Buffalo Sabres: Tyler Ennis’ Return Goes Just as He Planned

Tyler Ennis scored just 19 seconds into his comeback from injury, but that wasn’t even the main talking-point of his return for the Buffalo Sabres.

Fresh off recovering from surgery for both a groin and a sports hernia in early November, Tyler Ennis was hoping to make an immediate impact for the Buffalo Sabres. However, surely even he couldn’t have expected to score just 19 seconds into his return on Monday afternoon, against the Dallas Stars?

Well…it turns out that’s exactly what Ennis anticipated. Speaking to Amy Moritz of The Buffalo News and the rest of the media after the game, he said: “I planned it that way.”

Of course, the 27-year old was only joking, as evidenced by the big smile on his face. Amazingly though, the early goal wasn’t even the main talking-point of his return to action, after 30 games on the sidelines.

The play which truly announced Ennis’ return to the ice, came later in the first period. Standing along behind the Stars’ net, he took a stride to his right and nearly scored, after attempting to lift the puck into the corner.

Despite his long layoff, the 2008 first round draft pick still expects a lot of himself, and was disappointed he didn’t connect on what can be best described as essentially a lacrosse move: “I had some room, actually.

“I think I just had to maybe hang on to it for maybe a split second and it fell off. One day, one of those will go in – I won’t try it that often but maybe another time.”

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Ennis appreciates he has a lot to prove, after contributing just two points in 12 games, prior to his surgery. Throw in an injury-ravaged 2015-16 campaign which limited him to just 23 appearances, and this is a big season for him.

What’s encouraging, is the impact the Edmonton, Alberta native had against the Stars, despite still being a bit rusty: “There’s still an extra step, a little more jump, a little more pop in my skating.

“And then just hanging on to it and making plays. Things go quickly out there.”

From Dan Bylsma‘s point of view, he has full confidence Ennis can once again contribute 20+ goals and 40-50 points per season. Further, the Sabres’ coach sees the lacrosse move as evidence as his unwavering belief in his abilities.

Also speaking to Moritz, Bylsma said: “He actually pulls that lacrosse move off quite often. To have enough presence of mind to try to do it in a game when there’s grown men out there trying to crush (you), it just shows the comfort level he’s at and the ease with which he plays the game.

“In practice, I’ve seen him put it right in the top corner a couple times and this one almost went in after a bounce or two. That was just a flash of his skill.”

Just the fact the audacious move is only a glimpse of what Ennis is capable of, tells you everything you need to know about his potential. Now, if he can stay fit and display his talents on a more consistent basis, the Sabres will benefit immensely.

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Obviously Ennis is only one game into his comeback, but what kind of impact are you expecting from him moving forward? Do you see him getting close to the consistency he showed a couple of seasons ago? Share your thoughts in the comments section.