Game Preview | 5 things to know ahead of Sabres vs. Blue Jackets

Jack Quinn will make his season debut for the Buffalo Sabres when the team hosts the Columbus Blue Jackets on Tuesday night at KeyBank Center.

Quinn will make his return to the ice following offseason surgery to repair an injured Achilles tendon.

“I’m excited to get back out there. It’s been a long wait,” he said. “I feel 100%.”

The 22-year-old shared how important it was to remain patient during each step of his recovery to guarantee the best result.

“I think that was the biggest thing in this recovery was kind of not pushing it,” Quinn said. “Just with, you know, the risk of kind of coming back too early. So again, I talked about the patience. You want to do more, but you can’t really until the proper time is given.”

The Sabres will kick off WinterFest against Columbus with a “Woo-ville” theme. The first 10,000 fans in attendance will receive a unique holiday-themed poster.

For more information on WinterFest, click here.

Tickets are available here.

Pregame coverage on MSG/MSG+ begins at 6:30 p.m. with puck drop scheduled for 7. Radio coverage can be found on WGR 550.

Here are five things to know ahead of puck drop.

1. Projected lineup

Alex Tuch will be in the lineup against the Blue Jackets after taking a maintenance day on Monday, coach Don Granato announced.

Jordan Greenway (upper body) participated in the morning skate but is not yet ready to go. Granato also shared that forwards Jeff Skinner (upper body) and Zemgus Girgensons (lower body) are both progressing as they recover from their injuries.

Here are the projected lines based on morning skate:

9 Zach Benson – 72 Tage Thompson – 89 Alex Tuch

37 Casey Mittelstadt – 24 Dylan Cozens – 77 JJ Peterka

50 Eric Robinson – 19 Peyton Krebs – 21 Kyle Okposo

22 Jack Quinn – 17 Tyson Jost – 71 Victor Olofsson

2. In the crease

Devon Levi was the first goaltender off the ice and is expected to make his fifth start since being recalled from the Rochester Americans on Dec. 5.

Levi has posted a 3-0-1 record and .942 save percentage since his return to Buffalo, stopping 114 of 121 shots, including 33 saves in the Sabres’ 5-2 win over the Vegas Golden Knights on Friday.

Granato emphasized how fresh Levi looks after having time to reset and decompress in Rochester.

“Just the fact that getting away for a couple days, it shows you the impact of just being able to decompress, being able to step back, being able to just, you know, get fresh,” Granato said.

“When you’re in the NHL season, you stand here in front of you guys every day and fans every day and you travel and the grind is over and over and over – not to say you guys are a grind by any means – but point being you back out and he can go to Rochester and reset and take a breath and recalibrate, whatever it is, and he’s fresh.”

3. Quinn on the PK

Quinn rotated in on the Sabres’ penalty kill unit during morning skate and will appear on the PK versus Columbus, Granato said.

In 2022-23, Quinn logged 42:28 of shorthanded ice time. He will be able to step in as the Sabres are still without two of their top penalty killers in Greenway and Girgensons.

“He will kill tonight,” Granato said. “It fits with what I said, he’s one of our most intelligent players at feel for the game and situations. He can jump right in on that. He will jump in on that.”

4. Robinson plays former team

Eric Robinson will face off against his former team for the first time since being acquired in a trade with the Blue Jackets on Dec. 6.

Robinson has recorded three points (1+2) in six games with the Sabres, including a three-point performance to help lead Buffalo to a 5-2 victory over the Arizona Coyotes on Dec. 11.

Following the morning skate, Robinson reflected on what this game means to him.

“It’s got a little extra meaning, I think,” he said. “It’ll be a bit weird. It hasn’t been that long, obviously. But once the puck drops, you kind of got to turn that off and just focus on the job at hand.

“They gave me a chance to play in the NHL, something that I never could’ve dreamed of doing. So, yeah, always grateful for that organization and a lot of good people in that organization as well.”

5. Scouting the Blue Jackets

Columbus enters the first of three meetings with the Sabres this season with a 10-17-5 record.

Defenseman Zach Werenski leads the Blue Jackets with 23 points (1+22) in 30 games while Yegor Chinakhov has recorded seven points (5+2) in his last four games, including at least one goal in each contest.

Daniil Tarasov is expected to start in goal for the Blue Jackets with Elvis Merzlikins backing up.