Thompson returns to practice ahead of matchup with Hurricanes

Tage Thompson was back on the ice for practice Tuesday after taking a maintenance day on Monday to rest an upper-body injury.
Sabres coach Don Granato said the team will likely make a decision on the availabilities of Thompson, forward Dylan Cozens, and defenseman Mattias Samuelsson on Wednesday morning prior to their game against the Carolina Hurricanes at KeyBank Center.
Samuelsson has missed the last two games with a lower-body injury. Cozens sustained an upper-body injury in Winnipeg on Thursday and did not play the following game in Minnesota. Both have been full participants in consecutive practices.

"They definitely looked good on the ice," Granato said after practice regarding the trio. "I haven't talked to them since they came off the ice. By the looks of it, I was happy with what I saw. We'll let the medical do what they have, give us their assessment, and discuss it."
The Sabres will not play again until February 11 following their game against the Hurricanes The team will depart for the All-Star break which is immediately followed by their bye week.
Thompson, who is Buffalo's representative for All-Star Weekend, has played all 49 games this season. He leads the Sabres and ranks among the top five in the NHL in both goals (34) and points (68).
Here are more notes from Tuesday's practice.
1.Here's how the Sabres lined up:
| January 31 | | --- | | LW | C | RW | | 53 Jeff Skinner | 72 Tage Thompson | 89 Alex Tuch | | 77 JJ Peterka | 24 Dylan Cozens | 22 Jack Quinn | | 37 Casey Mittelstadt | 17 Tyson Jost | 71 Victor Olofsson | | 28 Zemgus Girgensons | 19 Peyton Krebs | 21 Kyle Okposo | | 74 Rasmus Asplund | | | | LD | RD | G | | 23 Mattias Samuelsson | 26 Rasmus Dahlin | 41 Craig Anderson | | 25 Owen Power | 10 Henri Jokiharju | 31 Eric Comrie | | 78 Jacob Bryson | 46 Ilya Lyubushkin | 1 Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen | | 38 Kale Clague | | |
2. Rasmus Dahlin penned a letter to fans ahead of the All-Star break in which he recounts Ryan Miller Night and shares his thoughts on the season to date.
Read his letter in the tweet below.
Tweet from @BuffaloSabres: A letter from Ras, to you.
3. Thompson was asked what he's most looking forward to for All-Star Weekend.

"I think it's a little mixture of everything," he said. "I think it's such a cool opportunity, something that's new for me. I think just trying to take every bit of it in. My family's going to be there with me, so trying to enjoy that experience with them and share that. Obviously it's not something a lot of people get the opportunity to do, so I just want to make sure I'm taking everything in and enjoying my time."