Although Jack Eichel has and will continue to generate a lot of attention, he’s not the only high-profile rookie with the Buffalo Sabres.
Sam Reinhart is another second overall pick and tonight against the Tampa Bay Lightning he scored the first goal of his career. The 19-year-old is playing in his 14th NHL game.
As you can see above, this play started with Reinhart putting pressure on Alex Killorn in a battle for the puck in the Lightning’s zone. Shortly afterwards, Tyler Ennis gained control and while his attempt to beat goalie Ben Bishop fell short, he was able to collect the rebound and feed it to Reinhart.
Reinhart is the younger brother of 21-year-old Griffin (Edmonton) and 23-year-old Max (Nashville). He’s also the son of former defenseman Paul Reinhart, who had a 648-game career with the Atlanta/Calgary Flames and Vancouver Canucks.
That marker gave Buffalo an early 1-0 lead as it looks to improve to 2-3-0.