The Buffalo Sabres are getting some tough injury news. Key forward Josh Norris is going to miss a significant amount of time due to an injury, per Sportsnet. Norris is dealing with an upper-body problem.
This injury will be tough to stomach for Sabres fans. Buffalo has played just one contest this season, and that was a loss to the New York Rangers. The Sabres have yet to post a goal this season.
Norris was expected to center the top line alongside Tage Thompson, and his absence will loom large for a team that will be fighting hard to stay relevant in the Eastern Conference.
In the Rangers loss, Norris posted four shots on goal. He sustained his injury late in that contest. Norris also missed nearly 20 games to end the 2024-25 season, with an oblique problem. He has also had shoulder issues, dating back to his days in college.
Sabres were hoping for big things from Josh Norris
Norris was picked up at the trade deadline during the 2024-25 season, from the Ottawa Senators. The Sabres hope the center can establish himself as one of the team's top leaders and scorers.
While playing for the Senators and Sabres last season, Norris posted 35 total points. He had just two points in Buffalo before getting hurt. He finished the campaign with 21 goals.
The Sabres center has appeared in 240 career NHL games. He has netted 91 goals in his career, which started in Ottawa during the 2019-2020 season.
After the injury, Buffalo's players are looking to each other to step up.
“That ‘next man up’ mentality is huge,” Sabres forward Alex Tuch said, per NHL.com. “I think we're all really confident in everybody that we have on our roster; anyone that we insert on the lineup I think we're really confident in. I think we have a lot of depth guys that are able to play up and down the lineup, and I think that'll be huge.”
The Sabres had a difficult 2024-25 campaign. Buffalo posted just 79 points on the year, and missed the postseason for the 14th straight year. Buffalo finished second last in the Atlantic Division.
The Sabres will look to get in the win column for the first time in 2025-26 against the Boston Bruins on Saturday night.
