The Buffalo Sabres are set to play their first game coming out of the Olympic break on Wednesday against the New Jersey Devils. While they are unlikely to have Zach Benson available for the game, they will get back Josh Norris, and he seems to be centering a new line based on recent practices.
Since the Sabres resumed practicing during the Olympic break, Norris has been on a line with Noah Ostlund and Josh Doan on the wings. It is a line that has a ton of potential, and even head coach Lindy Ruff has been impressed with.
"I really like the line practice watching, they have been really good," Ruff said after practice on Monday. "I think in Ostlund's case, playing on the left wing, a guy who makes a lot of good plays, sees the ice really well. If he is first back, can easily be down low; he's really defended well as a young centerman. So yeah, you've got those two guys [referring to Norris] as interchangeable."
"Then you got a guy like Doan that goes around the net front. A lot of times, you have that one guy that can be that dirty guy, get net front, and then you've got a couple of guys that can make plays or get pucks into that area."
This new line has a chance to be a difference maker for the Buffalo Sabres down the stretch
The way that Lindy Ruff talked about this line, it seems pretty clear that the Sabres are going to want to stick with it and see how they do in games. There is no question that the potential is there with the talent on this line that they can be a huge difference maker for the Sabres through the remainder of the season.
Doan has been one of the best stories of the season with his development and has been a pivotal part of this team. It was one of the reasons it made so much sense for Jarmo Kekalainen to sign him to an extension now rather than wait until the summer.
Noah Ostlund has also taken a step forward in his development in what is his rookie season in the NHL, with 19 points through 45 games. The Sabres have been able to move him around and fill in where needed.
However, the biggest question mark has to be Josh Norris, not because he isn't a great player, but because he struggles to stay on the ice. He has only played 19 games this season and hasn't played since suffering an injury on January 14th.
If Norris can stay healthy, and that is a big if at this point, these three together could be special. While it is a small sample size, they have played together some this season. According to Natural Stat Trick, these three have been on the ice for 11:10 in 16 games and have one high-danger goal for and an xGF% of 69.97%.
If Tage Thompson, along with Zach Benson, is unavailable for the game against the New Jersey Devils, it might not allow Ruff to put this line out there. However, once both of those players are back, the Sabres head coach should not waste much time seeing what these three can do together.