the penalty kill.

“Those are two players we didn’t have in the organization at this time last year,” Granato said. “Those are guys that have been in those roles and have gained lots of years of experience in those roles. So, they bring a confidence to the rest of the group.”

3. Rookie forward Zach Benson has stepped in for Jack Quinn on a line with Dylan Cozens and JJ Peterka while Quinn is expected to miss six to eight weeks following successful lower-body surgery.

In its first game together on Tuesday, the line held a 25-5 advantage in shot attempts when the trio was on the ice together at 5-on-5, including a 17-1 edge in shots and 13-3 edge in scoring chances.

Granato thought that the line played with speed against Dallas and that his defensemen allowed Benson, Cozens, and Peterka enough time and space to generate chances.

“I thought the defensemen did a nice job of allowing some separation – they didn’t crowd the rush," Granato said. “It’s easy to say you want the Cozens line to have speed. It’s very contingent upon what the defensemen do with the puck as well. … But the speed of that line was where we wanted it to be.”