Buffalo Sabres Newcomers: Josh Gorges

There will be at least one new face on the Buffalo Sabres blueline this coming season, as veteran Josh Gorges joins the defense corps after spending the last seven seasons with the Montreal Canadiens.

Gorges, 30, is a Kelowna, British Columbia native who joins the Sabres with nine years of NHL experience between Montreal and San Jose.

Josh Gorges began his junior hockey career with his hometown Kelowna Rockets (WHL) in 2000. He’d play four seasons with the Rockets, appearing in 245 regular season games and notching 152 points.

After his WHL career ended, Gorges joined the Cleveland Barons of the AHL. He appeared in 74 games with the Barons during the 2004-05 NHL lockout season, notching four goals, eight assists and 37 penalty minutes.

Gorges would split the next season between the Barons and the NHL’s San Jose Sharks. His first NHL season saw him appear in 49 games with San Jose, notching six points and 31 penalty minutes. He also had one assist in 11 playoff games. That season also saw Gorges appear in 18 games with the Barons.

He split the next season between San Jose and its AHL affiliate in Worcester before moving to Montreal during the 2006-07 season. After that, Josh Gorges would spend the next seven seasons with the Montreal Canadiens, and it was there he played until he was traded to the Sabres on July 1 in exchange for a second-round pick in the 2016 NHL Entry Draft.

In all, Josh Gorges has appeared in 560 regular season NHL games, having notched 98 points and 249 penalty minutes in that stretch.

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Although he’s new to the Buffalo Sabres, Josh Gorges already has a few familiar faces in the lineup, including fellow defenseman Tyler Myers.

Myers and Gorges are both alumni of the Kelowna Rockets organization out of the Western Hockey League. Although they never played together on the team – Gorges was there from 2000 until 2004, with Myers coming in from 2005 until 2009 – both skate together during the summers in Kelowna.

So far in training camp, Gorges and Myers have been a defense pairing, and they could easily end up transitioning into the top pairing heading into the regular season.

Another familiar face for Josh Gorges on the Buffalo Sabres? Fellow former Montreal Canadien Brian Gionta, as the duo played together in Montreal for the past five seasons.

With a solid defense pairing of Josh Gorges and Tyler Myers already in the works, it looks like he’ll be a welcome addition to the Sabres lineup. Gorges is in his third season of a six-year deal signed back in 2012 that will see him make $3.9 million this season.

In addition to his chemistry with Myers and prior playing experience with Gionta, Gorges comes to Buffalo with at least one other thing that will make him extremely likeable to Sabres fans – a distaste for Toronto and the Leafs.

The Leafs wanted to acquire Gorges this offseason, but he said no — and said yes to Buffalo instead. Gorges said his declination to the Leafs was due to a “hatred” of the team that he developed over his years with the Habs – and if that’s the case, that passion and dedication will be great to have in the Sabres lineup.

Although he hasn’t been a part of the Buffalo Sabres organization for long, it seems like Gorges is already fitting in to Buffalo nicely — including showing some support on his Twitter of the Buffalo Bills, and Terry Pegula’s pending purchase of the team.

So — welcome to Buffalo, Josh Gorges. It seems like you’re already fitting in just fine, and I personally can’t wait to see what you can do on the ice.