Mike Harrington
Sports Columnist
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You only need to watch Owen Power skating at Sabres camp for a few seconds to see there’s no lingering effect from the knee injury he suffered late last season. The former No. 1 overall pick is flying around the ice, showing zero effects of the collision he had in April with Florida’s Carter Verhaeghe.
“I think whether I was coming off the rehab or not, it’s nice to get out there and start getting some real practices and just start competing with all the guys,” Power said after practice Friday in KeyBank Center. “I feel good. I think the body feels really good. Feet feel a little quicker. So I definitely feel good. And I think some of the stuff I did in the summer really helped for sure.”
The injury looked rough on replays, like it could have caused serious damage to the knee. But Power found out by the end of the season he only needed rest and recovery, not surgery. He started skating fully by mid-July and was able to have a normal summer of training.
Power said he was off the ice longer after a season than essentially any time in his hockey career since he was a youth. Power’s ice time has averaged 22:39 per game in his career, so some extra summer rest had to be a benefit, especially coming off the injury.
Sabres defenseman Rasmus Dahlin discusses the health scare his fiancée, Carolina Matovac, endured this summer in Europe, which resulted in Matovac receiving a heart transplant.
“Obviously you get a little antsy,” he admitted. “But I think it was a good thing that I kind of gave my body the rest, my hips and obviously the knee. So I think at the end of the day, it helped me.”
It sure looks that way now.
“He’s moving really well,” said coach Lindy Ruff. “He was anxious late June to get on the ice, but was still being held off and great to see. He is really moving good now. His injury is healed, and he feels great out there.”
The Sabres are expecting a better all-around game from Power this year as he matures into his fourth full NHL season at age 23, and because of the acquisition of his new partner Michael Kesselring, the 6-foot-5 right-hander acquired from Utah in the JJ Peterka trade.
But let’s not forget their respective billings. Power was the No. 1 overall pick in 2021, has played 242 career NHL games and has an $8.3 million annual contract that runs through 2031. Kesselring was a sixth-rounder in 2018 who has played 156 career games and is entering the final year of a deal that pays $1.4 million.
Kesselring will give Power a consistent partner, something the Sabres have failed to do with Power thus far in what’s proved to be a major misstep from general manager Kevyn Adams that apparently was rectified this offseason.
Alex Tuch: “Everyone in here knows I love Buffalo. I love being a Buffalo Sabre, and I would love to be here long term.”
“It’s impressive how big he is and how well he moves,” Power said of the 215-pound Kesselring. “His footwork is so good and then he’s also really good with the puck as well. I’ve been impressed with him and I’m excited for him to be here. I’ve enjoyed playing with him the two skates we’ve had so far. The way he’s able to defend with his feet and skate with the puck has been great. It will be nice to get some game action with him and really dial in some stuff.”
Ruff has put his NHL defense pairs together from the opening day of camp. And while he said there will be times where game situations might dictate a change in pairs to either a more offensive- or defensive-oriented duo, it’s clear that the Power-Kesselring tandem that was the talk of the summer as soon as the trade happened is going to play out in the fall.
“You can develop some chemistry. You can read off each other. You know what to expect when you play with somebody,” Ruff said. “I think part is just understanding situations in a game with yourself and your partner. Where are your outs? How can I help my partner? It’s usually your partner and that down-low forward that are the guys that are communicating or getting open for each other to break pucks out to and to defend.
“You come back to the bench, and you can talk about plays. There are things that your partner might be better at than you. And when you’re going back for pucks and you almost instantly know what your partner is going to do, I think it’s an advantage.”
Power is coming off a season where he had career highs in the three main offensive categories (seven goals, 33 assists and 40 points) but had plenty of problems defensively. He was a minus player for the first time in his NHL career at minus-13 even though he was a 51.4% Corsi player at 5 on 5.
Buffalo Sabres forward Tage Thompson scored the golden goal in the IIHF World Championships in May for the United States. In his ninth NHL season, he wants to win with the Sabres.
Despite those good possession numbers, there were plenty of scoring chances to be had for opponents when Power was on the ice. Buffalo foes had 54% of the high danger chances, according to Natural Stat Trick, and Sabres goalies had an overall save percentage of just .893 behind Power.
“To be able to be a real good defenseman in this league, you have to be able to defend,” Ruff said. “Even the top guys. Norris Trophy guys are good defenders. They get lots of points, but they’re good defenders at the same time. And I think that consistency from Owen, we saw some really good stretches of that. I think it’s just trying to be consistent with that throughout the year.”
Positionally, Power has been where he needs to be most of the time. His puck awareness and physicality around the ice have been trouble spots.
NHL and AHL players weren’t mixed together like they normally are at the start of training camp and Sabres coach Lindy Ruff acknowledged the decision came with a purpose.
“It starts with the details,” he said. “I know I’ve got to be more physical. But if I’m going to just try and run around and my stick’s not in the right spots and I’m not in the right spot, it’s not really going to do much. Focus on the details, and everything else comes from there.
“The less you play defense, the more you’re able to play offense. So I think if I’m able to kill more plays and kill them earlier, it’ll help my all-around game.”
Kershaw overshadows Kopitar’s call
Kings captain Anze Kopitar is one of the most underrated superstars in the game, a two-time Stanley Cup winner who has won the Selke Trophy twice as the league’s top defensive forward and the Lady Byng three times for gentlemanly play. As soon as he’s eligible, he’s going into the Hockey Hall of Fame.
So when the Kings gave word of a major announcement coming on Thursday, speculation proved correct that the 38-year-old Kopitar would reveal this is going to be his final season. But true to his nature, Kopitar’s decision ended up taking a back seat to the whirlwind reveal that Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw also was announcing his retirement Thursday – and that his final start in the City of Angels was coming the next night against the San Francisco Giants.
Kopitar and Kershaw have become friends and even shared a Sports Illustrated cover in 2014. Kopitar needs just 30 points to pass Marcel Dionne and became the Kings’ all-time scoring leader.
“I guess it’s kind of funny how everything works out like that,” Kopitar said. “It must have been something in the universe for us to decide to do it together this day. It was actually perfect for me. Now I can fly under the radar. Obviously he’s a world-class ballplayer, and he deserves all the recognition he’s getting and will get.”
Kopitar said he didn’t want his status to be a distraction for the Kings and is fully engaged for the upcoming season after he collected 21 goals and 67 points last season. The Kings have lost in the first round to Edmonton for four straight seasons and are 0-6 in the postseason since their 2014 Stanley Cup victory over the New York Rangers.
Cozens is ‘Rich Cous’
Appearing on a Sportsnet video while playing NHL 26, Ottawa captain Brady Tkachuk helped his team to a video-game victory over the Florida Panthers on an overtime goal by old friend Dylan Cozens.
Tkachuk then revealed the Sens’ players playfully call the former Sabres center “Rich Cous” and refer to veteran teammate Nick Cousins as “Poor Cous.”
Cozens, of course, is on Year 3 of the seven-year, $49.1 million extension he signed with the Sabres on Feb. 7, 2023. Meanwhile Cousins, 32, signed a one-year, $825,000 deal with the Sens in June and has never played with a cap hit of higher than $1.5 million for any season.
Around the boards
Washington’s Alex Ovechkin turned 40 on Wednesday and Pittsburgh’s Evgeni Malkin turned 39 on July 31. No official word from either yet that they will follow Kopitar into retirement, although speculation is rife with both in the final years of their contracts.
As part of the celebration of their 70th anniversary, the Rochester Amerks will wear specialty jerseys to honor different eras of their history, beginning with 1950s-era sweaters on opening night against Toronto on Oct. 10 in Blue Cross Arena.
The club will honor the 1960s on Nov. 28 vs. Syracuse, the ’70s on Dec. 27 vs. Cleveland, the ’80s on Jan. 30 vs. Hershey, the ’90s on Feb. 20 vs. Laval, and the 2000s on April 17 vs. Cleveland. The Amerks also announced their fifth annual Bills Day will be March 22 against Hartford, with the team wearing Bills-themed jerseys.
The NHL preseason schedule starts Monday and will come at teams fast. By this time next week, the Sabres will have played four of their six exhibition games. They open with a home-and-home set against Columbus on Monday in Nationwide Arena and Tuesday in KeyBank Center, and have a set with Detroit on Thursday in Little Caesars Arena and Saturday in KeyBank.
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Mike Harrington
Sports Columnist
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