Buffalo
Sabres

Sabres Team Report

Updated: May 29, 2012 06:16 EST

General manager Darcy Regier made it clear he wants to try to improve the team's depth and performance at center. In the process, he didn't exactly give a ringing endorsement to No. 1 middle man Derek Roy.

"We expect him back at this point," Regier said, "and we expect him to have a good season at this point."

At this point, all options are opening regarding Roy, who is coming off a disappointing season and entering the last year of his contract. Roy had 44 points in 80 games, the lowest full-season total of his eight-year career in Buffalo. Roy was criticized by coach Lindy Ruff at various times during the center's 17-goal, 27-assist season, and he wasn't happy about it.

"Behind closed doors I think it's fine. You can be hard," Roy said. "It's not fun, but it's good to be hard on your players behind closed doors, on the bench to get them pumped up. I'm not a coach, but I don't think it's the right thing to be saying it to the media.

"Behind closed doors, it's good. He expects a lot of me, and he expects me to be a leader and be the hardest working guy on the team. I try to bring that in practice and in games. Sometimes when he doesn't think I'm doing something or working hard, he lets me know. That's good because then it keeps me in check."

After battling through shoulder and knee injuries for much of the season, Roy hopes to rebound next season with the only team he's ever known.

"We did some good things. We did some bad things, obviously," Roy said. "It's a long season. There's ups and downs. To be pointing fingers right now is obviously tough. When you're getting paid to produce, obviously fingers are going to point this way. That's the way it goes. We've just got to stick together as a group no matter what happens."

SEASON HIGHLIGHT: The Sabres, who at one point were last in the Eastern Conference, rallied to tie eighth-place Washington with six games left in the season. In a showdown on March 27, the visiting Sabres shellacked the Capitals 5-1 to move into a playoff spot and control their destiny. They believed their hard work would pay off.

TURNING POINT: Boston's Milan Lucic collided with goalie Ryan Miller on Nov. 12, and the Sabres did nothing to stick up for their goaltender. He suffered a concussion and whiplash, missed nine games and continued to struggle for two months. So did the team. They were 10-5 at the time of the collision but won just nine of their next 33.

--Alexander Sulzer fit in immediately with Buffalo after being acquired from Vancouver at the trade deadline. The match worked so much that the Sabres and Sulzer agreed to a one-year, $750,000 contract before the pending unrestricted free agent hit the open market this summer. Sulzer had three goals and eight points in 15 games with the Sabres after being a healthy scratch for six weeks in Vancouver. "We were surprised, pleasantly surprised, with his play," Sabres general manager Darcy Regier said.

--GM Darcy Regier said the Sabres plan to qualify all their restricted free agents, a list that includes forwards Tyler Ennis and Patrick Kaleta. Ennis had 15 goals and 34 points in 48 games. He made $875,000 last season but figures to earn a raise after a strong second half. "The qualifying offers are out, but we'll take our time there," Regier said. "We've got plenty of time on that."

QUOTE TO NOTE: "It allows us to not only look at our defense, and we feel comfortable there, but it gives us an opportunity to look at the movement maybe upfront as well." -- General manager Darcy Regier on having eight defensemen signed for next season.

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER: Jason Pominville was as consistent as they come for a team that had a roller-coaster season. The right winger led the team with 30 goals, 43 assists and 73 points. Only twice did he go more than two games without registering a point.

MOST DISAPPOINTING PLAYER: The Sabres signed forward Ville Leino in the offseason to a six-year, $27 million contract to provide offense. He scored just eight goals and had only 25 points in 71 games.

BIGGEST NEEDS: The Sabres need a point-producing center. Not one of their middle men reached the 20-goal mark (trade-deadline acquisition Cody Hodgson had 19) and Derek Roy led the centers with 44 points.

FREE AGENT FOCUS: The Sabres will get plenty of cap relief this summer. The contracts for center Jochen Hecht ($3.5 million) and right wing Brad Boyes ($4 million) are expiring. They are unlikely to return. Center Tyler Ennis, who had 34 points in 48 games, will need to be re-signed from restricted free agency.

PLAYER NOTES:

--D Alexander Sulzer is coming back to the Sabres, signing a one-year, $750,000 deal before reaching unrestricted free agency. Sulzer, acquired at the trade deadline, had three goals and eight points in 15 games with Buffalo. "You really noticed ... his composure out there, his ability to not only break up plays, which is the most important thing defensively, but to make plays offensively and the patience that he showed," general manager Darcy Regier said.

--D Andrej Sekera had just three goals and 13 points in 68 games with Buffalo. He nearly equaled that in 10 games with Slovakia at the world championships. Sekera led the silver medal-winning Slovaks with nine points, including seven assists.

--LW Brad Boyes had the worst offensive season of his career, recording just eight goals and 23 points in 65 games. The 30-year-old, who totaled 76 goals in 2007 to 2009, picked a rough time to slump. He will be an unrestricted free agent for the first time. "Obviously, after this year it's a tough year to go in," Boyes said, "but in saying that it will be interesting just to see how things go. I'm looking forward to it."

MEDICAL WATCH:

--D Tyler Myers ended the season with a broken foot. He will be fine by the start of next season.

--D Christian Ehrhoff missed the final five games with a knee injury. He is not expected to need surgery.

--LW Jochen Hecht missed the final 34 games with his third concussion in 12 months. The 34-year-old does not plan to retire.