Sabres head coach Ted Nolan hinted yesterday that some roster changes could be on the horizon. Today, the changes started taking place.
From the Buffalo News:
Buffalo has started its mornings skate, and 19-year-old Mikhail Grigorenko is gone along with rookies Rasmus Ristolainen, Johan Larsson, Nikita Zadorov. Though no official word has come from the Sabres, sources say Ristolainen and Larsson have been sent to Rochester.
Zadorov is on his way to London of the Ontario Hockey League. Because he didn’t play 10 games -- the NHL’s teenage tryout limit -- the first year of his entry-level contract did not kick in.
Grigorenko’s situation is a bit trickier. While he can still be sent back to junior, his QMJHL team, the Quebec Remparts, already has two imports, and it’s not allowed any more. That means a trade will need to occur, either sending Grigorenko, or another import, to a different club.
No word yet who’s coming up from the AHL. Forward Luke Adam and d-man Brayden McNabb are two candidates. A third candidate is...
Source close to Patrick Kaleta says "nothing as of now" regarding return to Sabres.
— John Vogl (@BuffaloVogl) November 19, 2013
Update 11:39 a.m. ET
Grigorenko has been assigned to AHL Rochester on a conditioning stint, the Sabres announced.
Ted Nolan says Mikhail Grigorenko will return to the Sabres following conditioning stint with Amerks.
— John Vogl (@BuffaloVogl) November 19, 2013