One man in, one man out for the Buffalo Sabres. The team announced on Tuesday that they have placed defenseman Mattias Samuelsson on injured reserve and have activated defenseman Erik Johnson. It will be the second time this season that the organization has placed Samuelsson on IR as he suffered an undisclosed injury from Nov. 4-11.
In the middle of the pack of man games lost to injury throughout the 2023-24 regular season, Buffalo has seemingly dealt with a consistent slate of injuries for much of the year. With the team having already played 49 games this season, Casey Mittelstadt, Owen Power, and John-Jason Peterka remain the only players to have appeared in every game.
Once again primarily playing with Sabres’ defenseman Rasmus Dahlin this season, Samuelsson has been relatively successful as a two-way defenseman for the club. His Corsi For percentage in all situations and his on-ice save percentage in all situations are both at career highs, with his expected +/- being at a career-high over a full season, according to HockeyReference.
On the other hand, Johnson has struggled considerably during his first year in Buffalo. After multiple successful seasons with the Colorado Avalanche, Johnson’s transition to the Eastern Conference has not gone swimmingly. Primarily playing with Connor Clifton, the two have produced an expected goals against per 60 minutes of 3.5 on the season, the worst of any defensive combination deployed by the Sabres, according to MoneyPuck.
Not completely out of the playoff picture yet, Buffalo currently sits 10 points back of the final wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference, with only one game in hand on the Detroit Red Wings, who currently occupy the spot. Depending on the Sabres’ approach to the deadline, they will need to pick up some quick steam in order to have a shot at the 2024 Stanley Cup playoffs.
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