‘Fired up’ to be buyers, Sabres react to deadline pickups
Carrick has won 53.9 percent of his faceoffs this season, which now leads all Sabres centermen. Although the team has improved a bit at the dot lately, it still ranks last in the league at 45.0 percent, so the 34-year-old will provide a nice boost in bottom-six minutes and on the penalty kill – especially with Justin Danforth not close to returning from his broken kneecap.
“He’s really physical, he’s super tough, but he’s got a lot of polish to his game, so he’s a great add for us,” said Ryan McLeod, Carrick’s teammate in Edmonton for their 2024 run to the finals. “Just goes about his business, and he’s a real, true pro. A lot of guys can learn from just having him around.”
Experience might be the No. 1 calling card for Schenn, a veteran of 1,118 regular season games, 58 playoff games and two Stanley Cup titles. Now the Sabres’ oldest player at 36, this is his 10th NHL team and sixth time being traded midseason, so he’s no stranger to being a stranger in the room. Regardless of his role, he’ll provide value come mid April.
“It gets physical and it gets hard,” coach Lindy Ruff said. “Unless you’ve lived [the playoffs] and been there, it’s hard to explain to a lot of players what it’s really like.”
Added the captain Dahlin: “(Schenn is) probably going to have a big voice in this locker room in these next few months. I’m very excited to talk to him, chat with him, learn some things. This is a perfect fit for us.”
Schenn figures to play bottom-pair minutes when in the lineup, as the top four of Dahlin, Samuelsson, Owen Power and Bowen Byram have been the strength of this team lately.
The same goes for Stanley, who brings a big frame (6-foot-7), big physicality (20 career fights) and a big shot. He’s scored a career-high nine goals this season, and his active style will fit in well with Buffalo’s offensively involved defensive corps, Ruff feels.
“Six-seven?,” asked the 6-foot-4 Samuelsson. “I’m just moving down the totem pole of the height thing, it seems like every couple months.”
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