It’s a contract year for Sabres goaltender Alex Lyon, who is set to reach unrestricted free agency again next summer. It’s fair to say it hasn’t gotten off to the best of starts. He suffered a shoulder injury in the preseason and has now suffered a setback in his recovery, relays Bill Hoppe of the Olean Times Herald.
Originally, the hope was that the 33-year-old would make his season debut back on Tuesday but now, there is no timeline for when he’ll be cleared. Head coach Lindy Ruff said that Lyon is still progressing so it’s not all bad news but, barring a return over the next handful of games, he’s going to wind up missing at least a month from a preseason injury.
More from Buffalo:
Defenseman Rasmus Dahlin will miss his third straight game tonight due to an upper-body injury, relays team reporter Justin Alpert. The captain had gotten off to a solid start to the season before the injury, notching four points in six games while averaging a little under 24 minutes per night, a number that’s skewed low thanks to exiting his sixth game early. Dennis Gilbert will likely get another game in his absence and with two points in as many games, he has helped his case for playing time as well.
In a separate piece from Hoppe, he noted that center Joshua Norris was a full participant in practice on Friday after exiting Thursday’s game early to go into concussion protocol. The veteran is off to a quiet start to his year with just one goal and one assist in eight appearances and has slipped a bit on the depth chart as a result. Still, it doesn’t appear as if Norris has a concussion given that he’s expected to play tonight, which is certainly good news for a forward group as banged up as Buffalo’s currently is.
Ruff told reporters today including Mike Harrington of The Buffalo News (Twitter link) that forward Jiri Kulich, who missed Thursday’s game due to illness, has rejoined the group and will play tonight against Montreal. Given that he had a blood clot last season, the youngster was sent back to Buffalo for a full assessment but was given the green light to return. Kulich has a goal and an assist in six outings thus far in 2026-27.
Also from Harrington’s note, it appears that veteran winger Jason Zucker is close to making his season debut. Sidelined after undergoing sports hernia surgery back in August, the veteran could be back for their next home game on Wednesday against Philadelphia. The 34-year-old is coming off a solid season that saw him notch 24 goals and 21 assists in 62 games, his eighth career 20-goal campaign.