Lyubushkin returns to practice, will join team for road trip

Ilya Lyubushkin practiced with the Sabres on Thursday and will join the team for their back-to-back road trip to Carolina and Tampa Bay. The team will evaluate how he responds to practice before determining his playing status for the game against the Hurricanes on Friday.
"It sounds like, from the medical side, there's reason to be encouraged," Sabres coach Don Granato said. "But now that he's on the ice and went full-go I'll have a conversation with him and see how it goes."
Lyubushkin sustained a lower-body injury in Edmonton on October 18. He played three games after the injury but has sat out the last three contests.

The team also offered an update on defenseman Henri Jokiharju, who has missed six games since sustaining a facial fracture in Calgary on October 20. Jokiharju is progressing and participated in two rehab skates but will not make the trip. He could join the team for practice next week.
Here are more notes from Thursday's practice at KeyBank Center.
1. Owen Power ranks second among NHL rookie defensemen with five points after his two-assist night on Thursday and first among all rookies in average ice time (22:29).
He assessed the win over the Penguins as his best game of the young season because of his defensive play, specifically his gapping.
"For him, if we're talking about a component of being a defenseman … he studies it," Granato said. "He'll sit down with the coaches postgame, he'll ask questions and he'll review film on his own and then review film with the coaches. And he's in a routine of that."

2. The Sabres kicked off their moms' trip during their home game against the Penguins, welcoming moms and other guests of players to a suite for the come-from-behind win. The guests were back in the building for practice prior to departing for Raleigh.
"It's a lot of really good energy to have the moms on the trip, and it's a tough trip for them," Granato said. "It's a couple of late nights with back-to-back games and a late return. But, yeah, it's exciting to have them. I think the guys are excited and you certainly feel a good energy."

3.The Sabres went 3-1-0 during their four-game homestand that concluded Thursday, outshooting opponents by a cumulative tally of 169-99.
Next up: a back-to-back set against two of the premier teams in the Eastern Conference. The Hurricanes finished last season with 116 points to earn a fourth straight playoff berth. The Lightning are the three-time reigning Eastern Conference champions.
"It's different when you're on the road because you have greater swings of momentum, but for us it's all the same," Granato said. "We still need to go through as much challenge and adversity as possible so it's a great opportunity to play two teams on this trip that are very accomplished teams that have the aspiration, rightly so, to win the Stanley Cup this year.
"The task presents a great opportunity for us to find out about ourselves and find out where we need to improve next. Our guys, they're excited just for the challenge. I know our guys are."
The game on Friday can be streamed exclusively on ESPN+. Dan Dunleavy and Rob Ray will have the radio call on WGR 550.