Alex Lyon is a fiery competitor. The Buffalo Sabres goalie, who returned to practice Monday while entering the final stages of his recovery from an upper-body injury, can often be found chirping opponents after the whistle while sporting an intense stare.
So, perhaps it's not a surprise the 33-year-old Yale product is doing everything in his power to receive clearance to play his first game of the 2026-27 season.
"I'm just frothing at the mouth at this point to play some games," Lyon told Mike Harrington of the Buffalo News on Monday.
While the goaltender described himself as "close" to returning, he admitted a cautious route is necessary after previously suffering a setback.
"I kind of had to his the pause button there and make sure things were good," Lyon said.
Getting him back will be a welcome sight for the Sabres, who successfully employed a three-goalie rotation last season with Lyon, Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen and Colten Ellis. The trio combined for a .900 save percentage in 2025-26, the third-best mark in the NHL.
Buffalo's dropped to 28th in that stat (.873) early in the current campaign with UPL and Ellis working as a more standard tandem, though the results have improved a bit lately.
Lyon was terrific during the initial stages of last season, compiling a .915 SV% in his first 10 outings while Luukkonen recovered from an injury. It helped the Sabres kept their heads above water until their surge arrived in December, and they ultimately went on to win the Atlantic Division to secure the franchise's first playoff berth since 2011.
The journeyman, who's played for five teams across 10 NHL seasons, finished his first year in Buffalo with a .907 SV% in 36 appearances. He added a .904 mark in 10 playoff games.
Once Lyon returns, he'll likely split a majority of the starts with UPL, while Ellis spends most games as the backup. That allows the non-starter to receive a full night of rest, an approach that worked well for the Blue and Gold last year.
The Sabres will hope getting back to the three-netminder approach allows their numbers in the crease to return to last season's level.
Sabres' other injury updates after Monday's practice
Buffalo head coach Lindy Ruff was a busy man after practice, providing news on a wide range of players who either missed the session or were back on the ice. Here's a snapshot:
- Zach Benson wasn't on the ice for Ruff hopes is merely "maintenance" but the team expects to know more after he skates Tuesday.
- Konsta Helenius is now listed as week-to-week with an upper-body injury.
- Jiri Kulich is no longer in concussion protocol and rejoined the top line as the center between Tage Thompson and Peyton Krebs.
- Conor Timmins and Justin Danforth both returned to practice, with Timmins rotating on the third defensive pair and Danforth working in with the fourth line. Timmins, a key penalty-killing contributor, has yet to play this season because of a lower-body injury.
Getting some reinforcements healthy is great for the Sabres' depth but losing Benson for any period of time, even a short-term injury, would be a massive setback.
Buffalo's next game is Wednesday night against the Atlantic Division rival Ottawa Senators as it returns home after a four-game road trip.
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