BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — The Sabres could be without leading scorer Jeff Skinner for an indefinite period of time. The veteran left winger missed Wednesday's practice and underwent testing on a lower-body injury sustained during the previous night's 5-2 loss against the Seattle Kraken.
Coach Don Granato expressed cautious optimism that Skinner will not be out of the lineup for very long.
"We won't know until we get the imaging and then the final doctors look at it and assess it, but it doesn't look like it's going to be long," Granato said following Wednesday's practice. "That's the hope and we can only stick to that right now."
While Skinner's availability is uncertain for Thursday night's home game against the Senators, captain Kyle Okposo is ready to return after missing three games with a lower-body injury. Okposo has participated in both of the Sabres' practices this week. Victor Olofsson also could draw into the lineup to replace Skinner. The winger returned to practice Wednesday after an illness caused him to miss the game against Seattle.
Ranking among the top 33 in the NHL with 17 goals in 38 games, Skinner is second on the Sabres with 33 points in 38 games. With a goal and assist in Tuesday night's loss, Skinner has tallied 11 points over his past eight games.
Skinner missed three with an upper-body injury earlier this season. The Sabres have also played 10 games without center Tage Thompson, their leading scorer last season, and their other top-line winger Alex Tuch has missed eight games.
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Jonah Bronstein joined the WIVB squad in 2022 as a digital sports reporter. The Buffalonian has covered the Bills, Sabres, Bandits, Bisons, colleges, high schools and other notable sporting events in Western New York since 2005, for publications including The Associated Press, The Buffalo News, and Niagara Gazette. Read more of his work here.
