The Buffalo Sabres were on the road for the third preseason game of the year as they took on the Detroit Red Wings. The Sabres got off to a good start with Trevor Kuntar scoring the first goal of the game to give Buffalo the 1-0 lead.
However, it was a back-and-forth contest, as neither team really was able to gain control, with the Red Wings tying it at one before the first intermission. Jiri Kulich had the only goal of the second period and Red Wings' Sheldon Dries had the only goal of the third period, tying it at two and sending it to overtime.
Alex DeBrincat would score the game-winner just over 30 seconds into the extra period as the Red Wings were still on the power play. They would capitalize on the man advantage and hand the Sabres the loss.
Fortunately, wins and losses don't matter much in the preseason, and it is more used for evaluating and getting an understanding of what the lineup might look like. The Sabres coaching staff coming out of this game should take note of these three performances against the Red Wings.
Colten Ellis
So far this preseason, Colten Ellis has played in every game but has been coming in to start the third period. Once again, Ellis was expected to come in to replace the starter but probably ended up in the game earlier than he expected, as Alex Lyon left in the first period with a shoulder injury.
It didn't seem to matter for Ellis, who played really well against the Red Wings as he stopped 16 of 18 shots, and the first goal he allowed was off a redirected shot by Sheldon Dries. The second goal was in overtime when the Red Wings were still on the power play from a penalty in the third period.
At this point, it is unclear what the severity of Lyon's injury is and whether he will miss any time. However, the Sabres have to feel confident in Ellis if he needs to be the backup; after the season he had last year and in the preseason this year, he has stopped 35 of 38 shots.
Dennis Gilbert
Dennis Gilbert signed as a free agent with the Buffalo Sabres this summer and is currently in his second run with the team. He played 25 games with the Sabres during the 2024-25 season before he was traded as part of the Josh Norris trade at the deadline that season.
On Thursday night, Gilbert finished the game with almost 22 minutes of ice time, and 6:20 of that time was on the penalty kill. While he was on the ice for the Red Wings game-winner in overtime, he did play pretty well when the Sabres were down a man.
In addition to that, he had five blocked shots, which led the Sabres, and three hits, which were second only to Tyson Kozak. Entering training camp, Gilbert was expected to begin the season in Rochester and was unlikely to see much time in Buffalo.
However, with the injuries they suffered earlier this week, there might be a slight opportunity to be that extra defenseman to begin the season.
Jiri Kulich
Jiri Kulich had only 14 shifts in this game as he appeared to leave the game at some point in the second period. There wasn't any indication during the game as to why he wasn't on the bench or in the game. Hopefully it is not an injury because he looked excellent to begin this game against the Red Wings.
Kulich's highlight was earlier in the second period when he took a beautiful pass from Noah Ostlund and was able to blast a one-timer on net. Danil Tarasov initially looked like he made the save, but the puck would roll between his legs and into the back of the net for the goal.
The Sabres on Thursday had Kulich on a line with Noah Ostlund and Konsta Helenius, potentially to see how they might look together as a possible combination for the season. As long as Kulich is available to begin the season, these three looked good together and certainly could be an option.
The Buffalo Sabres have one final preseason game on Saturday night against the Pittsburgh Penguins with the regular season right around the corner and the first game on October 1st.
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