Buffalo Sabres: Injury News Update

Tyler Ennis is set to return to the lineup for the Buffalo Sabres sometime this week, but still no sign of Dmitry Kulikov.

It’s been just over a week since Jack Eichel declared the Buffalo Sabres‘ season wasn’t over yet. Coming after a run of just one win and four points from seven games, he sounded like someone suffering from delusion.

However, the Sabres have since taken five points from three games, which included fixtures against the Chicago Blackhawks and New York Rangers. They may still be seven points out of a playoff spot — as of Tuesday morning — but Eichel is being proved right.

Regardless, any push for a postseason place will depend on having a healthy roster. In that respect, the Sabres have suffered more than most on the injury front, during the 2016-17 campaign.

However, the team is getting close to having a clean bill of health (or at least as much as this is possible in one of the most physical games in professional sports). Along those lines, there was more good news for Sabres’ fans on Monday.

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As reported by WGR550’s Paul Hamilton, Tyler Ennis returned to practice, which included competing drills against the defensemen. The 27-year old, who underwent surgery for both a groin and a sports hernia in early November, spoke to Hamilton and the rest of the media after coming off the ice.

Ennis said: “It was a good practice. Some hard work just trying to get those drills in, the compete level up and get the body used to game level again.”

The expectation is that the winger will return to the lineup before the end of this week. While he didn’t confirm this, he did admit he is close.

Ennis said: “I just need a few more sessions like that and just continue to get better and we’ll see. I’m going to go talk to the trainers and get some treatment and have some conversation and go from there.”

One thing you can be sure of, is the Sabres will not pressure the winger to play before he is ready. In that respect, returning to full practice was a big step, with his big smile when leaving the ice confirming that it was a successful session.

Ennis said: “It’s totally fun, I mean today was a hard day, but it was fun because this is what I love to do and it’s good to be around the guys, especially at a time like this when you have a big win against Winnipeg and everyone’s looking forward to the next game.”

Dan Bylsma was also extremely pleased with how the 2008 first round draft pick performed. Also speaking to Hamilton, the Sabres’ coach said: “What I liked was he was able to compete – we had some battles in the corner and some one-on-ones.

“He had Justin Falk leaning on him and (Zach) Bogosian leaning on him, so he had some battles which he needed to get tested in those areas, stressing his mid-section, stressing his groins. Him saying it went good means he thinks he responded well to having that pressure.”

When Ennis does return, he is projected to play alongside Ryan O’Reilly and Kyle Okposo. During practice, he alternated with Will Carrier as the left winger for O’Reilly and Okposo.

On the subject of Carrier, his return to the ice on Monday came after suffering with the flu and losing 13 pounds. He missed the last two games due to his illness, but could be available for Tuesday’s game against the Philadelphia Flyers.

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Two notable absences from practice on Monday, were Josh Gorges and Dmitry Kulikov. However, they have different timelines in respect of their expected return to action.

Gorges has missed two of the last three games for the Sabres with a hip pointer, and has been listed as day-to-day. Meanwhile, Kulikov has been dealing with a back issue since preseason, and hasn’t played since December 27th.

Speaking about the defenseman, Bylsma said: “I’d like to list him at day-to-day, but it’s more than a week now. He is improving a little bit and hopefully continues to improve and gets back with us here shortly.”

Next: Jack Eichel adamant season isn't over

As of Tuesday, the Sabres are seven points out of eighth place, with just over half of the season remaining. Do you still believe they can make a serious playoff push, or are you already looking towards next season? Share your thoughts in the comments section.