Storylines
1. Deadline deals
The Sabres were busy ahead of Friday’s deadline.
They acquired from Ottawa a pair of former first-round picks in the 25-year-old forward Norris and 24-year-old defenseman Bernard-Docker. In exchange, the Senators received Cozens, Gilbert and the Sabres’ second-round pick in the 2026 NHL Draft.
“He’s a 200-foot center – very, very talented, responsible on both sides of the puck,” Adams said of Norris, who’s scored 20 goals and won 53.8 percent of his faceoffs this season. “We think [he’s] going to be a guy that can come in, give us a boost and make the guys around him better.”
The Sabres also inked Jason Zucker and Greenway to two-year extensions running through the 2026-27 season. The forwards, who had both voiced their desire to stay in Buffalo, will continue setting an example for the team’s younger players with their veteran leadership and hard-nosed games.
Defenseman Henri Jokiharju, traded to Boston, netted a 2025 fourth-round draft pick. The deal ends Jokiharju’s six-season, 351-game tenure in Buffalo.
And Buffalo acquired defenseman Erik Brannstrom from the Rangers in exchange for forward Nicolas Aube-Kubel. Adams said Brannstrom will join the Rochester Americans (AHL).
2. Goals against
Buffalo has been outscored 25-14 in their last five games, with goalies Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen and James Reimer combining for an .839 save percentage during that span. On multiple occasions during the skid, Ruff has made it clear he wants more from his netminders.
“I think we need a save,” Ruff said following Thursday’s 6-5 loss, which saw Tampa Bay’s Andrei Vasilevskiy struggle as well before tightening up in the third period to defend a late Lightning lead.
That said, Luukkonen found himself on the wrong end of some bad breaks in that game, as three of Tampa Bay’s goals redirected off Sabres defensemen on their way into the net. And a similar bounce got past Reimer for a Canadiens goal Monday.
3. Scouting the Panthers
The season series heads south after the Sabres and Panthers traded 5-2 wins in October at KeyBank Center. Prior to those games, Florida had beaten Buffalo in four straight matchups.
Florida’s first big deadline move sent goalie Spencer Knight and a first-round pick to Chicago for defenseman Seth Jones. Saturday will mark the third game with the Panthers for Jones, who’s skated on a pair with Niko Mikkola and averaged 20:40 of ice time in two wins.
They also acquired Brad Marchand from Boston, who’s week-to-week with an upper-body injury, as well as San Jose’s Vitek Vanecek to be their new backup goalie.
The Panthers have won five straight games and 10 of their last 12 since Jan. 29, allowing an NHL-low 1.67 goals per game – with a .946 save percentage from Sergei Bobrovsky – during that span.
Florida is without forward Matthew Tkachuk, who suffered a groin injury during the 4 Nations Face-Off and isn’t expected to return during the regular season.
