Jordan Nolan believes he has more to give with Buffalo as Ullmark and Baptiste are assigned to the Amerks.
By Chris Ryndak / Sabres.com
There’s only one preseason game left and that will come Friday night at home against the New York Islanders. Buffalo played in Pittsburgh Wednesday night with what should be close to the opening-night roster.
The Sabres fell into a 5-2 hole in the third, but came back late to pull within one. They ran out of time, losing 5-4, but there were some positives to take out of it.
Here’s what you need to know.
From the game recap:
Coach Phil Housley said he wanted to see his team shoot more often than it had in previous games, and he wanted them to play as fast as the Penguins – if not faster. The Sabres outshot the Penguins 42-27,
“This is not going to happen overnight but I really liked that we fought until the end, showed a lot of character,” Housley said. “The things that we can correct, the technical things, those things we can correct. But I just liked the compete right down to the wire.”
Welcome aboard, Jordan Nolan
The battle for the last few roster spots is certainly a lot tighter today than it was 24 hours ago. That’s because general manager Jason Botterill claimed Jordan Nolan off waivers yesterday afternoonfrom the Los Angeles Kings.
“I think he’s a terrific hockey player,” Housley said after the game in Pittsburgh. “He plays a fast game, he can get on the forecheck, he brings another element that we don’t have in a physical aspect, so I’m looking forward to working with him starting tomorrow.”
The 6-foot-3, 219-pound forward joins the Sabres after appearing in 292 NHL games for Los Angeles during the last six seasons. Nolan, 28, was a member of the Kings’ Stanley Cup-winning teams in 2012 and 2014.
“We’re happy to bring Jordan into the mix,” Botterill said in a statement. “His size and speed, along with his experience with such a successful organization like the Kings, make him an asset to the organization.”
Nolan still has faint memories of his childhood in Buffalo. He was only 6 years old when his father, Ted, became coach of the Sabres prior to the 1995-96 season, but can recall putting on his Sabres jersey and coming to games at The Aud.
Nolan put the jersey on once again on Thursday, only this time under different circumstances. He was acquired by the Sabres on waivers from the Los Angeles Kings on Wednesday afternoon, leaving behind the organization that drafted him in 2009.
Upon hearing the news, Nolan reached out to his father, currently coaching the national team in Poland. It hasn’t yet been three years since Ted was relieved of his duties as Sabres coach following his second stint with the team in 2014-15, but that didn’t quell his excitement for his son.
“He was pretty happy, pretty emotional,” Nolan said. “[Buffalo] has kind of shaped our lives. My brother met his wife down in this area, I have my friends and family in this area. Buffalo’s been nothing but good to our family and I guess the third time is the charm for the Nolan family here.”
Nolan spends his summers in his hometown of St. Catharines, Ont., less than an hour drive from Buffalo if border traffic is light. The move to Buffalo not only brings him closer to home; it gives him a chance to make more of an impact on the ice.
Nolan became a two-time Stanley Cup champion in Los Angeles in 2012 and 2014, but he only played in 46 games last season. He admits to not having seen eye-to-eye with management, and both sides knew it was time for a change.
One coach who did believe in him was former Kings assistant Davis Payne, now an assistant on Phil Housley’s coaching staff. Nolan suspected that Payne may have had something to do with Buffalo’s decision to claim him.
“We talked a lot over the past few years and he knows the kind of player I am and am capable of being,” Nolan said. “I think he put in a good word, and that worked out.”
Nolan, a 6-foot-3-inch power forward, expects to bring an element of his physicality to the Sabres lineup. He said he believes he has more to give than what was asked of him in Los Angeles last season, and Phil Housley will give him an opportunity to prove it.
“We talked a lot over the past few years and he knows the kind of player I am and am capable of being,” Nolan said. “I think he put in a good word, and that worked out.”
Nolan, a 6-foot-3-inch power forward, expects to bring an element of his physicality to the Sabres lineup. He said he believes he has more to give than what was asked of him in Los Angeles last season, and Phil Housley will give him an opportunity to prove it.
Housley said he admires Nolan’s cominbation of size and skating, and expects him to come up with loose pucks as the first man in on the forecheck. Nolan practiced on a line with Jacob Josefson at center and Johan Larsson on the opposite wing, and may see his preseason debut against New York on Friday night.
“He’s got a big frame,” Housley said. “I think one of the things when you watch him is that he protects the puck real well. He’s hard to defend, and that can wear down defenses. We’re going to try and put him in a position where he can get some offensive zone time down low in cycles and I’d like to see him get to the net front and take the goalies eyes away.”
As for Payne’s recommendation, Housley confirmed that his assistant coach offered some input.
“I think Davis has a good opinion obviously because he’s worked with him in LA,” Housley said. “He really liked Jordan as a player. Wasn’t a fit in LA, certainly a fit in Buffalo for sure.”
Sabres assign pair to Amerks
The Sabres on Thursday announced the team has assigned forward Nicholas Baptiste and goalie Linus Ullmark to the Rochester Americans.
Buffalo now have 30 players (18 forwards, 11 defensemen, and 2 goaltenders) on its training camp roster.