Mattias Samuelsson Ruled Out For Season | Buffalo Sabres Head Coach Don Granato

Mattias Samuelsson Ruled Out For Season | Buffalo Sabres Head Coach Don Granato

Matias I mean it’s something did you just reach a point where he had to be shut down like I guess how did it go down I guess that he has to have surgery and stuff he he got injured in the last game so it wasn’t uh I mean he’s had

Lingering uh injuries just by virtue of how he blocks shots and finishes hits and you know the body’s always banged up and sore but this was an injury uh that happened in the game that was uh he was not dealing with this injury prior to it

The uh the other night he was dealing with different soreness but not the injury that uh we’re speaking of now with it it’s going to take surgery how do you get the defensive group to kind of rally now around you know not having matius the rest of the way how do you

Get how do you like to to make up for his absence now you know we’ve had a number of games without him this year and a year ago we were very challenged without Matias uh um and the numbers show that just the win and I say numbers win loss

Just wins and losses showed when we didn’t have Matias last last year we we obviously brought in Eric Johnson uh Clifton um we know our defenseman were were the youngest a very very young group they’re different this year the they’ve they’ve gotten they’ve gr grown our our young defenseman uh Ryan

Johnson’s come in and done a really nice job Clifton and and Eric Johnson have done a nice job so when Matias has been out we’ve kind of been able to to Shore that area up the biggest challenge for us this year is we’ve had more injuries up front and that’s where our challenge

Has been you look at the guys that when you know we’re missing three or four of our top forwards our top 12 forwards that’s when we’ve run into trouble and uh so so I do think that the defensive group will rise uh and I also think you know we’re dealing with Jack’s

Injury um and it was you know it’s certainly a bummer for Jack as you watch how hard he you know he works to come back and he comes back and he’s outstanding and it really completed that line it got Dylan going you know I think it brought petka to another level it

Brought our team to another level uh but I do believe um we are in a better situation to handle those losses today than we were a month ago I just feel guys are are in a better mind frame mindset their psyches better um and you know it’s unfortunate you lose guys like

That you you look at you say are the other guys ready to seize the this opportunity because there’s new opportunity and I feel we have guys in a better position to do that what kind of what kind of hit is it to just a group psych when you have two two injuries

Like that with two really important players in a matter of a few days especially just where you guys are at as a group you’re trying to to claw your way up the standings you play good hockey in January yeah I mean it can and it absolutely can affect uh you know

Those are those are key guys and and very talented guys but as I said were you know if we lost them you we didn’t have Quinn say a month ago or month and a half ago um we’re just in a I I feel the other guys that are going to have to

Step up that you’re going to call on that are going to fill more minutes are in a way better mind frame than they were their psyche is way better than it was a month ago so you know we lose these guys but I still feel um you know very confident

In what is going the group that’s going to have to pick up the slack uh for missing these guys and and like I said if just the the wins and losses without Samuelson this year and compared to a year ago you can see we’ve progressed in that area defensively um you know

And it just it’s different than it might have been a month ago I feel more confident in our group now to to handle more workload which is going to have to happen than I would have a month ago who are you going to when it comes to quinnn

In particular is there is Zach somebody that you’re going to try to really push to to Zack yeah Z it’s an opportunity you know Zach’s been great in the top nine role uh I thought he got a little you know a little bit uh the grind of

The Season got to him a little bit I think this break is good for everybody I think it’s certainly good for that for for a break when for guys You’ feel a grind and nagging injuries those sorts of things um but I do think he’s ready

To uh um ready to step in what was the objective in the message maybe coming off a break and going 90 minutes it’s as long practice as we’ve seen here in a long time we had a ice cut in there so don’t don’t print 90 because it wasn’t a full 90 but uh

Um and we took a little bit more time in between the drills come on Mike uh but but it it’s you know today you could have had uh practice 10 different ways I think tomorrow before the game it’ been right it you know today was just get

Them back on the ice get them moving uh the last 15 minutes I can tell you were completely theirs like they they didn’t want to stop they were in the middle of a game and cross ice game and another game we were playing uh so I’m literally

Watching them and saying okay you know are there what’s their attention span are are they and they were having fun they were engaged so uh we let them go by that and and they had to play to win which Drew Drew out the last 10 10

Minutes or so um but tomorrow now is is is more of okay you’re now a day before a game and you had a longer skate today it’s it’s more tomorrow that you you you have more tactically okay what will we do tomorrow there’s a little bit of a

Line in the Sand with this season the last 16 games you’re playing at a what would be 97 point pace and obviously we know all the things that happened before that as you look forward here you’re in a tough spot standing wise your 10 points out your team’s playing well you

Got 33 games left what what are the goals go what are the objectives how do you keep this team moving forward when it’s going to be difficult for them to get where they wanted to be in October you know it’s very similar to last year you absolutely can’t get ahead of

Yourself and you can’t dwell on stuff you can’t be dragged uh you know from from behind from what may have just happened uh or didn’t happen and that’s all points to just stay in the moment get in the moment uh we had a very brief discussion this morning just on the

Psyche of our group and and uh you know had to hit today was the objective of of getting back on the ice and skating um but but from the standpoint of of psyche you know we’ve had a lot of funny things this year the different hiccups and

Really tough games um but when we’ve needed to dial in when we’ve asked these guys and and I stood here the night before or the night we had a miserable game and and you guys have all questioned me how in the world could you think your

Team’s going to play well the next game based on that performance and every time I said they will they will and that was games in New York and Vegas and you know Boston and you know on and on uh against teams that were you know at their peaks at times and this

Group uh is good when we dial in and I think we’re starting to finally learn how to do that better um and and urgency is our guys have operated better under that type of urgency they’ve responded better under that type of urgency so you know obviously things get more urgent as

You go and um but we have to absolutely stay within the moment you were you were out in California and the game you guys played in La may have been a big Tipping Point for them La lets go of Todd mclen the other day when we’re in Toronto and I mean what’s

Your reaction when you stand here and think that you’re like number seven or eight in the seniority list of coaches you just got this job less than three years ago and what does that say about the state of coaching now in this Le I don’t know what to think of that Mike I

Just again I say I talk about our team staying in the moment for me I don’t I can’t process even that stuff I’ve got to just this team and we’re you know we’re obviously we’re different than other organizations in you know what we had to do two years ago and just you

Know move move the you know the the experienced players out and and and make room for guys to get experienc completely different situation um than most teams so no idea what to make of that I mean we’re in professional sport so how do you stay in the moment

Personally like pardon me how do you stay in the moment when the pressure has ramped up and all these things like what kind of things do you do to block it out uh it’s not there there’s so many challenges that you have dayto day I mean you have 23

Guys here that just you got to give them something every day you gota you know you’re doing whatever you can if if it’s not me specifically it’s we’re having meetings to make sure we connect with each guy and you know keep them going the right direction individually collectively you know you don’t have

Time to you know to uh to really look at too much else so you know the demand of the position can ground you right in the moment you if you get pulled away your attention is diverted anyway you’re missing uh the moment there’s so many

Things in the moment you you know you I can tell you I go to bed at night and wake up through the night multiple times and it’s all about what should we do in practice what should we do you know who do I have to grab what do we need to you

Know uh do in this meeting or that meeting there’s just so many things um and obviously you know we’re our job as as coaches in the business make sure we perform well but everybody’s getting better we’re getting better we’re moving in the right direction so um it’s it’s um you’re

Challenged Enough by that Matthew that you stay you know you’re you’re preoccupied with the the demand of the job I guess do you expect a call forward from Rochester I know Z Zenus is close but with Jack going down yeah I expect that uh zus and Eric will both be

Cleared tomorrow um so that being said we we’ll have with Bryson and Eric coming back 70 uh and 13 forwards um which is more than enough um for uh you know our first game back against Dallas does you know talked about with some of these young guys like

You scratch them but it’s not a normal healthy scratch it’s about taking a step back could you kind of explain not ask you the same question that you just answered but the point he had reached in his season as a rookie and why you decided to sit him out recently and what

He you know what you wanted him to do by this you know when we when we did sit him I can’t even remember which game was Bill um a couple games ago was just just a breather just decompress just watch a game from up top um knowing that that’s

Such an impact for a guy you know we’ve seen it with Quinn and PKA and and Krabs um very very helpful so nothing more than that it was very much like just like those guys just and and really it does it’s serves the same effect even

For older guys um when when they do sit back he gives them the moment to Just Breathe uh um as I just mentioned to Matthew there’s there’s so much demand every day demand demand demand you know there’s so much so many stressers you know there’s there’s there’s pressure

You know to score a goal in this shift or that but there’s stress on these guys every single day they’re stress and to take you know have an opportunity to step back one day is is a great thing how do you think you’ll handle Devon

Levi the rest of the season I know he’s in Rochester now and played well before the break but but what’s the plan going forward you know I I think you can make a plan as we’ve said you know you come back come in here with a 500 page

Coaches manual but throw as soon as the season starts you it’s useless throw right out the door you got to read and react so right now opop healthy op’s done a really good job and kind of established himself again so I’ll reiterate he’s he’s he’s established

Himself right now as the number one guy and you know when we had three we didn’t have a number one guy was easier to have three it’s much harder to have three when you don’t have a when when you have a number one guy it’s really hard to

Have three um so you know and we’re in a situation where winds are imperative so you know it’s it’s in all you know all indicators you’re going to go with the guy that’s going in in as many games as you can um when he separated himself

From the group so you know oop he’s done a really nice job with that so what does that mean for Devon today today today it means he’s in Rochester tomorrow circumstances could change and we would make a decision based on changing circumstances so for for Devon again it’ probably be changing circumstances I

Guess is the is the answer when you said this group uh is more you said they earlier when it comes to the injuries of Quinn and um Samuelson you said they were more like prepared to handle this type of situation than they were a month ago but what’s the biggest difference that a

Month can make make with this team right now it that what I said in regard to that is all to do with their psyche the psyche of the group is in a better place than it was one month ago uh and so I feel we have guys that feel

Better about their game just think of Dylan cousins who who compared to one month ago he his confidence with the puck and it plays and able to read plays because he’s he’s feeling better about his game we have Krebs is feeling much better about his game a consequence he’s

Playing better so there’s and cousins has really taken a lead power play role he’s a month ago he was not our first guy excuse me on a penalty kill it’s him and Greenway first over the boards on a penalty heal I don’t know that Dylan uh

Was ready for that a month ago um or you know comfortable with that so so we just have more guys feeling good better about their game and feeling really good about their game uh so it’s easier for me to spread those minut that’s around tuck I used him the other night with two

Different lines um he’s feeling way better about his game and we’ve seen his performance and we’ve seen him look uh like the power for he is more and more lately Don on a different note just initial thoughts on guys around the league maybe more specifically some of

The guys in your locker room being able to represent their countries in in the Olympics moving forward the NHL creating this opportunity I don’t know how much you’ve gotten to kind of think about it but you know initial thoughts and maybe what does that do just for globally the

Growth of the sport of hockey yeah when you watch the Players when you watch the Olympics the the and you get to whatever it is eight teams I think we’re at the eight countries we at the last Olympics and um if I’m right on that but but in

Any regard it’s it’s it’s a whole another level because you’ve paired down to to to the best it’s exciting um you know for for USA hockey fans just people born in the United States see all the best talent and and really you get an idea how talented our player pool is and

Has become even in the last 10 years um with with Incredible Talent uh in our league so and I know the players get very excited about it I’ve obviously had a privilege to coach on different national teams and you know anytime you do coach and and specifically go to a

Foreign country with a USA on your you know on your jerseys or sweatsuits and whatever it it is uh um a really incredible experience uh again especially on foreign soil when you do that uh you’re in a building in a different country playing you know uh either the home country or another one

It’s it’s a pretty uh amazing feeling so for the players to have that opportunity to uh you know desire to try to make that Olympic team uh and to be a part of that is is uh really special you know part of their careers thanks everyone

Buffalo Sabres head coach Don Granato spoke to the media after the first practice after the NHL All-Star break on February 4, 2024. He gave injury updates about Mattias Samuelsson, Jack Quinn, Erik Johnson, and more.

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