Here's how the group lined up at the morning skate:
| Sept. 27 vs. Philadelphia |
| --- |
| | C | RW |
| 53 Jeff Skinner | 72 Tage Thompson | 65 Linus Weissbach |
| 37 Casey Mittelstadt | 93 Matt Savoie | 21 Kyle Okposo |
| 13 Lukas Rousek | 17 Brandon Biro | 89 Alex Tuch |
| 49 Filip Cederqvist | 28 Zemgus Girgensons | 63 Isak Rosen |
| | | |
| LD | RD | G |
| 23 Mattias Samuelsson | 26 Rasmus Dahlin | 41 Craig Anderson |
| 25 Owen Power | 10 Henri Jokiharju | 47 Malcolm Subban |
| 20 Lawrence Pilut | 46 Ilya Lyubushkin | 40 Beck Warm |
| | | |
Only three players who played in Sunday's preseason opener in Washington will be in the lineup again tonight: forwards Matt Savoie and Lukas Rousek and defenseman Lawrence Pilut.
Pilut led the Sabres in ice time with 22:33 and tallied two assists on Sunday, including the pass that set up Vinnie Hinostroza's game-winning redirect in overtime.
Video: BUF@WSH: Hinostroza tips home the OT winner
Savoie, in his first training camp after being drafted with the ninth-overall pick this summer, will center a pair of veterans in Mittelstadt and Okposo. The trio skated together previously during the Sabres' intrasquad scrimmage on Saturday.
"What I see is he integrates extremely well with experienced players," Granato said of Savoie. "When you put young guys with experienced players, it's hard on older players if they play inexperienced - if they don't know where to go, what to do, how to get them the puck, how to read a situation. … He has a really good feel for all of that.
"So, just in speaking with the guys that he's with, Mittelstadt and Okposo, they enjoyed playing with him in the intrasquad game for those reason. That then allows us to make that decision, let's keep them together and put them from an intrasquad game to a preseason game."
Granato said Monday that he expects Skinner and Thompson to stay together after both players eclipsed 30 goals as linemates last season. The first look on their right wing will go to Linus Weissbach, who is coming off a strong performance as a veteran at the Prospects Challenge.
Weissbach was in his first pro training camp at this time last year, having spent four years playing for Granato's brother, Tony, at the University of Wisconsin. He went on to tally 37 points (16+21) in 67 games as a rookie with the Amerks, which tied for seventh on the team.
"The growth from last year at this time to this year is competing harder with more directness and more direct intent," Granato said. "Knowing where he should be competing harder, how he should be competing harder, and that being consistency."
Video: PREGAME: Granato
Ilya Lyubushkin will play his first game in a Sabres uniform after joining the team on a two-year contract during the summer.
The Sabres targeted Lyubushkin, 28, as a right shot who can add a physical, hard-working game to the defense corps. Tuch experienced that style firsthand as a member of Vegas, when Lyubushkin was playing for division-rival Arizona.
"He's not easy to play against," Tuch said. "You always had to have your head up out there when you were playing against him. And then obviously last year he was in Toronto. I think he's a really great, steady, stay-at-home defenseman. Plays physical, strong like an ox. You can't really move him out there, either. And he's really smart, so he's a great addition."
The Philadelphia roster is headlined by a pair of veteran forwards in Travis Konecny and James van Riemsdyk. Konecny led the Flyers in assists (36) and points (52) last season.
Find the full roster here.
