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BUFFALO, N.Y. — Buffalo center Josh Norris matched his career-best single game points total in the Sabres’ 5-1 win over the Winnipeg Jets on Monday night, making a triumphant return to the lineup after suffering an upper-body injury in the team’s season opener.
Norris scored two goals and assisted on the opening tally 2:46 into the game. His second goal gave the Sabres a commanding 5-1 lead less than a minute into the third period.
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It was Norris’ sixth three-point game and his first since Jan. 30 against Washington while playing for Ottawa.
That same game was the last time he also had a goal and an assist in the opening period.
Coach Lindy Ruff said Norris’ remarkable return wasn’t something that he anticipated.
“It’s speed combined with puck support,” Ruff said. “The puck support was real good, real evident it led to goals. It was a night where we were really connective.”
The 26-year-old Norris, a first-round draft pick by the San Jose Sharks in 2017, has struggled with injuries and appeared in only his fifth game with Buffalo since being acquired in a trade last season. The Sabres are his first new team after spending parts of his first six season with the Senators. They have been waiting for him to take on a larger role, so this game could give him some much-needed momentum.
Norris was injured in the season-opening 4-0 loss to the New York Rangers on Oct. 9.
It might be the start of the holiday season, but the Winnipeg Jets sure aren’t feeling festive these days.
Following a drubbing at the hands of the basement-dwelling Buffalo Sabres, Jets captain Adam Lowry initiated a closed-door players meeting, head coach Scott Arniel told reporters after the game.
Mike McIntyre of the Winnipeg Free Press was first to report the closed-door meeting.
“Tonight, that was them. That was (Lowry) taking it,” Arniel said. “You’re hoping the response at the end of the next game is better than what it was tonight.”
The Jets lost 5-1 in Buffalo Monday night, capping off a one-month stretch in which the reigning Presidents’ Trophy champions had just five wins in 14 games since Nov. 1.
“We’re a veteran group,” Arniel added. “We recognize we embarrassed ourselves and we’re going to have to be a heck of a lot better next time.”
“It’s pretty disappointing, that effort after playing a pretty good game at Nashville,” Arniel continued. “Obviously, three minutes into the game and you’re down 2-0.”
The Jets dug themselves an early hole against the Sabres, surrendering goals to Jason Zucker, Bowen Byram and Josh Norris — playing for the first time since an Oct. 9 injury — to face a three-goal deficit after the first 20 minutes.
Connor cut the lead down to two midway through the second period, only to see Alex Tuch restore the three-goal lead less than two minutes later. Norris scored his second of the night, and the final dagger to the Jets, in the third period.
“We’ll have to go back and look at (the game),” defenceman Dylan DeMelo said post-game. “Individually, you watch your shifts, see what you could have done better. I’m sure the staff will have things for us to look at and go from there.
“We can’t hang our heads, we can’t feel sorry for ourselves. No one’s going to be throwing us a lifesaver here and helping us out. We’ve got to figure it out.”
With reigning Hart Trophy champion Connor Hellebuyck injured, Eric Comrie got the start between the pipes, but was pulled after allowing three goals on 14 shots and finished with a .786 save percentage.
“Eric’s been great every time his number’s been called this year, so to obviously have the start in front of him that we did, it’s frustrating,” Connor said of his goalie. “There’s not a more hardworking player or goalie than Eric.”
Thomas Milic came out for the final 40 minutes, allowing two goals on 17 shots in just his second NHL game.
When asked about throwing Milic into the fire, Arniel said he was just trying to shake things up for his team that looked lifeless after the first.
“Just trying to spark. (Comrie) is a go against Montreal. Really, we were chasing that game right from the get-go and I didn’t have the warm and fuzzies about anything happening.”
As for the rest of his lineup for Wednesday, Arniel is mulling over a few options.
“Everything’s in play here,” he said. “We’ll see where we are, we’ll check with our injured guys. Obviously we’ll look at this and make a decision for Wednesday.”
The Jets will have the chance to right the ship in Montreal Wednesday, when they take on the upstart Canadiens (7 p.m. ET/ 6 p.m. CT on Sportsnet and Sportsnet+). They will then return home on Friday for a rematch with the Sabres.
Nov 28, 2025, 05:53 PM ET
Sabres forward Tage Thompson settled whatever lingering differences he had with Stefan Noesen by squaring off against the New Jersey forward on the ice on Friday.
The fight occurred 2½ minutes into Buffalo’s game against New Jersey and some nine months after Noesen leveled Thompson with an elbow to the head. It was the teams’ first meeting since Buffalo’s 4-3 win on Feb. 2.
TAGE. pic.twitter.com/ybBxHpu1eQ
— Buffalo Sabres (@BuffaloSabres) November 28, 2025
As the teams lined up Friday for a faceoff in the Buffalo zone 2½ minutes in, Thompson and Noesen dropped their gloves and exchanged numerous punches in a fight that lasted about 30 seconds. It ended with Noesen falling to the ice and the crowd cheering on Thompson.
Both players were issued five-minute majors for fighting.
Noesen’s February hit on Thompson became a sore spot for several reasons, starting with how it happened.
Thompson was lunging for the puck at the Devils’ blue line when Noesen knocked it away and continued charging into the Buffalo forward by catching him with his elbow. Noesen’s hit spun Thompson around, knocked off his helmet and sent him face-first to the ice.
Noesen was ejected in being issued a match penalty but did not receive further NHL discipline.
Sabres players, meanwhile, were second-guessed for failing to rally to their teammate’s defense. While Thompson sat out one game, his teammates held a team meeting to address their lack of response.
“We spent time last year on this topic. That topic is really for me it’s behind me,” Sabres coach Lindy Ruff said before the game, when reminded of what happened. “I think the way our team has handled every situation really from that point forward, we learned a hard lesson.”
Buffalo Sabres players being on various NHL trade rumor boards has been an all-too-frequent sight and with it being American Thanksgiving and the Sabres at the bottom of the Eastern Conference, the chatter will begin in earnest now that unofficial trade season has opened. A couple interesting nuggets from Sportsnetâ€s Nick Kypreos in his first trade board that involved the Sabres.
The first involved winger Alex Tuch. Kypreos echoed Sportsnet insider Elliotte Friedman, who indicated on a recent 32 Thoughts podcast that the Sabres winger has to be looking for a deal in the same neighborhood as Los Angeles Kings winger Adrian Kempe, which would necessitate the Sabres coming off their negotiating stance prior to the season that they balked at a deal with an AAV of more than $10 million per season. Kypreos indicates there is still a large gap between the two sides, which could make the 29-year-old the most sought-after commodity before the March 6 trade deadline.
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The other involved Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Brandon Carlo. The Leafs acquired the big right-shot defenseman from Boston in March for the playoff stretch drive, but Kypreos reported that Toronto explored trading Carlo to Buffalo for restricted free agent winger JJ Peterka before he was dealt to Utah for Michael Kesselring and Josh Doan, and then moved on to defenseman Bowen Byram, before he signed a two-year bridge deal.
While dealing for Carlo is consistent with the Sabres looking for players with term remaining, and the pursuit of a righty to play with Owen Power this season, either trade would have been quite a departure for Buffalo, who have not made a significant trade with their Atlantic Division rival for 32 years (Dave Andreychuk, Darren Puppa, and a first round pick for Grant Fuhr).
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The Buffalo Sabres playoff fortunes may rest on the next two weeks and how they fare on the road, as the club began a stretch of eight of their next 10 on the road with a 4-2 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins on Wednesday. With the exception of a 31 -second stretch after Jason Zuckerâ€s goal in the third period, the Penguins throughout, ending the Sabres two-game winning streak.
“Our puck play cost us dearly, cost us on the first goal, our puck play right after we got back in the game and tied it up,” Sabres head coach Lindy Ruff said. “We didn’t handle the puck well, gave it away, didn’t execute the breakout and then ended up in the back of their net.”
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The Sabres have only one victory (a 5-4 overtime win over Detroit on November 15 in which they trailed 4-1 in the third period) and two overtime losses to Toronto and Boston in nine road games this season. After their Black Friday afternoon home game against New Jersey, the Sabres play seven of their next eight games on the road against Minnesota, Philadelphia, Winnipeg, Calgary, Edmonton, Vancouver, and Seattle and 10 of their 14 December games away from KeyBank Center.
One reason for optimism may be that Buffalo is getting most of their injured players back. Jason Zucker and Zach Benson returned in the last week, and center Josh Norris may return to action this weekend, lowering the number of players on IR to just three (Michael Kesselring, Jiri Kulich, and Justin Danforth). Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen allowed three goals on just 18 shots, so it is likely we will see either Alex Lyon or Colten Ellis get the start against the Devils.
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<img alt="Sidney )Crosby (left); Jason Zucker (right) — (Charles LeClaire, USA TODAY Images)
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Sidney )Crosby (left); Jason Zucker (right) — (Charles LeClaire, USA TODAY Images)
The Buffalo Sabres are currently on a competitive roller-coaster ride. On Wednesday, they came into their game against the Pittsburgh Penguins on a high, as theyâ€d won four of their past five games, and they climbed out of the Atlantic Divisionâ€s basement, Things were looking up.
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Then, on Wednesday, the Sabres put in an effort that wasnâ€t good enough to beat a sliding Pens team and solidify Buffaloâ€s spot in the Eastern Conference standings. The Sabres were beaten 4-2 by the Penguins, and that development, combined with the Toronto Maple Leafs†2-1 win over the Columbus Blue Jackets, means that the Sabres once again are the worst team in the East.
.The Sabres managed to tie the game against Pittsburgh at the 7:20 mark of the third period on a Jason Zucker goal. But 31 seconds after Zuckerâ€s goal, the Penguins struck again on a Bryan Rust goal to make 3-1. And from there, the Penguins never looked back. They got a good performance out of Tristan Jarry, and they limited Buffalo to only 19 shots on net.
But hereâ€s the deflating part: in the highly-competitive Atlantic, all eight teams in the division played on Wednesday. And by the time the day was done, five Atlantic teams were victorious, so climbing up the division was for the most part extremely difficult. And because the Sabres were one of those three loser teams in the Atlantic, they had more separation between them and most of the teams in the division.
Star Center Norris Nearing A Return To Action — But Can He Stay Healthy?
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Thus, Buffalo canâ€t be content with just having a competitive game against any opponent. Thereâ€s a real and increasing pressure hanging over the Sabres, and every defeat they deal with is another nail in the coffin for coach Lindy Ruff and GM Kevyn Adams. And every loss is another step toward extending Buffaloâ€s Stanley Cup playoff drought to 15 years.
The Sabres†next stretch of schedule is particularly daunting, as they take on the New Jersey Devils, Minnesota Wild, Winnipeg Jets (twice) and Philadelphia Flyers. All of those teams have had solid success this season, so Buffalo will be in tough to climb the Atlantic standings.
Despite Sabres’ Surge, Buffalo Faces Long Road Back To Relevancy
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Buffaloâ€s poor start to the season now hangs over the Sabres. No matter what they do, they seem like theyâ€re stuck at the bottom of the Atlantic.
The only way out of their current place in the standings is a slew of wins – and so far this season, Buffalo hasnâ€t shown they can do that.
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There were several firsts on Wednesday for the Pittsburgh Penguins when they took on the Buffalo Sabres in an important Thanksgiving Eve matchup.
The most prominent first was, obviously, the first NHL game of Penguins’ center Tristan Broz’s career, and he put forth a nice effort for Pittsburgh. It was also forward Ville Koivunen’s first game back from injury, and he and Broz – frequent linemates in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (WBS) – had the opportunity to play on the same line for the first time at the NHL level.
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But there was another player who was playing his first game after a stint on injured reserve. And he was the most important player on the ice for the Penguins en route to a 4-2 win.
With Buffalo pressing big-time in the second half of the game, Penguins’ goaltender Tristan Jarry stood tall, keeping his team in the game and making some huge saves. He stopped 28 of 31 Buffalo shots on goal, and he was the main reason the Penguins got back in the win column Wednesday after dropping two straight games.
“He was outstanding,” head coach Dan Muse said. “And I think, especially the second half of the game, he saw a lot more than we’d want him to see. But even in the second period, the first – I don’t know exactly what it was, but – the first half of the period, there wasn’t much for scoring chances for them. I thought we controlled play, and then, it kind of flipped.
“That’s not easy for a goalie. You go a lot of the period there without seeing too much, and then suddenly, you see a lot. I thought that was a huge part of the game there where he was able to help us weather the storm with some big saves – especially that really long, extended shift that we had in the d-zone there in the second period.”
‘He’s A Great Player’: Tristan Broz Confirmed To Make NHL Debut Wednesday Against Buffalo Sabres
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There was no score – and not a whole lot of shots – for most of the first period until Penguins’ defenseman Matt Dumba threw a knuckling puck from the right circle through a screen and toward the net and in. The score remained 1-0 in favor of the Penguins through the end of the second period, too, despite Buffalo beginning to push in the latter half of the middle frame.
Then – when the Sabres just kept pressing in the third period – the tying goal felt almost inevitable. And ex-Penguin Jason Zucker did register that tally with 7:20 to go in regulation.
The Penguins have certainly been in that position – the aftermath of a blown lead – plenty of times in the month of November. But, this time, they responded the right way.
Just 31 seconds later, Bryan Rust buried one from the right circle to put Pittsburgh back on top, 2-1, and less than four minutes later, Kevin Hayes added an insurance goal and his first of the season in the form of a net-front redirection off of a gorgeous feed from Erik Karlsson.
Buffalo’s Jack Quinn did bring the Sabres within one with just over four minutes to go in regulation, but Connor Dewar responded with a late empty-net goal to seal the 4-2 win.
Here are a few takeaways from this win:
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– There were ups and downs for Broz in his debut. He didn’t have a great defensive zone showing on Buffalo’s tying goal, and there were some jitters and adjustments earlier on in the game.
But, by the end of it, he looked like he belonged. And he looked comfortable with both Koivunen and Tommy Novak.
We’ll see how everyone lines up Friday when the Penguins play the Columbus Blue Jackets, as – presumably – rookie Ben Kindel will be back in the lineup after being a healthy scratch Wednesday.
– Speaking of Kindel’s scratch, I had no issue with it.
Yes, the Penguins have not played a lot of games lately, and resting him might seem silly to some because the Penguins hadn’t played since Saturday.
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But, remember this: The Penguins originally had a development plan in place for both Kindel and rookie defenseman Harrison Brunicke, and that kind of went off the tracks for both of them in opposite ways. While Brunicke found himself scratched for seven consecutive games on his way to an AHL conditioning stint that began Wednesday against the Hershey Bears, Kindel found himself as an essential part of the lineup because of the Penguins’ injury situation, which means they couldn’t really give him any planned breaks.
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Wednesday was an example of them simply having the ability – for the first time in a while – to actually follow through on their development plan. With Broz able to slot in at third-line center, Kindel could afford to have a night off.
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So, I wouldn’t read into it too much, and I expect him back Friday. However, one thing I would keep in the back of your mind is that – especially if Broz does end up sticking around and the team continues to get healthier – it’s no guarantee that Kindel won’t play in the World Junior Championship.
I feel it’s probably still unlikely for several reasons, but I wouldn’t rule it out entirely.
– Dumba has looked a bit better in the last couple of games, and I think he’s at his best when he’s getting pucks to the net.
Of course, his goal Wednesday wasn’t the hardest shot in the world, but Dumba does have a booming shot that he could sure use a whole lot more than he does. If he continues to activate more in the offensive zone, I think we’ll see a better version of him moving forward.
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I thought he was good Wednesday.
– Rust really needed a goal. And, man, was that goal huge.
For him personally, it had been going on seven games without a goal and six games without a point. Rust tends to score in bunches, and the Penguins really need him to score goals right now in the absence of Rickard Rakell and Justin Brazeau.
Hopefully, this gets him going.
Team-wise? The Penguins very well could have deflated entirely after surrendering yet another third-period lead. Instead, they responded with a quick goal and added another insurance goal in pretty quick order, almost as if to say, “Not this time.”
When a team is mired in a funk, winning games this way can really help to boost morale and propel them forward, especially with a tough, condensed schedule ahead. The Penguins responded, and they hung on.
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And it started with Rust’s goal.
– Over 77 percent of the time in the NHL, teams in a playoff spot come Thanksgiving do indeed make the playoffs.
With a Utah Mammoth comeback against the Montreal Canadiens Wednesday, the Penguins are officially in a playoff spot come Thanksgiving.
A lot can happen this season, obviously. But remember this.
It’s no small thing that the Penguins are tied for third in the NHL in regulation wins, which is the first tiebreaker. It’s no small thing that – despite a rough November where their luck has run out – they still hold a winning record and seem to be in almost every hockey game, save for a few. And it’s no small thing that they’ve been able to scratch and claw and still bank points – and hold a playoff position – despite being severely injury-depleted during this tough stretch.
The Penguins will be getting much healthier soon. Brazeau and Noel Acciari skated with the team Wednesday in a non-contact capacity. Koivunen is back. Jarry is back. Rakell is skating on his own. Hallander is skating. Rutger McGroarty is tearing up the AHL with three goals and five points in three games.
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If they continue to get the goaltending – and they get healthy – maybe, just maybe, this is actually a good hockey team. There is still a lot to clean up defensively, and they need to start scoring a whole lot more goals again.
But it’s possible that we’ve seen the worst of it. Of course, that might not be the case, and the sport of hockey has an unpredictability that makes it fun and unique.
So, all I will say – for now – is that something does feel different about this team. There is a different air in the locker room. There is a different kind of fight in this group.
We’ll just have to see where it takes them.
Penguins’ Top Prospect Rutger McGroarty Extends AHL Goal-Scoring Streak
<a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/pittsburgh-penguins/players/penguins-top-prospect-rutger-mcgroarty-extends-ahl-goal-scoring-streak" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" data-ylk="slk:Penguins' Top Prospect Rutger McGroarty Extends AHL Goal-Scoring Streak Pittsburgh Penguins‘ top prospect Rutger McGroarty can’t stop scoring goals for the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (WBS) Penguins.;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas” class=”link “> Penguins’ Top Prospect Rutger McGroarty Extends AHL Goal-Scoring Streak Pittsburgh Penguins‘ top prospect Rutger McGroarty can’t stop scoring goals for the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (WBS) Penguins.
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The Buffalo Sabres have a lengthy list of injured players and got one back in their lineup on Friday with Jason Zucker returning after missing three weeks due to a virus, but early in the second period of their 9-3 victory over Chicago, it appeared that that list would get larger. Defenseman Bowen Byram, who had scored his fourth goal of the season in the first period, fell awkwardly into the boards after checking Hawks forward Frank Nazar.
Byram had trouble getting back to his skates, and was favoring his right shoulder when he skated off the ice and down the tunnel to the Sabres locker room, but surprisingly returned after five minutes of game time and played a regular shift the rest of the game, finishing with 18:01 on the night.
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“It didn’t look good initially. I was pretty worried that was a guy we weren’t see come back,” Sabres head coach Lindy Ruff said.
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Ruff said that he was cautiously optimistic that Byram was fine, saying that it was a positive sign that he returned and finished the game, but also said that they would see what tomorrow would bring. The club cancelled a scheduled practice on Saturday and will complete their four-game homestand on Sunday afternoon against Carolina,
Buffalo may get another injured forward back against the Hurricanes, as Ruff said on Friday that winger Zach Benson could return Sunday. The injured forward has been out since October 30 with a lower-body injury, but took part in the morning skate. Ruff considered the possibility of Benson returning against the Hawks, but opted to keep him out another game.
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On Thursday night, the Chicago Blackhawks had a tough loss to the Seattle Kraken. They allowed a two-goal lead to slip away in regulation and came away with nothing.
They were allowed to let it go quickly, with the second half of a back-to-back against the Buffalo Sabres. This was Chicago’s first back-to-back of the season as they traveled upstate to New York to take on the team with the worst record in the Eastern Conference.
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Buffalo, despite their spot in the standings, has a ton of talent. It was on full display in this game as they ran the Hawks out of town with a 9-3 demolition.
Tyler Bertuzzi, who was playing in his 100th game as a Blackhawk, scored twice, and Alex Vlasic scored the third goal for Chicago. Connor Bedard assisted on both of Bertuzzi’s goals, giving him 31 points on the season, which is tied with Macklin Celebrini for third in league scoring.
Bedard and Bertuzzi, and their linemate Ryan Greene (who had an assist as well) all played well in this bad loss. Outside of them, it was a mostly lousy game for Chicago, as indicated by the 9-3 final score in favor of Buffalo.
Arvid Soderblom was in the net for the Blackhawks, and he stayed in for all nine goals against. He has been a fantastic backup so far this season, but this wasn’t his night. With that said, most of Buffalo’s goals were not Soderblom’s total fault. The team did not play well in front of him.
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Jeff Blashill chose to avoid pulling Soderblom, but Spencer Knight is now going to be completely fresh for the next game, which will take place on Sunday night.
Some nights just don’t go well in the NHL. Every team has five or six really bad games. This is one for the Blackhawks. Chicago lost every period 3-1, was outplayed in every area of the ice, and couldn’t keep the Sabres from answering every time they scored.
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This is the type of loss that you learn from, throw in the garbage, and move on quickly. The thing is, Chicago will be going from the bottom team in the East to the top team in the West. The Colorado Avalanche are going to be at the United Center for Sunday night hockey. This is, up to this point, the biggest test of the season for this young Blackhawks team coming off two straight regulation losses.
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In a battle of the two last-place teams in each conference on Wednesday, Buffalo Sabres forward Tage Thompson believes his team was on the receiving end of a poor call.
With his team trailing 2-0 in the first period against the Calgary Flames, Thompson positioned himself in front of Flames netminder Devin Cooley, allowing Rasmus Dahlin to wire one home from the slot.
But after the Flames took a timeout, they challenged for goaltender interference.
After video review, the league determined that Thompson “impaired Cooley’s ability to play his position in the crease” prior to the goal, and the call on the ice was overturned.
The call was made in accordance with Rule 69.1, which states: “An attacking player, either by his positioning or by contact, impairs the goalkeeperâ€s ability to move freely within his crease or defend his goal.â€
Thompson didn’t mince words when asked about the decision after the game.
“I thought that was a horrible call,” Thompson said to Mike Harrington of The Buffalo News. “It’s called a goal on the ice. And I think there’s minimal contact there, if any. And then I think he squared to the shot for a good 2-3 seconds, and (Dahlin’s) shot goes bar down. So it’s not like it’s into the middle of the net where he can’t react to make a save.”
Thompson went on to score one of the Sabres’ two goals in the second period to tie the game 2-2. But the Flames exploded for a four-goal third to win the game 6-2.
The loss drops the Sabres to an Eastern Conference-worst 7-9-4.