More confident than ever, Sabres' Kozak nears return to lineup

Much-needed reinforcements are on the way for the Buffalo Sabres’ injury-depleted forward group.

Tyson Kozak, who suffered a lower-body injury in the Oct. 24 win versus Toronto, was a full participant in Wednesday’s practice at KeyBank Center. He could be activated off injured reserve for Thursday’s game against St. Louis, per coach Lindy Ruff.

The second-year center was playing some of the best hockey of his young career before the injury, having scored a goal in back-to-back games while continuing his rock-solid defensive work.

“It definitely sucks, but those things happen,” he said. “Pretty much everybody goes through it, so I just try to stay positive. Luckily, it wasn’t going to be a long-term thing, so I knew I was gonna be back relatively quickly. It’s good to be back with everybody.”

After that second goal, in a win over Detroit, Ruff said he “has confidence to play [Kozak] against anybody,” and his usage backs that up; early in the season, he’s handled matchups against the likes of Nathan MacKinnon, Tim Stutzle, Ivan Demidov and Dylan Larkin.

Overall, during Kozak’s 54:19 of 5-on-5 ice time, the Sabres have outscored their opponents 2-0 while leading 12-6 in high-danger scoring chances and controlling 61.9 percent of the expected goals, per Natural Stat Trick.

“He defends quickly, he gets into people; he’s not a big guy, but physically, he can overwhelm somebody low,” Ruff added Wednesday. “He just thinks he can play pretty well against anybody, and his speed is up there with our top guys. Those two qualities put you in a category where you can close on people in a hurry, and then you can physically separate them (from the puck).”

“Obviously it feels good to have the coach’s trust,” Kozak said. “I think coming into last season definitely helped me gain a little confidence, too, just knowing that I can play in this league.”

The former seventh-round pick recalls plenty of nerves when he debuted last Dec. 5 – exactly 11 months ago. His teammates’ support, and his strong play in 28 NHL games, have helped him settle into the top level, and now he appears to have earned a regular spot in Buffalo’s lineup.

All the Sabres’ current injuries could give Kozak a bump from his usual fourth-line minutes, which would mean more shifts to make his usual 200-foot impact and make his presence known around (and beyond) the league.

“I had a lot of people send me that,” Kozak said of the Shaquille O'Neal shoutout on TNT. “No, I never thought my name would come out of that guy’s mouth."

Here’s more from Wednesday’s practice.

Wednesday’s practice lines

Some notes on the lines:

• Mattias Samuelsson sat out for a recovery day but is expected to play Thursday. The defensive pairs rotated in his absence.
• Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen occupied the starter’s net, suggesting he could face St. Louis for his third start of the season.
• Tage Thompson replaced Josh Doan on the line with Alex Tuch and Ryan McLeod. Thompson, tied for the team lead with five goals, has played with a rotating cast of linemates this season while Josh Norris, Zach Benson, Jason Zucker and Jiri Kulich have dealt with injuries or other issues.

Norris progressing

Speaking of Norris, he’s started skating and is “progressing” in his upper-body injury rehab, Ruff said. The injury occurred four weeks ago on opening night versus New York.

“He’s not in that ‘feeling great’ category yet, but he’s feeling better,” Ruff added. “And (we) really just want to keep progressing him with no setbacks.

“… The better he feels, the more we can keep doing with him.”

• Injuries and transactions | Latest on Norris, Kulich, Zucker, Benson, others

Checking in on the goalies

Buffalo continues to carry three goalies on its roster. During practices, the projected starter typically has a net to himself, while the other two guys share the other one.

No pattern has emerged, yet, in how Ruff has balanced their playing time, but each has done his job when called upon. Here’s how they performed in their most recent starts:

Alex Lyon – Nov. 4 vs. UTA: Overtime loss, 2 goals against, .943 save percentage

Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen – Nov. 1 vs. WSH: Shootout win, 3 goals against, .912 save percentage

Colten Ellis – Oct. 22 vs. DET: Win, 2 goals against, .935 save percentage

The Sabres have gotten a combined .905 save percentage this season, seventh best in the league, helping keep them in the thick of the Atlantic Division standings.

“Just keep them all playing well – that’s my challenge,” Ruff said. “It’s a good problem to have. It’s not easy to navigate for them; it’s not easy to navigate for myself. But I know that all three of them have been a big part of getting us going in the right direction and putting points on the scoresheet every night.”

Up next

The Sabres wrap up their three-game homestand Thursday versus St. Louis. It’s the first of seven “Throwback Thursday” games this season, which means black and red uniforms for Buffalo.

Tickets are available here.

MSG’s pregame coverage begins at 6:30 p.m. before puck drop at 7.