Buffalo Sabres place defenseman Owen Power on injured reserve

No positive news on the injury front for a promising young blueliner.

On Monday, the Buffalo Sabres announced that defenseman Owen Power has been placed on injured reserve.

According to reports, Power injured his hand during practice on Feb. 12, and was ruled out through last week’s games. The 21-year-old had imaging done last Monday, and the team revealed they will have a better of idea of when the Mississauga native will return to the lineup later this week.

Prior to the injury, Power had scored two goals and 16 assists in 51 games, only picking up one assist over his last nine appearances.

With the former Michigan Wolverine standout not in the lineup, the Sabres really relied on their top pair of Rasmus Dahlin and Henri Jokiharju last week,as both averaged well over 20 minutes in the last three games. Jacob Bryson also had to play more in Power’s absence being paired up with Connor Clifton. Buffalo held their own, beating the Los Angeles Kings and Minnesota Wild.

In 138 career games, Power has registered eight goals and 48 assists. He is in the final year of his entry-level contract, with his seven-year, $8.35 million AAV deal kicking in next season.

With Power on IR, that frees some up some roster space for Buffalo. They have called up blueliner Kale Clague and goaltender Dustin Tokarski from their American Hockey League affiliate, the Rochester Americans.

Clague played 33 games in his first season with the Sabres last year, but has yet to play with Buffalo in 2023-24. He has been called up a couple of times on emergency loan since Power’s injury. Tokarski has had a similar path this season, though the NHL veteran has yet to appear in any games this season.

The Sabres (24-26-4) are set to host the Anaheim Ducks on Monday afternoon. They are currently sixth in the Atlantic Division, 14 points back of the third-place Toronto Maple Leafs. They are also 10 points back of the Detroit Red Wings for the last Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference.