Sabres’ forward lines take shape as Krebs, Norris swap places

With two days to spare, the Buffalo Sabres may have settled on their opening-night forward lines.

Tuesday’s practice at KeyBank Center saw Peyton Krebs and Josh Norris swap places, as they did for part of the preseason finale. And as coach Lindy Ruff put it, “In all likelihood, we could start that way on Thursday.”

Krebs, whom Ruff has called his “Swiss Army Knife,” is no stranger to bouncing around the lineup. He had a career year last season – 12 goals, 27 assists, plus-13 in 82 games – while splitting most of his time between the first and fourth lines. Now likely to start in a middle-six role, the 25-year-old doesn’t intend to change anything about his game.

“I think just keeping it simple right off the hop, sticking to what got me here: my work ethic, competing on pucks and making plays with guys,” said Krebs, who signed a four-year contract this summer. “Definitely, it’s a good confidence boost that [the coaches] trust me and they want to play me, but I know I’m a good player and I can make things happen, wherever it is.”

Added Ruff: “The tenacity he plays with, how hard he tracks back and can disrupt plays, how hard he forechecks… That’s the type of guy that can really make a line go.”

Norris, meanwhile, has worked well with Tage Thompson in his top-line chances for the Sabres, including Games 6 and 7 against Montreal. He also found chemistry with Josh Doan earlier in the playoffs. Ruff values having both a lefty (Norris) and a righty (Thompson) to take faceoffs – in the current lineup, three of four lines have that luxury – and called Thompson’s trio “a universal line.”

Injuries limited Norris to 44 games last season, but he flashed his offensive upside with 34 points (13+21). The former 35-goal scorer had a busy summer of training and, with good health, could be a huge piece of Buffalo’s offense.

The Sabres’ abundance of natural centers means near-endless line possibilities, so it’s fair to expect some tinkering in the early part of the season. For now, though, Ruff feels good about his combos heading into Thursday.

Here’s more from Tuesday’s practice.

Injury updates

There’s less certainty on the Sabres’ blue line. Ruff provided the following updates after practice:

• Mattias Samuelsson (lower body) is expected to rejoin the team for Wednesday’s practice and hasn’t been ruled out for Thursday’s season opener.
• Olen Zellweger (concussion protocol) missed practice and is day to day.
• Conor Timmins (lower body) got hurt at the end of Saturday’s preseason finale. Ruff didn’t estimate how long he’ll be out.

The team intends to bring seven healthy defensemen to Columbus, so if one of Samuelsson or Zellweger isn’t ready to play, expect a roster move in the next couple days.

Also:

• Goalie Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen (lower body) participated fully in practice and should be ready for Thursday. His exit from Saturday’s exhibition was precautionary.
• Goalie Alex Lyon (upper body) missed practice, but Ruff “would anticipate” he’ll be back on the ice within a few days.
• Forward Jiri Kulich (lower body) was back at practice taking reps on the fourth line and “felt good today.”

Krebs discusses contract

Krebs had expressed a desire to stay in Buffalo, and everything worked out for the restricted free agent this summer. His deal has an average annual value of $4.5 million and runs through 2029-30.

“Jarmo (Kekäläinen) and (Josh) Flynn made it really easy,” Krebs said of the negotiations. “… I was really happy just to be able to have some term on it, so I could really try to flourish with this group and make something special. It’s exciting.

“Really happy to be here for four more years. My daughter was obviously born here, and having another daughter here, so Buffalo is a special place for us.”

Practice sound

Up next

The Sabres and Blue Jackets face off Thursday at 7 p.m., with MSG’s pregame coverage starting at 6:30.