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Sabres Hopeful To Have Peterka Back In Pittsburgh
The Buffalo Sabres practiced on Tuesday before leaving for Pittsburgh to take on the Penguins in the first of three straight road games. Winger JJ Peterka was a full participant for the second straight day and afterward, Sabres head coach Lindy Ruff seemed much more optimistic that the young forward will get back into the lineup on Wednesday night.
“JJ had a good day,” Ruff said. So (we’re) really hopeful he plays tomorrow.”
Peterka left the first period of the 3-1 loss to the New Jersey Devils on October 5th after a high hit from Devils defenseman Brendan Dillon. The 22-year-old has been on the ice for practices for nearly a week, starting out on a limited basis, but the club has remained cautious to see how he responds to workouts.
Earlier in the week, Ruff mentioned that the lower-body injury that Zach Benson has battled through since returning from Europe still has the young winger operating at less than 100%, but despite being scoreless in three games, the young winger will be in the lineup on Wednesday.
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"(Benson) wasn't the same player I saw before he was hurt, but he's so competitive. he probably over-exaggerated how good he felt just to get back in the lineup," Ruff said. "That's the type of player you want in your lineup anyways."
With games on back-to-back nights, Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen and Devon Levi are expected to each get a start against the Penguins and Columbus.
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