'A day at a time' | Shorthanded Sabres look ahead to road trip

The Buffalo Sabres could use a break on the health and injury front, but it didn’t come Monday.

Forward Jiri Kulich, who’s missed the last three games, is dealing with a blood clot that will sideline him for a “significant” amount of time, Lindy Ruff said after practice. Buffalo’s coach does expect his 21-year-old center to return at some point this season.

“I’m gonna say yes, but that really depends on how things go here in the next three, four weeks,” Ruff said.

The team remains without Jason Zucker, too, as he continues to deal with illness. Like Kulich, Zucker last played Nov. 1 versus Washington – Buffalo’s most recent win.

“Real severe, viral, flu-like thing that he hasn’t been able to shake,” Ruff said. “Undergone a lot of tests and still isn’t doing that well.”

Zach Benson, meanwhile, missed another practice as he recovers from a lower-body injury. The team hasn’t yet decided if the winger will join them for the three-game road trip with stops in Utah, Colorado and Detroit.

So, for now, the Sabres will have to get by without Kulich, Zucker and Benson, who’ve combined for seven goals and 13 assists when healthy this season, as well as forwards Josh Norris (upper body) and Justin Danforth (lower body).

“The chips are down, and those are the times you have to be at your best,” said goaltender Alex Lyon. “You have to push through it and just can’t give yourself any excuses."

Buffalo’s blue line, meanwhile, needs to fill in for captain Rasmus Dahlin, who took a leave of absence to attend to a personal matter in Sweden. The first game without him, Saturday in Carolina, saw guys like Mattias Samuelsson (23:35), Owen Power (22:08) and Conor Timmins (20:22) handle heavy workloads on the back end. Jacob Bryson entered the lineup and skated 13:22.

“Obviously a huge role to fill, so guys are playing more minutes, and as a group, we’ve all got to step up and try and do our best at filling in for our best player,” Power said.

“… You’re not trying to be the person that’s out of the lineup, but more so just the best version of yourself.”

That mentality will prove essential for the Sabres to find success until those key pieces return to the lineup. At 5-6-4, including 0-3-2 on the road, they know they can’t wait to find their footing while the Eastern Conference standings begin to separate.

“We’re taking it a day at a time right now, but for sure, I think the desperation is going to kick in here,” Lyon said. “We’re going to have to start playing desperate.”

Here’s more from Monday’s practice.

Monday’s practice lines

Samuelsson took another maintenance day after his busy night Saturday; he’s expected to play Wednesday against the Mammoth.

Ruff said he’s yet to decide on his sixth defenseman for Wednesday’s game. Bryson played well Saturday and offers a steady 5-on-5 game, while Zac Jones leads AHL defensemen with 13 points and could factor into the power play.

Dahlin skates in Sweden

Though away from the team, Dahlin is doing his best to stay game-ready. On Monday, he skated at Frolunda’s rink in Gothenburg, Sweden, where he once made his professional debut as a teenager.

“He said he was taking his stuff and was going to skate, and when he gets back, he’s ready to go,” Ruff said. “I think that’s the competitor in him.”

Ellis’ upcoming encore

Ruff shared that goalie Colten Ellis will play at some point during the three-game trip. His last game action came Oct. 22, his NHL debut, when he made 29 saves to beat the Red Wings.

Up next

The Sabres begin their road trip Wednesday night at Utah. Puck drop is scheduled for 9 p.m. EST, with MSG’s pregame coverage starting at 8:30.