Sabres To Activate Sam Carrick

According to a team announcement, the Buffalo Sabres are expected to activate forward Sam Carrick from the injured reserve ahead of tonight’s contest against the Anaheim Ducks. Unfortunately, the Sabres also announced that forward Konsta Helenius will not finish the road trip with the club due to an upper-body injury.

Carrick, 34, has not played since Buffalo’s October 15th matchup against the Toronto Maple Leafs due to a mid-body injury. The fourth-line forward went scoreless in four games before the injury with a -3 rating and averaged 7:34 of ice time per game. Still, much of Carrick’s value comes on the defensive side of the puck. He has averaged a 91.8% on-ice SV% at even strength throughout his career.

Still, the Sabres will miss Helenius at least through the next two games. The Sabres announced that Helenius has already returned to Buffalo for further evaluation. Their current road trip through the Pacific Division will end this Saturday, and the Sabres don’t have a home game until November 4th. If they place Helenius on injured reserve retroactive to his most recent game, he would be eligible to return next Wednesday against the Ottawa Senators.

In the second year of his entry-level contract, the former first-round pick has struggled offensively this season. Helenius has registered one goal and three points in 11 games with a -2 rating before suffering the upper-body ailment.