PITTSBURGH — The Buffalo Sabres had one huge change to their roster Monday. For the first time all season, they didn't have a teenager in the lineup.

No, rookie Tyler Myers wasn't scratched against the Pittsburgh Penguins. But the defenseman celebrated his 20th birthday in Mellon Arena, elevating him from the rank of teenage sensation.

"That's good," coach Lindy Ruff said. "We don't have any young players left."

Myers' teammates serenaded him with a few "Happy birthday, Tyler" catcalls in the dressing room after the morning skate. None, however, wrapped a gift for the big guy.

"No presents," Myers said. "I treated myself to a brownie last night, but no presents."

Well, except for the opportunity to be in the lineup against the defending Stanley Cup champions.

"I don't think I've had any special hockey moments on my birthday, but I'm sure I'm always going to remember this one," Myers said. "It does feel strange a little bit to not be a teenager anymore."

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Penguins defenseman Jay McKee had the opportunity to play with one of the greatest goaltenders of all time, former Buffalo teammate Dominik Hasek. McKee shares a dressing room now with Penguins star Sidney Crosby and sees similarities.

Mainly, McKee sees two players driven to be the best.

"With Sid, a guy I can compare him to in his work ethic is Dominik Hasek," said McKee, who missed Monday's game after blocking a shot with the inside of his hand Sunday. "Dom, I think, was one of the best goaltenders to ever play, and he was the guy that got ticked off if you scored on him in practice. He always worked his tail off, and that's what made him great. Sid's a lot like that. Every practice, every game, he's working his tail off.

"He has the drive and the passion to want to be the best in everything he does. He's great in a lot of things, and he wants to be great in all the things."

Crosby, in his fifth season, has worked to eliminate any holes in his game. He was an easy target in the faceoff circle early in his career, but he entered Monday's game in the top 10 at 57.1 percent. Critics assumed he'd always be a playmaker and never graduate to sniper, but he entered Monday third in the league with 34 goals.

"Here's a player that was already great who wants to improve a bunch of other areas, and I think there's a real good lesson for a lot of players: Don't be happy," said Ruff, who is one of Crosby's coaches on the Canadian Olympic team. "He's a special player."

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Ryan Miller appeared in his 10th straight game, including his ninth start. He is scheduled to be in the nets Wednesday when Ottawa visits HSBC Arena. Backup Patrick Lalime will take over either Friday when Carolina comes to Buffalo or Saturday when the Sabres visit Columbus.

"We've always talked about the back-to-backs being his opportunity, and I think we're going to still look at it that way," Ruff said.

Miller's workload is a concern in Sabreland, especially with his upcoming Olympic appearance. He's hardly alone as a go-to goalie, however. Monday's appearance was his 47th, tied for seventh most with Vancouver's Roberto Luongo. Eleven goalies have played 45 games or more, with New Jersey's Martin Brodeur atop the list at 52.

"There's some goalies now that are carrying pretty heavy workloads," said Ruff, who feels the goalie and team have managed Miller's off time better than in the past. "Ryan's workload has been heavy, but at the same time we've adjusted practices and adjusted what he's done between games."

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Unless the Sabres and Penguins meet in the postseason, Buffalo will make only one more trip to Mellon Arena. The Sabres complete the regular-season series March 2, and The Igloo will be replaced by a new arena across the street next season.

"I don't mean that to disparage Pittsburgh," Ruff said, "but there are only two rinks I'm not going to miss: One's on Long Island, the other is Pittsburgh."