Buffalo, N.Y. (WGR 550) – The Buffalo Sabres held their Blue and Gold scrimmage on Sunday with goaltending dominating the night.
In two full periods, only Ryan MacInnis scored when he was allowed in on Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen. Craig Anderson, Aaron Dell and Dustin Tokarski all had a shutout in their one period of work.
When they went to 3-on-3 action, Victor Olofsson took a turnover and roofed it on Luukkonen. Olofsson had some good chances throughout the evening.
Sabres head coach Don Granato thinks Olofsson is improving, because of what he’s doing in practice
“With Victor, he’s practicing with more intent,” Granato said following's Sunday's scrimmage.
Olofsson has not been good at all 5-on-5 in his short NHL career. Ralph Krueger and Granato have continued to put him out their in the top-six at even strength. and he rarely produces. Only 15 of Olofsson’s 35 goals have come at even strength.
Granato has challenged the Swedish winger to be better this upcoming season.
“He’s identified that, and his intention has changed," Granato said. "He looks different physically. I think he trained differently with the mindset that he wants to challenge himself in that area, and we need more out of him [at] 5-on-5. He’s more capable than what he’s produced and we believe in that, so we’ll push him.”
Olofsson realizes that this is a big problem for him. He knows he has to continue work on it improving his play at even strength.
“I’ve just got to keep finding the space out there 5-on-5," Olofsson said following the scrimmage. "I feel like I’ve got to get more shots off, get more dirty goals, get more around the net, tips and rebounds, and I think those are the goals that I’m missing right now. So I’ve just got to get a little bit dirtier and grind a little bit more in those areas.”
The 26-year-old realizes that this is no longer Jack Eichel’s team aided by Sam Reinhart, Jake McCabe, Linus Ullmark and Rasmus Ristolainen. It’s on him and the younger guys, and he likes that idea.
“That’s all we can focus on, and we’ve got to step up and take more responsibility both on and off the ice. I’m super excited," Olofsson said. "I feel like we have a great group of guys, and we’re really hungry. So I can’t wait for the season.”
Tage Thompson had his stick on the puck a lot in the scrimmage and had numerous opportunities. Granato believes a change in his practice habits has made Thompson a much better player.
“With him, and Jeff Skinner, their practice habits needed to improve," Granato said. "With [Thompson], it’s practice habits. With him, we see a lot of what happens in games happened in practice, both good and bad. That’s part of becoming a pro. For players that play that way, every practice matters. Every shot is on net where it should be, and I think that lags behind sometimes. With Tage, he’s in part with that process.”
Skinner has been in a two-season scoring slump. Many thought it was because he wasn’t playing with Eichel, but in his last 30 games playing on Eichel’s line, Skinner has scored just four goals.
Granato has a good idea on why that is.
“We talked about Jeff Skinner the other day, his practice habits have changed completely," Granato explained. "You can see him targeting things that he wants to get done in a game.”
The Sabres will have two practice sessions in training camp on Monday, and then it’s off to Columbus on Tuesday for the team’s first preseason game against the Blue Jackets.
***Photo: Micheline Michaelina (@MiMiV4682)
