Buffalo Sabres Recall Tim Schaller from Rochester Americans
After the Buffalo Sabres revealed that forward Tyler Ennis‘ injury would keep him out on a week-to-week basis, the team needed to recall a forward.
Thus, they’ve brought in forward Tim Schaller from the Rochester Americans of the American Hockey League, the team announced Monday morning.
This is Schaller’s second recall to the Buffalo Sabres this season; he was previously called up in late October and played in six games with the NHL club over the course of a month.
He registered two assists and was a plus-1 in that stretch, also notching four shots on goal.
Note: Nicolas Deslauriers was also absent from Buffalo Sabres practice on Monday morning after being seen in a walking boot at the team’s “Bowl-o-Rama” fundraiser on January 3.
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Over in Rochester, Schaller’s played 18 games with the Americans this season. He’s managed 10 points (5-5) in that time, averaging 0.56 points/game — one of the best statistically on the team. Schaller also has 34 shots on goal in 18 games with the AHL club this year.
He’s been especially hot lately, notching four goals and eight points in his last nine games.
The 24-year-old was recalled eight different times last season by the Buffalo Sabres; he appeared in 18 games overall with the NHL club.
He’d eventually score his first NHL goal, on December 21 against the Boston Bruins. That was also Schaller’s first NHL point, registered in just his third NHL game.
Over the course of those eighteen games, Schaller put up two points (1-1) and registered two penalty minutes. He also had 19 shots on goal during that time.
Last season with the Rochester Americans, Schaller put up a 43-point campaign, notching 15 goals and 28 assists in 65 regular season games.
He had 169 shots on goal and ended the season as a plus-3; across the board, setting new career-highs for himself in the AHL in his sophomore season.
He finished last season second in scoring among the Rochester Americans, just one point behind Philip Varone, who notched 44 points in 55 games. Schaller registered 0.66 points/game and averaged 1.78 penalty minutes per game, being served 116 over the course of his 65-game season.
As a rookie in 2013-14, he put up 18 points (11-7) in 72 games, finishing fifth in scoring among Amerks rookies, behind players like Chad Ruhwedel (28 points), Joel Armia (27 points), Dan Catenacci and Rasmus Ristolainen (20 points each).
Prior to his days in the AHL and NHL, Schaller played four years of college hockey with Providence. He appeared in 131 games, putting up 29 goals and 39 assists over the course of his collegiate career.
The Merrimack, New Hampshire native was never drafted, but rather signed a two-year, entry-level deal with the Buffalo Sabres as a free agent on April 2, 2013.
He re-signed a one-year, two-way deal with Buffalo on July 16, 2015.
With Tyler Ennis out for the forseeable future, and an impending road trip for the Buffalo Sabres, it’s only logical that they needed to recall a forward. Rather than giving a guy like Cal O’Reilly or Varone another shot right now, they decided to go with Schaller, who can fit nicely into the system and hopefully contribute on an NHL level over the next few games.