[BN] Hockey: Another night of firsts for Owen Power in Sabers’ loss |

You’ll always remember your first game, and Owen Power has good reason to keep the memory of Tuesday night fresh.

You’ll always remember your first NHL point, and Power’s pass to the slot to set up Alex Tuch’s goal in the second period Thursday night will hopefully be the first of many.

How about the first time a 30-goal scorer forces you to make a mistake that ends up with the puck in the back of your net? Luckily for Power, it happened during the same game as the assist, and happened during a game in which the 19-year-old defenseman had a pretty strong performance.

It was another night of firsts for Power in his debut in front of a Sabers crowd home.

Tuesday night offered his first win. Thursday night was his first loss.

Here are Lance Lysowski’s observations from the 6-2 defeat.

Granato named an assistant coach for Team USA at world championships: The world championships will be held in Tampere and Helsinki, Finland, from May 13-29. Read more

Photos: Here’s a photo gallery from the 6-2 loss, Owen Power’s home debut inside KeyBank Center. View photos

Dynamic future on defense: The arrival of Owen Power in Buffalo has brought into focus the young, talented group of defensemen the Sabers have compiled. “We need these young guys to take this team and this franchise over.” Read more

Here come the Golden Knights: Jack Eichel’s new team is making a push for the playoffs. Vegas sent a message in Calgary Thursday night. Read more

A first: Two Black on-ice officials worked a game together for the first time in NHL history Thursday. “I think it’s an exciting moment and it’s nice to see our team now have that kind of representation.” Read more

Would a play-in tournament work for the NHL: As the NBA postseason gets underway with a play-in tournament, it’s a good time to ask: could this work in the NHL? Read more

Underappreciated Tage Thompson: “If you had told me at the time of the Jack Eichel trade that there would be this much positive momentum carried by the Sabers into the 2022-23 season, I would not have believed you, but here we are. And Tage Thompson is a big reason for it, “ESPN’s Greg Wyshynski wrote when listing Thompson among the 12 most underappreciated players of the 2021-22 season. Read more

Bills: Could Bills trade up for Notre Dame safety Kyle Hamilton, considered ‘unicorn’ at the position? Read more

Erik Brady: Effort underway to get Butch Byrd on Bills Wall of Fame Read more

ESPN’s Mel Kiper loves Breece Hall, thinks No. 25 is too soon for Bills to take RB Read more

Colleges: UB notes: Forward Adebola Adeyeye to transfer to Kentucky; Bulls add defensive end Read more

Despite what survey says, UB football players say team is anything but boring Read more

High schools: Franklinville native Josh Haskell commits to Daemen basketball Read more

City Honors’ Caleb Chapman commits to D’Youville basketball Read more

Today in sports history: April 15

Have thoughts on the [BN] Hockey newsletter and our Sabers coverage? Email Executive Sports Editor Josh Barnett at jbarnett@buffnews.com.