Monday’s game against San Jose moved up to accommodate postponed Bills game
The Buffalo Sabres found themselves short-handed on defense in the second period of their 1-0 loss to the Vancouver Canucks on Saturday afternoon, in part due to some bad officiating that prevented Canucks forward JT Miller from being ejected for an elbow to Sabres defenseman Rasmus Dahlin in the second period.
Buffalo had already lost blueliner Mattias Samuelsson early in the second period due to concussion protocol and saw Dahlin head to the dressing room after the All-Star defenseman was hit behind the Buffalo net by Miller. Owen Power dropped the gloves in defense of his teammate and was given a minor for roughing, but after the initial call of a five-minute major was reviewed, the penalty was reduced to a minor for elbowing.
Power and Erik Johnson (who fought Miller later in the middle frame) lowered the available Buffalo blueliners to three, forcing head coach Don Granato to move forward Zemgus Girgensons back on the blueline until Dahlin cleared protocol late in the second.
Dahlin had a noticeable red mark on his cheekbone after the game, but he and Granato held back any criticism of the officiating after the game for fear of being fined by the league.
The postponement of the Pittsburgh Steelers – Buffalo Bills playoff game to Monday afternoon saw the adjustment of the starting times for both the Penguins – Seattle Kraken game in Pittsburgh and the Sabres – San Jose Sharks game at Key Bank Center on Monday.
The Sabres announced that the original starting time of 1 pm will be moved back to Noon, with the Bills game starting at 4:30 pm.
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