| Pos | Role | Name |
| C | 1 | Derek Roy  ActiveIf you are looking for a reason why the Sabres did not make the playoffs, look no further than the team's play in the last minute of periods. Over 12 games Buffalo was scored on 13 times in the last minute of play in a period. In those games, the Sabres lost all but three. Given that Buffalo missed the post-season by three points, it is obvious that the team's let down in the final minutes of frames was at least partly to blame. "We were three points out," Drew Stafford said, "so you look back at some of the games we threw away either in the last couple seconds or the last minute or so, games we should have won and got the points." It was a disappointing season in Chicken Wing Capital of the World. With a little more focus and a more consistent season from goalie Ryan Miller, BUffalo should be better in 2012-13. Apr 15 |
| 2 | Ville Leino ActiveVille Leino was pretty candid about his horrible season in Buffalo but seemed to suggest that the Sabre coaching staff did not use him and other players to their potential. Leino scored only eight goals and registered a paltry 25 points in 71 games after signing a lucrative 6-year, $27 million contract. We don't think it prudent on his part to cast stones at coach Lindy Ruff. Leino said the following about players' roles: "There was a lot of pieces that were kind of out of place. Also, they've got to work with what they were given. We have a lot of good players and we're a good team, which we proved at the end. We just didn't get that chemistry and all that right away at the start, and it was probably too late." Stay tuned for the fallout. Apr 22 |
| 3 | Jochen Hecht  SidelinedJochen Hecht, who has sustained three concussions in less than a year, is slated to become an unrestricted free agent this summer, but he wants to stay with the Buffalo Sabres. "I would like to play here," he said. "My family likes it here, my kids love it here, and it would be great to come back for another year and get this team in the playoffs." Hecht has been with the Sabres organization since the 2002-03 season and he has played in 566 contests with the club. He skated in 67 games last year and only 22 this past campaign. Hecht is hopeful of his progress though, as he hasn't experienced symptoms for nearly two months and feels like he will be ready for training camp. Apr 10 |
| 4 | Matt Ellis ActiveMatt Ellis (knee) has been given the green light to return to the Sabres' lineup. Ellis has been sidelined since March 10th. He has three goals and eight points in 59 games this season. Apr 2 |
| LW | 1 | Thomas Vanek ActiveAccording to ESPN the Magazine, Thomas Vanek is currently the highest paid Austrian athlete. The Magazine charted the highest paid athletes of over 200 countries spanning all sports. Vanek's $6.4 million in 2011-12 was Austria's top salary. Other hockey players to make the list were: "Pittsburgh's Craig Adams (Brunei Darussalam, $725,000), Minnesota's Mikko Koivu (Finland, $7.29 million), Winnipeg's Nik Antropov (Kazakhstan, $4.25 million), Philadelphia's Ilya Bryzgalov (Russia, $10 million) and Boston's Zdeno Chara (Slovakia, $8.5 million)". Vanek is going to have to have a little more success than he had last season (seven goals in the Sabres final 38 games) to justify his lofty standing amongst his countrymen. May 6 |
| 2 | Tyler Ennis ActiveTyler Ennis, who had a goal and an assist in Tuesday's comeback win over Toronto, was proud of his teammates for their effort. "I can't say enough about the guys in the room," Ennis said. "That's just a great comeback win. That's not how we wanted to start. That's not how we envisioned the game to go, but what a battle, what a win. That feels good, and we need to carry this momentum on." The 22-year-old forward has been the team's hottest scorer with 11 goals and 16 assists in his past 24 contests. If the Sabres get into the postseason then most of the credit has to go to Ennis for being the team's offensive catalyst down the home stretch. Apr 4 |
| 3 | Nathan Gerbe ActiveA lower back injury has forced Nathan Gerbe to skip the upcoming World Championship hockey tournament. The Buffalo forward was set to represent Team USA, but will receive treatment instead and use the summer to recovery in time for training camp. Gerbe finished the regular season with just six goals and 25 points in 62 games. May 1 |
| 4 | Cody McCormick ActiveCody McCormick returned to action on Wednesday night for the first time since Feb. 10 because of a concussion. He subbed in for Nathan Gerbe, who pulled an upper-body muscle in the morning skate, against Colorado. McCormick posted one shot and a minus-1 rating during his 6:51 of ice time in Buffalo's 5-4 shootout loss. He has no goals, two assists and 49 penalty minutes in 39 games this campaign. Mar 15 |
| RW | 1 | Jason Pominville ActiveJason Pominville became just the eighth player to win the team's scoring triple crown. Pominville led the Buffalo Sabres with 30 goals, 43 assists and 73 points in a very solid fantasy season. "It would've meant more if we would have been in the playoffs," Pominville said. "Obviously, the 30 goals are nice, but at the same time it's about the team and trying to get where we want to be." Apr 8 |
| 2 | Drew Stafford ActiveDespite a great March, Drew Stafford had a disappointing 2011-12 campaign. Stafford scored 31 goals and 52 points in 62 games last season, but only managed 20 goals and 50 points in 80 contests in 2011-12. "I know I took a step back this year for production at times," Stafford said. "Obviously, that went hand in hand with how the team was doing. If I was producing like I was at certain points last year, we could've won a couple more games. You win a couple more games, you're in the playoffs. It's one thing I'm going to try and obviously do my best this summer to focus on getting back to where I need to be." There's reason to be optimistic about Stafford, given that he had seven goals and 17 points in his final 13 games. It's also worth noting that he might have done better in the first half of the season if Tyler Ennis wasn't plagued by ankle problems. When Ennis was healthy, the two of them clicked on the same line. Apr 20 |
| 3 | Brad Boyes ActiveBrad Boyes scored a pair of goals in the Sabres 4-3 shootout loss. It has been a terrible year for the former 43 goal scorer as Boyes ends the year with a measly eight goals. He had 23 points this season and could find himself looking for a new job as he becomes an unrestricted free agent on July 1. Jason Pominville scored his 30th goal of the season to finish the Sabres scoring. Apr 7 |
| 4 | Patrick Kaleta ActivePatrick Kaleta returned to Buffalo's lineup Tuesday after sitting out three games with a broken thumb. He picked up a plus-1 rating and two penalty minutes during his 8:07 of ice time in the Sabres' big 5-1 victory against Washington. Kaleta has 116 PIMs and 10 points in 58 matches this season. Mar 28 |
| D | 1 | Tyler Myers SidelinedTyler Myers has confirmed that he suffered a hairline fracture in his ankle from a blocked shot on Mar. 30 against Pittsburgh. He probably wouldn't have been able to play in the opening round of the playoffs even if the Sabres had qualified for the postseason. Myers was limited to 55 games in 2011-12 after he missed just two contests in his previous two seasons in the NHL. He concluded this past campaign with eight goals, 15 assists and a plus-5 rating. Apr 10 |
| 2 | Christian Ehrhoff SidelinedChristian Ehrhoff's sprained knee may have prevented him from playing in the first round of the playoffs had the Buffalo Sabres claimed the final spot in the East. He expressed his disappointment of not making the postseason and not being able to help his teammates in the last five games of the 2011-12 campaign. He generated five goals and 32 points during 66 games in his first year with the Sabres, which is a significant drop from the 14 markers and 50 points he tallied with Vancouver in 79 matches the season before. "When we had that good run, I thought I was playing my best hockey of the season," Ehrhoff said. "Next year I hope for a little more consistency and to help out on the goal side more." Apr 10 |
| 3 | Jordan Leopold ActiveJordan Leopold scored the only Buffalo goal in a 2-1 shootout win over New Jersey Tuesday. Leopold's goal was a little lucky, as the puck flew over the net and immediately bounced out to him, standing in front of the goal. It was his eighth of the campaign and was assisted by Nathan Gerbe and Matt Ellis. Jan 24 |
| 4 | Robyn Regehr ActiveRobyn Regehr was back in Buffalo's lineup on Monday night after he missed one game with a hip injury. He concluded the the team's 3-1 loss to Winnipeg with 13:08 of ice time and a minus-2 rating, so it wasn't a very good return for the seasoned blueliner. Regehr has been credited with 143 hits and 88 blocked shots this year, but his three points and minus-16 rating hinder his fantasy value. Mar 6 |
| 5 | Andrej Sekera ActiveSabre rearguard Andrej Sekera has arguably been the Slovaks' best player during the World Hockey Championships. He leads his team in scoring with nine points in nine games and was instrumental in setting up the winning goal against Canada in the quarterfinal. The Slovaks will face the Russians in the final Sunday. We have been waiting for Sekera to assert himself in the NHL. Perhaps this positive performance at the World Championships will be the catalyst for improved results in 2012-13. May 20 |
| 6 | Mike Weber ActiveMike Weber returned to action on Tuesday night against Toronto. He played 12:28 of ice time after missing one game with an upper-body injury. Weber had two shots on goal in the contest, but he shouldn't be on your fantasy radar. Apr 4 |
| 7 | Alexander Sulzer ActiveAlexander Sulzer's one-year deal with the Buffalo Sabres will garner him $725,000 in 2012-13, which is slightly higher than the $700,000 he earned this past season. He was acquired as part of the trade deadline move that saw Cody Hodgson join the Sabres in exchange for Zack Kassian and Marc-Andre Gragnani. Sulzer skated in 15 games with Buffalo after the move, while finishing with three goals, five assists and a plus-2 rating. "He fit in well," GM Darcy Regier said Monday. "He played very well with Christian [Ehrhoff]. I think the other thing you really noticed is his composure out there, his ability to not only break up plays, which is the most important thing defensively, but to make plays offensively and the patience that he showed. We were surprised, pleasantly surprised, with his play." May 22 |
| G | 1 | Ryan Miller ActiveRyan Miller allowed two goals on 35 shots in the Sabres' 2-1 loss to the Flyers Thursday night. Miller came to play tonight but it was not enough against a tough Flyers team. However, Miller has 31 wins for the Buffalo Sabres this year and is the sixth goalie in NHL history to get 30+ wins in seven straight seasons. Apr 5 |
| 2 | Jhonas Enroth ActiveJhonas Enroth didn't get quite as much playing time in 2011-12 as he had hoped. "I was hoping for 30 games this year, but almost," Enroth said. "Ryan was playing really well down the stretch there the last couple of months, so I guess you can't really bench Miller when he was playing that well." Enroth had a 8-11-4, 2.70 GAA, and .917 save percentage in 26 contests this season. That being said, he played 13 games in November because Ryan Miller was out with a concussion. By comparison, he only started in three games from after the All-Star break. With that in mind, if anything Enroth's playing time might actually decrease in 2012-13. Apr 13 |
