Buffalo Sabres prospect Linus Weissbach stated before the Prospects Challenge that he wanted to remove the ‘Prospect Label.’
Even in preseason, when you get a chance to play on the top line, you need to make the most of it. On Tuesday, Linus Weissbach lined up next to Jeff Skinner and Tage Thompson, and he proved he could keep pace with the Buffalo Sabres dynamic duo.
As he did in the Prospects Challenge, Weissbach made plays all over the ice, giving himself multiple opportunities to drive one home, showing up on defense, and even outpacing the Flyers opposition for a breakaway.
While Brandon Biro garnered more attention than any prospect last night, Weissbach was a close second. He made a commitment at his Prospects Challenge press conference to get rid of the prospect moniker and steadily, it’s coming off.
Linus Weissbach will make his Buffalo Sabres debut
Though I still see Weissbach starting the season in Rochester, it won’t surprise me one bit when he makes his Sabres debut. Whether it was setting himself up for a breakaway or disrupting a play on the backcheck, the undersized yet feisty Weissbach is showing everyone he deserves an eventual spot on the Sabres main roster.
Speaking of his breakaway, I initially jumped out of my seat and pumped a fist into the air, thinking Weissbach scored, until I noticed the puck actually hit the post. Premature celebration, but I tend to watch these games as though I’m looking past them, leaving each player and prospect to force me into catching their attention.
Weissbach was one of those players last night, and so was Biro. I also took interest in goaltenders Craig Anderson and Malcolm Subban, plus Ilya Lyubushkin and Lawrence Pilut, among others. Overall, Weissbach and company played a physical game against a team they won’t see until March 4th, but one they’ve had plenty of spats with in the past.
Article Source: Observations: Linus Weissbach impresses on top line, Sabres beat Flyers 2-1 by Lance Lysowski