Kotalik could miss a few weeks
Connolly’s injury is less serious
The Buffalo Sabres could be without Ales Kotalik until next month after the veteran right wing suffered a hamstring injury over the weekend. The prognosis sounded much better for center Tim Connolly, who has been nursing a bruised chest. Neither made the trip to Pittsburgh on Saturday.
Kotalik was injured Friday night in the 6-1 loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets after landing awkwardly and pulling his hamstring. Connolly was sore after St. Louis Blues winger Keith Tkachuk unloaded on him last Wednesday. He played against the Blue Jackets but stayed home for the 5-2 loss to the Penguins.
The Sabres took the day off Sunday. They were awaiting test results, but it appeared Kotalik’s injury was the more serious of the two. The prognosis for both players is expected after today’s workout. Buffalo doesn’t play again until Wednesday night, when it returns to Boston.
Connolly’s absence Saturday after playing Friday raised concerns that he had suffered another concussion when Tkachuk caught the shifty center with his head down. Connolly played 21-plus minutes against the Blue Jackets before staying home Saturday.
“Al, it looks like at least two weeks,” Sabres coach Lindy Ruff said after the game Saturday night. “Tim, it’s not concussion- related. He got through the game [Friday] night. It’s an upper body.”
The Sabres could summon a prospect from AHL Portland if either veteran is sidelined for an extended period. The Sabres had three goals in the first six minutes against the Blues but since have scored only four times in 174-plus minutes. They also have scored two goals or fewer in four of the last six games.
Right wing Mark Mancari is tied for second in the AHL in scoring while left wing Nathan Gerbe and center Tim Kennedy are tied for fourth. Mancari has 11 goals and 24 points in 13 games, and has recorded a point in six straight contests. Gerbe is tied for second in the AHL with 12 goals. Kennedy is second in the league with 15 assists. Mancari and Kennedy have been playing on the same line.
“There’s been no discussion yet, but it’s obviously an option,” Ruff said. “They have been going good.”
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Their absences weren’t a major issue Saturday because Ruff had healthy bodies in Patrick Kaleta and Drew Stafford available. However, the injuries forced Ruff to come up with four different line combinations, all of which had marginal success in Pittsburgh.
The most intriguing was Jochen Hecht centering the top line with triggermen Thomas Vanek and Jason Pominville.
Vanek and Pominville scored, but neither goal came when they were playing with Hecht. Vanek buried his 13th on the power play after getting a pass from Clarke MacArthur while Pominville was playing the point. Pominville’s goal came at even strength while Adam Mair was playing the middle.
Derek Roy had played on the same line with Vanek all season. He was between Mac- Arthur and Stafford. Roy and Maxim Afinogenov were minus- 2, which included an empty- net goal in the final minute.
Paul Gaustad played on the fourth line and was rotated into the second and third lines, depending on the situation. The fourth line, which also included bangers Kaleta and Andrew Peters, was very effective early in the game. Gaustad logged 16:36 in ice time while Kaleta played 6:29 and Peters 5:33.
Peters matched a career high with three shots on goal, all of which came in the first period. It was two more than Penguins star Sidney Crosby had in the game. Peters also had three shots on goal March 29, 2004, when he was a rookie.
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Ruff on the Sabres playing better against Pittsburgh but not being able to withstand the Penguins’ pressure in the final 10 minutes: “We’re not quite there. We got a little rattled, we lost a little composure and you lose the game. You can’t fault [the effort] that went into it, but you can look to correct the mistakes that were made.”
