Chris Taylor, coach of Rochester of the American Hockey League, will replace Granato. Rochester assistant Gord Dineen will take over for Taylor and Sabres development coach Adam Mair will also assist the AHL team for the beginning of the season.
Granato, 52, was hired with Mike Bales as assistants under Sabres coach Ralph Krueger on June 14. He was an assistant for the Chicago Blackhawks the past two seasons and associate coach at the University of Wisconsin in 2016-17. His brother, Tony Granato, is in his third season as Wisconsin coach after playing 13 seasons in the NHL and coaching the Colorado Avalanche from 2002-04 and in 2008-09. His sister, Cammi Granato, won the gold medal with the United States at the 1998 Nagano Olympics, is a member of the Hockey Hall of Fame and was hired by the Seattle expansion franchise as the first female pro scout in the NHL on Sept. 25.
A native of Downers Grove, Illinois, Don Granato was an assistant for the St. Louis Blues in 2005-06. He coached the USA Hockey National Team Development Program from 2011-16 and was an assistant for the United States at the 2015 IIHF World Junior Championship and 2014 and 2018 World Championships.
"Don Granato is one of those lifer coaches I was looking for," Krueger told the Olean (N.Y.) Times Herald in August.
