Kesselring returns after missing a month with an ankle injury, and loses Timmins to a broken leg.
The Buffalo Sabres were very happy to get summer trade acquisition Michael Kesselring back in the lineup, as they returned home on Thursday against the Philadelphia Flyers. The big righty was acquired from the Utah Mammoth in the JJ Peterka deal in June and suffered a lower-body injury late in training camp. The injury kept the 25-year-old blueliner out a month, and after returning and playing nine games, Kesselring suffered a lower-body injury that kept him out another month.
"(It was) just a little bit of an ankle sprain. So I took a few weeks off the ice, just training and stuff and kind of rehabbing my first injury. I wasn't feeling great from that still, so got a few more weeks rehabbing that too, and then got back on the ice." Kesselring said. "In the pros, I never missed a game until this year. I missed a few games sick back during Covid..... It's not fun, especially on a new team. That was kind of the hardest part, new team and want to make a good first impression. I didn't play great when I came back, and I was still battling the first (injury) a little bit, so I was putting a lot of pressure on myself. It was actually, honestly kind of good to reset a little bit."
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Kesselring’s return marked one of the few games this season when the Sabres had their full blueline complement available, but that lasted less than one game, as defenseman Conor Timmins left the game in the third period, crumbling awkwardly to the ice after clicking skates with teammate Jordan Greenway. The veteran blueliner has struggled with a variety on injuries throughout his career with Colorado, Arizona, Toronto, and Pittsburgh, but had been fairly dependable and healthy last season with the Leafs and Penguins, and this season with the Sabres, stepping up in the lineup in a top-four role with Kesselring out.
After the game, head coach Lindy Ruff surprisingly revealed that the 27-year-old had suffered a broken leg and would be out for six-to-eight weeks. Ruff also indicated that forward Tyson Kozak suffered an upper-body injury, but did not have any specifics it’s extent or how long he would be out.
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