'He was relentless' | Red Savage shines in Game 2 of Prospects Challenge

Red Savage caught a pass in the corner and without hesitation dashed to the front of the net as linemate Tyler Kopff drew the lone defenseman in the slot to the back post during the second period of the Buffalo Sabres’ Prospects Challenge game against Columbus on Saturday.

Savage reached the netminder untouched and roofed a wrist shot by Blue Jackets goaltender Nolan Lalonde. It was his first goal since Dec. 14, 2024, – 273 days to be precise – during his senior season at Michigan State, which was cut short to 20 games due to injury.

Less than a month since he signed an AHL deal with Rochester, Savage is already showing why coach Michael Leone raves about him.

"I thought Red [Savage} was our best player tonight,” Leone said after the Sabres prospects’ 7-5 loss. “I thought he was relentless. ... Red hasn’t played hockey in nine months, he missed half his senior year, a lot of rehab and that’s just Red. ... He’s always going to do whatever he can to help his team win.”

Savage was sidelined after sustaining a season-ending dislocated shoulder, which required surgery, in a game against rival Michigan on Jan. 17. During the last seven months, he rehabbed through free agency and – through the connection of his dad, Brian Savage, who played with Sabres general manager Kevyn Adams at Miami (Ohio), as well as his relationship with assistant coach Seth Appert and Leone – signing a two-year contract with Rochester made for a perfect landing spot.

Savage and Leone’s relationship dates back to 2019 when the former starred at the United States National Team Development Program and the latter worked as an assistant coach.

Savage said there were “definitely a lot of cheers and a lot of celebration” when he spoke with Leone upon signing in Rochester.

“It's been a while since we've seen each other, and I think we're both just as fired up to be able to play with each other,” he said. “We're both ecstatic to be able to have each other and lean on the next two years.”

Savage finished as one of two Sabres with a multi-point performance on Saturday, adding an assist on Matteo Costantini’s goal during the third period. He said it was worth spending the cold winter months in East Lansing, Michigan, watching his team capture a Big Ten title and the No. 1 overall seed for the NCAA Tournament from the stands to get back to a moment like the ones on Saturday.

Savage captained the Spartans, who went 26-7-4, mostly from afar. It was a difficult time that taught him how to be a better leader.

“It's easy to dwell on yourself when you're out of the game,” he said. “But to be able to push through and really have your teammates’ back and try to make sure everyone's feeling as good as they can going into every game, making sure that everyone is going game seven for every game is super important.”

Savage – who was originally drafted in the fourth round of the 2021 NHL Draft by the Detroit Red Wings – is entering his first season with the Sabres organization. Leone described him as a “winning hockey player” who has a “game that speaks for itself.”

Seven months and 27 days from his injury, Savage is using his self-proclaimed “lead by example” mentality to make a profound first impression on Leone and the coaching staff that will guide him through his rookie season in Rochester.

“It definitely felt great, it’s been a long nine months since Dec. 14 and I learned a lot about myself and about how much I love this game and how much it really sucks being away from the game, how much you really learn to love your teammates and love the people around you,” he said.

“I feel as strong and as fast as I ever have, so it’s nice being able to get on the scoresheet for the first time in a while.”

Here’s more from the Sabres’ second Prospects Challenge game.

The college connection

Savage’s second point of the night came on a two-on-one with Costantini, a fellow collegiate product. In fact, all three of Leone’s third line hail from the NCAA with Savage from Michigan State, Costantini capturing a national title with Western Michigan and Kopff who signed after two seasons at Brown University.

Costantini scored his first goal of the Prospects Challenge and Kopff made a number of plays that go unrecorded in the box score with his strong forechecking and ability to finish checks.

“I thought they were skating, they were giving it on the forecheck, they hung on to a lot more pucks in the O-zone which allowed them to get extended time,” Leone said. “Last game was a lot of whole plays behind the goal line and then you turn the puck over and you’re chasing and play defense. I thought they did a really good job getting after pucks and using their body. ... They had a really good third period.”

The returnees respond

Noah Ostlund scored his first goal of the Prospects Challenge during the second period, dashing behind the Columbus defense upon receiving a stretch pass and then going forehand-to-backhand to tuck the then-game-tying goal just under the crossbar.

It was the kind of performance that Leone was hoping to see from his key Prospects Challenge returnees after he said on Friday that they “have a lot more to give.”

Three of the five Sabres goals were scored from that crop of returners as Riley Fiddler-Schultz also potted a pair, including the game-opening tally and a buzzer-beater in the third period.

Managing the physicality

A combined 61 penalty minutes were recorded, including one instance in which Rosen and Ostlund took exception to a hit on Helenius.

Leone said his guys did “a good job” at responding to the Blue Jackets’ game plan of playing with a physical edge and noted it’s an important learning experience for his younger and older players.

“It’s a different environment,” Leone said. “Some of the guys that haven’t played in this, it’s a lot faster, there’s less time and space and it’s a lot more physical so when they go back to their junior teams or wherever they go, they’ve kind of been in the fire before.

Up next

The Sabres conclude the Prospects Challenge against the Penguins on Monday at 12 p.m. Tickets are available here.

The game will be streamed live on Sabres.com.