Camp Notebook | Benson eager to benefit from offseason skating program

Zach Benson was candid when reflecting on his second season with the Sabres.

“I didn’t like my year last year,” Benson said Monday, following the fourth day of training camp practices at KeyBank Center.

That sense of unfulfillment after posting 10 goals and 18 assists in 75 games in 2024-25 fueled an offseason containing more intentionality and purpose – and, notably, a new skating program.

The program centered around speed skating, agility and learning the nuances of how to move within his 5-foot-10, 177-pound frame – now seven pounds stronger than his listed weight from last season. Benson trained with fellow 2023 first-round pick and WHL product Connor Bedard, who shared a similar approach in getting faster.

“It was a lot of how to move in my body and get what I need to get the force to put on the ice,” Benson said.

Benson’s program in Vancouver specialized in teaching how to maximize different movements and mechanics, emphasizing that every individual has a unique style. Benson took an affinity for the program after learning it from fellow British Columbia native Kent Johnson who did it previously – leading to his breakout 2024-25 season with 57 points in 68 games.

In addition to learning how to best use his body, Benson was intentional about developing his shot.

The shot, which coach Lindy Ruff said is noticeably improved, was on display Monday right from the first drill, when Benson ripped a low glove wrist shot past the goaltender.

“With my shot, I think every little detail in the practices that I skated this summer, every time I shot the puck, I wanted to score,” Benson said. “I think past summers, you kind of just go out there, you're shooting the puck. This year I really worked on the details of placing the puck where I want to put it and just the want to score.”

Benson has already established himself as a tenacious, defensively reliable forward so far in his young NHL career. Now, he wants to build on the offensive promise he’s flashed since junior (including a between-the-legs shot for his first NHL goal).

He’s been given an opportunity to do so at the outset of camp, skating on the top line alongside Josh Norris and Tage Thompson. The trio skated 13:29 together at 5-on-5 last season before Norris suffered a season-ending oblique injury.

Benson sees his role on the line as an energy player who will pair well with two elite shooters, adding that it’s his job to get Norris and Thompson the puck in high-danger areas to generate scoring chances.

“He's a funny, interesting dude,” Norris said of Benson. “He’s extremely skilled, and I think he’s one of those guys that can make a play happen out of nothing. He’s really good in tight and just has a really good mind for the game and spatial awareness. He’s a guy that’s, to me, easy to read off of, and as a centerman, to have a winger be able to make little in-tight plays, it makes my job easier.”

Here’s more from Day 4 of Sabres camp.

Monday's practice lines

While one group of players departed for Monday's preseason opener in Columbus, two others stayed back in Buffalo for practice. Here's how the main practice group lined up:

The smaller, second practice group consisted of forwards Matteo Costantini, Trevor Kuntar, Olivier Nadeau, Redmond Savage, and Graham Slaggert; defensemen Isaac Belliveau, Aidan Fulp, and Noah Laberge; and goaltender Ryerson Leenders.

Ruff shares preseason goalie plan

Ruff announced that newly signed netminder Alexandar Georgiev will get the start in the Sabres' preseason opener in Columbus on Monday. Georgiev will play first the two periods before giving way to Devon Levi for the third.

Alex Lyon is expected to play two periods at home against Columbus on Tuesday. Levi will also play the third period in that game.

Monday’s game will mark Georgiev’s first in a Sabres uniform after the goaltender signed a one-year deal earlier this month.

“He’s just got to use this platform,” said Ruff, who previously coached Georgiev with the Rangers. “I think it’s an opportunity for him to say, ‘I can be a goaltender that can really help you guys out.’ Every opportunity that he gets is a statement that he’s gonna make to us.”

Peyton Krebs, the “Swiss army knife”

Peyton Krebs has played 161 of a possible 164 games over the last two seasons for the Sabres and is coming off a career-high 10 goals and 28 points.

Krebs is slotted as the second-line center alongside Beck Malenstyn and Justin Danforth for Monday’s contest with the Blue Jackets. The 24-year-old has impressed Ruff as a jack-of-all-trades style player who can be utilized in an array of situations.

“He’s a guy that played almost every position,” Ruff said. “Some penalty killing, at times we used him a little bit on power play. We’ve used him top line, we’ve used him in the middle, we’ve used him on right wing. He’s like my Swiss army knife that I can just flip out a different blade at any time and let him go at it.”

Up next

The Sabres are back in action on the road for their first preseason game of the year Monday night against the Blue Jackets at 7 p.m. Read up on the preseason opener here.