ANAHEIM, Calif. — Until Monday night, it probably had been more than a dozen years since Craig Rivet was part of a team with three rookie defensemen. The Buffalo Sabres captain was one of them.

Rivet was thrust into action back in 1995-96 when injuries decimated the Montreal Canadiens’ defensive corps. The Habs had to summon Rivet, Rory Fitzpatrick and David Wilkie from the minors and hope the kids were ready.

It’s what is going on now with the Sabres. Rookies Chris Butler, Mike Weber and Marc-Andre Gragnani all played in the Sabres’ 3-2 loss to the Anaheim Ducks as injuries have sent the organization scrambling for any healthy body it can find.

Rivet remembers his call-up time fondly, and he’s sure the Sabres’ raw defensemen are experiencing similar feelings.

“Obviously, it’s a fun time for those young guys,” Rivet said in Honda Center. “They’re getting an opportunity to play some games and show they can play in this league. It’s an important time for them.”

In a good sign for the Sabres, it’s been an effective time. The trio has, for the most part, held its own and kept the Sabres in a playoff spot.

“We’re stretched to the limit, but they’ve played very well,” Sabres coach Lindy Ruff said. “It’s great to see. When you bring up young defensemen and they can handle some of the situations they’ve been able to handle and we’ve been able to get points, it really bodes well for the future of these players and the future for us.”

Rivet links the rookies’ performance level to their confidence level. Both are high.

“These young guys that have come in, they’ve come with confidence in their abilities,” Rivet said. “They’re certainly not trying to do more than what they’re capable of. They’re playing within their limitations, and that’s what you want, especially from a young defenseman.”

Gragnani was the most pleasant surprise in his first three games. The organization has seen enough of Butler and Weber over the past two seasons to know what it has, but Gragnani was a question mark.

Weber — recalled Monday to replace Jaroslav Spacek, who injured his hip during Saturday’s 2-0 victory over Phoenix — isn’t surprised his first-year mate has risen to the role.

“The thing about Grags is he kind of downplays how good he is,” Weber said. “He can get the job done in whatever situation he’s put into.”

Spacek tested his injury during the morning skate, and Ruff is hopeful the defenseman can return Wednesday when the Sabres host the Toronto Maple Leafs in HSBC Arena.

“Jaro has a shot,” Ruff said. “He wanted to get out and try to get some skating in and is hopeful of being able to play Wednesday.”

Andrej Sekera, who has now missed the last eight games with an ankle sprain, has shown rapid improvement the last couple of days. Ruff, though, doesn’t want to rush the defenseman.

“He said he feels real good, doesn’t even feel it,” Ruff said. “But we know with ankles we want to guard against going too hard too early.”

The injury shuffle continued with the forwards Monday, as Jochen Hecht missed the game with an upper- body injury. He said he’s “going in the right direction” but was pessimistic about playing Wednesday.

Adam Mair returned to the lineup after missing two games with a cut that required stitches on his knee.