Sabres lose star Vanek for several weeks
Tuesday night’s 6-2 victory over the powerful Detroit Red Wings was reason to celebrate for the Buffalo Sabres.
Only then it wasn’t.
Buffalo winger Thomas Vanek left the game for good with 7:14 to play in the second period after scoring his second goal in the victory. Coach Lindy Ruff later revealed Vanek will miss several weeks with an undisclosed upper body injury. Though Vanek fell awkwardly after snapping in a shot at the right post, Ruff said the player had been hurt earlier in the game.
“It was before the goal, when I collided with [Brad] May,” Vanek said. “I went to hit him, and it happened there. I just finished the shift and felt it after. I knew right away and just tried to tough it out. After the shift, I just got it checked out.”
The 25-year-old Vanek is a major contributor to the Buffalo offense and recorded 40 goals and 24 assists last season, the second 40-goal season of his career. He also is the first Sabre to three goals this year and skates on the top line with Derek Roy and Drew Stafford.
Vanek also missed nine games last season after suffering a broken jaw during a February game in Ottawa after taking a deflected puck to the face. Buffalo went 3-5-1 in his absence and fell short of the postseason by just two points.
“It’s unfortunate,” Roy said. “He was backchecking and forechecking, and it’s going to be a huge miss.”
Buffalo is off to a great start – it is one of only two teams in the league without a regulation loss. But offense had been an issue before Tuesday (four goals in the first three games of the season) and certainly will be more so now without Vanek. And the Sabres don’t have the budget to make a trade for a big-name player to replace him. Buffalo is next in action Friday against the Islanders – bet on it at WagerWeb.com.
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