Buffalo Sabres head coach Lindy Ruff announced that defenseman Mattias Samuelsson is available to return on Wednesday night against the New York Rangers.
Samuelsson had missed the past 12 games after he sustained a lower-body injury against the Montreal Canadiens on November 11th, which was also his first game back in the lineup after three straight healthy scratches. The Sabres have gone just 4-5-3 in his absence, highlighted by their current seven-game losing streak.
As of right now, we have no idea what the defense pairs will look like with Samuelsson back in the lineup, or who will draw out of the lineup to make room for Samuelsson. According to our projected lineup at Daily Faceoff, he’s expected to slot onto the top pair alongside Bowen Byram, with Ryan Johnson coming out of the lineup.
Samuelsson has struggled to produce this season, with just 1 goal in 13 games when he has played. That said, with a career high of 10 points, he’s not in the lineup to put up points. However, he’s been a bit underwhelming in terms of his defensive play as well, with a -0.07% 5v5 expected goals against per 60 minutes relative to his Sabres’ teammates.
Samuelsson was a second-round pick for the Sabres in the 2018 NHL Draft, and after two seasons with Western Michigan University, he made his professional debut in the 2020-21 season, even getting his NHL debut in that season as well. He’s currently in his fifth season with the Sabres.
Samuelsson is currently in the second year of a seven-year contract with a $4,285,714 cap hit.
The Sabres will look to end their seven-game losing streak when they host the Rangers on Wednesday at 7 p.m. EST. Buffalo currently sits in seventh in the Atlantic Division with an 11-13-4 record, which is still only four points behind the Philadelphia Flyers for the final wild card spot in the Eastern Conference.
