Norris returns to Ottawa
Norris played parts of six seasons with the Senators before he was acquired as part of the trade that sent Dylan Cozens to Ottawa at last year’s deadline. He forged strong relationships in that time – including with his childhood teammate, Senators captain Brady Tkachuk.
With the team off Monday, Norris spent some time with Tkachuk as well as the Senators’ Tim Stutzle and Drake Batherson.
“I have mixed emotions, just thinking back on my time here,” Norris said. “Had a couple years where I did really well and kind of broke into the league. Grateful for every opportunity that I had. And then just ran into a lot of injury trouble and never really got back to kind of the player that I was hoping to be for them for a long time.
“Stuff happens, and I’m in a great spot now. I’m super happy in Buffalo. I love Buffalo.”
The deal came as a shock to Norris, but he embraced his fresh start. And, after dealing with an injury to start the season, he’s been a key cog in the Sabres’ current winning streak. He’s scored at least one point in eight of nine games since returning from injury on Dec. 1. The lone exception was Saturday’s win over the Islanders, when he had a goal waved off and still managed to score the shootout winner.
Will Norris keep that going Tuesday?
“I think any player, the natural tendency is you want to put on a good performance against your former teammates,” coach Lindy Ruff said.