Dahlin Injury Update, Ryan Johnson Promoted on Day 2 of Sabres Training Camp

The Buffalo Sabres stuck with the same structure at training camp Thursday, rolling out the presumed NHL roster in the first skate of the morning. Rasmus Dahlin was absent from the group, which saw a new face join in his place on the backend.

In the first session, Ryan Johnson, who played half of the 2023-2024 season in Buffalo, worked with Dennis Gilbert as a defense pair. Jacob Bryson, who worked with Gilbert yesterday, paired with Connor Clifton in a familiar spot from last season.

The pecking order of the defense was well defined as Bowen Byram was promoted to Dahlin’s initial spot with Owen Power. Mattias Samuelsson worked with Henri Jokiharju on the second pair.

Johnson made the most of his opportunity to impress in practice, completing a crafty spin pass and showcasing his usual steady, fluid movement.

Based on the groupings, it’s fair to assume Johnson is ahead of players with previous NHL experience like Kale Clague and Jack Rathbone on the depth chart.

Dahlin Injury Update

Head coach Lindy Ruff began his media availability Thursday addressing Rasmus Dahlin’s absence. “He’ll probably miss a couple days of practice, so nothing too serious,” Ruff said.

That’s good news for the Sabres after a nearly doomsday scenario presented itself on the first day of training camp.

More: Dahlin Injury, Intense Practice Highlight Day 1 of Sabres Training Camp

Offensive Drills

While the practice wasn’t as exhausting as yesterday, that doesn’t mean it wasn’t effective. The focus on backchecking and breakouts was still there, but rush offense became a point of focus from the coaching staff.

“We added the offensive part, where we’ve got people driving through, backing people up, getting to the net, trying to get inside, trying to get people on top of the goal,” Ruff said. “When you look at the type of drills we did, the ability to score what we call dirty goals…can add to the value of our offense.”

Sabres Training Camp Lines

The bottom six forwards wore white today and saw everyone mix and match throughout the drills. Peyton Krebs looks like the early favorite to be the extra forward of the bunch, although the Sabres coaching staff is not shy to give him a run with the third and fourth lines.

Here’s how the lines and pairs looked, based on the skate:

Forwards

JJ Peterka – Tage Thompson – Alex Tuch

Zach Benson / Jiri Kulich – Dylan Cozens – Jack Quinn

Jason Zucker – Ryan McLeod – Jordan Greenway

Beck Malenstyn – Sam Lafferty / Peyton Krebs – Nicolas Aube-Kubel

Defense

Owen Power – Bowen Byram

Mattias Samuelsson – Henri Jokiharju

Jacob Bryson – Connor Clifton

Ryan Johnson – Dennis Gilbert

Goaltenders

Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen

Devon Levi

Roster Update: Sabres Depth Chart Update Heading into Training Camp

Sabres Training Camp Goalies

The goaltending situation remained the same on day two, with only Luukkonen and Levi working in the first session. James Reimer has yet to work with the main group in training camp. This designates him as the third goalie on the depth chart.

He will likely join the team in Europe since they can carry three goaltenders, but he seems destined for waivers and, subsequently, AHL Rochester at this point.