Bjork sees opportunity to establish identity with Sabres

Anders Bjork believes he has yet to establish the identity he expects out of himself in the NHL. He sees an opportunity to do that moving forward with Buffalo.
The Sabres acquired Bjork along with a second-round pick from the Boston Bruins on Monday in exchange for Taylor Hall and Curtis Lazar. The 24-year-old winger will be in the lineup to face his former team at TD Garden on Tuesday night.
"I'm really excited," Bjork said. "It's cool to be playing against the guys I was just teammates with right away. … The guys here have been great and I already feel a little bit comfortable with them."

Bjork has appeared in 138 games over parts of four seasons with the Bruins, establishing a reputation as a high-energy, hard-working forward while never quite finding traction offensively. He set career highs with nine goals and 19 assists in 58 games last season.
Injuries and inconsistent time in the lineup, Bjork said, have prevented him from reaching what he believes to be his ceiling. Sabres general manager Kevyn Adams shares that view, citing an untapped offensive upside as a reason the team sought Bjork as part of the deal with Boston.

"It's a fresh start for me," Bjork said. "I don't think my time in the NHL has gone the way I wanted it, but this is a great opportunity for me to start over and begin working even harder to become the player I believe I can be. I'm excited to do it here.
"There's definitely some opportunity. I think this organization really cares about developing the players and making the players better, so I'm excited for that."
Bjork has familiarity with interim head coach Don Granato from their time together at the US National Team Development Program. Bjork did not play for Granato personally but said he recalls the respect Granato earned from players who did.
Bjork was also teammates with Sabres captain Jack Eichel at the USNTDP and said they have already communicated via text since the trade. He was able to meet with Granato in person on Monday night.
"I'm looking forward to establishing [an identity] and building my game," Bjork said. "Already, the people here, the players and coaches and all the staff, I've talked to a lot of people about doing that and working at that and they're all about helping guys do that. So, this is a great place for me."
Bjork will skate on the left wing of a line with Dylan Cozens and Arttu Ruotsalainen, two rookies who are similarly looking to carve out a role in the NHL over the final 15 games this season.
"He plays a very high speed, high-tempo game," Granato said. "He has a lot of skill. And as far as expectations for him, we need to get him to settle into what we're doing, and that's going to take a little bit of time. On the coaching side, as always, we're looking to speed that process.
"But in all fairness, he just has to play and play hard. He's very comfortable with that."

Scouting the Bruins

Hall will be in the lineup for his Bruins debut while Lazar is considered a game-time decision after taking part in the morning skate. Lazar had missed the past six games with an injury prior to the trade.
Boston has lost its past two games, including an 8-1 defeat against Washington on Sunday. The fourth-place Bruins have a four-point lead over both the Flyers and the Rangers for fourth place in the East Division, albeit with two games in hand.
Jeremy Swayman will start in net for the Bruins.

Tune in

Coverage on MSG begins at 6:30 p.m. You can also listen to the game on WGR 550. The puck drops at 7.