The Sabres announced today that they have suspended Nikita Zadorov due to him failing to return on time. Nolan didn’t say how long the suspension will be, simply that he will likely join the team at some time on the western road trip.
The nature of Zadorov’s actions is still a bit ambiguous, but it sounds like Nolan is chalking it up to youthful mistakes and not travel issues.
The team will also be without Michal Neuvirth, who was injured during the break. Nolan said he could miss “some time.” Matt Hackett was called up in response to the injury, and could get a start during the Sabres back-to-back later this week. He’s played three games with the Americans since returning from his leg injury, posting a 3.10 goals against average and a .886 save percentage.
Brian Gionta will be back from injury tomorrow night against Calgary. He’d missed a significant chunk of time before the break with an upper-body injury. Also with the team is the eternal force that is Matt Ellis. He has zero points in his four NHL games this season. In 38 games with the Americans Ellis has seven goals and six assists.
Here’s Nolan’s full media interview: