‘Pretty good's not good enough’ | Kekäläinen, Ruff set standard for 2026-27 Sabres

Last season was a big one for the Buffalo Sabres. They won a highly competitive Atlantic Division, returned to the playoffs and opened a window of Stanley Cup contention.

But they refuse to rest on those laurels as 2026 training camp gets underway.

“Complacency is the biggest pitfall right now for our team, thinking that we were pretty good last year – pretty good's not good enough,” general manager Jarmo Kekäläinen said Wednesday, pointing out that a Game 7 win over Montreal would’ve gotten the Sabres only halfway to their ultimate goal.

“Last season was last season. Now, we move forward, and if we, for one second, think that we can exhale now, that there's no more [playoff drought] hanging over our heads, that's not good. We need to focus on doing the right things, right from Day 1.”

The 2026-27 Sabres have a different look. Olen Zellweger and Louis Crevier came; Alex Tuch and Bowen Byram went. Zach Benson and Noah Ostlund, among others, signed contracts that make them core pieces for years to come. Depth additions like Conor Sheary and Dennis Gilbert re-enter the mix, too.

Practice officially begins Thursday, and while guys arrive to camp in playing shape these days, the clock’s ticking to get everyone in sync, finalize a 23-man roster and optimize the opening-night lineup before flying to Columbus for the Oct. 1 opener. The new CBA has Buffalo playing four preseason exhibitions next week, compared to last year’s six – crucial, yet limited reps for players battling for a roster spot or making up for lost time, like Jiri Kulich and Justin Danforth.

• ‘I felt like a ghost’ | Exclusive look at Kulich’s recovery from a blood clot
• Full 53-man training camp roster

“With a limited number of practice days,” coach Lindy Ruff said, “it’s (about) being ready for that first game when it hits us next month.”

A slow start didn’t end up costing the Sabres last fall, but this year might not be so forgiving. The expanded schedule kicks off with nine games in 17 days. Most of Buffalo’s Atlantic rivals made big additions to their rosters this summer – Brady Tkachuk in Florida, Sergei Bobrovsky in Toronto, John Carlson in Tampa, etc. It’ll be a six-month battle to keep pace in what’s, ask Kekäläinen, the NHL’s toughest division.

“Now everybody wants our head because we did well last year, and they know that we have a good team, so they’re coming after us,” the GM said. “We better be ready.”

“We’ve earned those expectations with the way we played, but expectations, they’re not going to win us games,” added Ruff. “How hard we work and how hard we compete, that’ll be the difference. But we’ve put ourselves in a position where we’ve got a standard, now, that we really like.”

The coaching staff has specific improvements in mind. After emphasizing the penalty kill a year ago – Buffalo had the NHL’s fourth-best kill in 2025-26 – they’re now prioritizing a power play that ranked 21st, converting at 19.5 percent. Ruff began to outline the plan there: keep the units more consistent, control the puck below the hashmarks, and take advice from Eric Staal.

Staal, officially a special assistant to Kekäläinen, scored 133 power-play goals (of 455 total) in 18 seasons as an NHL center. He’ll be “basically an assistant coach,” Ruff said, sharing wisdom on the man advantage and faceoffs as the Sabres try patch those holes up.

In summary, things should look different with this team, and another playoff appearance won’t come easily. But the Sabres are back on the ice and ready for the challenge.

“We have an incredible amount of work to do ahead of us,” Ruff said.

Here’s more from Kekäläinen’s and Ruff’s camp-opening press conferences.

Injury updates

Forward Jason Zucker has been dealing with a sports hernia injury and “could miss maybe a couple weeks of the regular season,” per Kekäläinen.

“It’s another player’s opportunity,” Ruff said.

• Bookmark our injuries and transactions page for roster updates all season long.

Crevier, the 6-foot-8 defenseman acquired from Chicago in June, underwent offseason shoulder surgery. Pending approval from his surgeon, he should be ready in time for Oct. 1. Otherwise, the Sabres begin camp in good health.

Contract commitments

Ostlund’s productive rookie season and promising two-way play, and the front office’s projections, led the Sabres to offer him an eight-year contract extension, which he signed Monday.

“Even though it could seem like a short window (68 games) to see what he's done in the NHL, he was a first-round pick for a reason,” Kekäläinen said. “… We really, really believe in him, and we think he's only going to get better. So just like with Josh Doan and Zach Benson, we wanted to get ahead of it so that we have these guys locked up in our core.”

Ostlund is owed $6.6 million a year through 2034-35. Benson ($7.5 million AAV) and Doan ($6.95 million) are both signed through 2032-33. Tage Thompson’s a bargain at $7.14 million through 2029-30. Rasmus Dahlin makes $11 million. Overall, the Sabres have several key players on affordable contracts that should look even better as the cap keeps rising.

Those contracts show a commitment to the organization and a confidence in the coming years.

“I think it’s awesome,” Ruff said, also citing Beck Malenstyn’s six-year deal. “… They want to be here. They feel this is a good hockey club that’s moving in the right direction.”

Summer strength

Sabres players weren’t out of sight or mind this summer, even if they spent those months overseas. Kekäläinen visited Ostlund in Stockholm, Dahlin in Gothenburg and Konsta Helenius in Finland to check in on their training. Director of performance Brian Galivan worked out with Kulich and Radim Mrtka in Czechia. Head strength coach Jake Nitsche met up with Benson in British Columbia.

“We're all trying to make sure that the players know that we’re very interested and hands-on with their development,” Kekäläinen said.

Ostlund added some muscle weight, which should help him all over the ice as a center. With an assist from Sabres staff, young players like him can make major developmental strides in just one offseason.

“Our staff has done an incredible job of identifying, ‘This is how you’re going to do it, this is how you’re going to be better,’” Ruff said. “I know I’ve been around players in the past that you push to get stronger, and all of a sudden, they become robotic or they become stiff. They’re too top heavy or their skating becomes a little rigid. We’re trying to stay away from that part. I think our training is excellent when it comes to trying to stay in the right lane for the players.”

Up next

The Sabres hit the ice Thursday morning, so stay tuned to Sabres.com for full coverage of that and all training camp sessions.