FEBRUARY 1, 2010 -- BUFFALO -- At 6’ 8”, Sabres defenseman Tyler Myers is literally head and shoulders above all rookies in the NHL.  Buffalo’s first round selection (12th overall) in the 2008 draft made a huge impression on Sabres coach Lindy Ruff in his first nine games of the season, so much so that Ruff could not afford to send the rookie back to his junior team, the Kelowna Rockets of the WHL.  

Tyler Myers leads his team in ice time, the only NHL rookie to do so.

Myers will turn 20 on February 1 and he is a main contributor to the success Buffalo is experiencing in 2009-10.  Myers is the second tallest player in the NHL behind only Boston’s Zdeno Chara and he uses his size equally well at both ends of the ice.  As of January 31, Myers is fourth on the Sabres in scoring at 7-24-31 and is a +8.  Not bad for a rookie blueliner.  How impressive is the scoring stat?  On January 27 Myers was tied in points with elite veterans Shea Weber and Scott Niedermayer.  

Myers and his defensive partner Henrik Tallinder are the number one pairing for Buffalo and that means Myers gets to go head-to-head with the best forwards in the NHL.  That can be very intimidating for a youngster, but Myers is generally playing like a seasoned vet and not like someone just 53 games into his professional career.

He is still a bit star struck on the ice and said that the full realization of his playing on the big stage came in an early season game against the Detroit Red Wings when he was skating on the ice with Nicklas Lidstrom, Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg.  Myers is obviously excited to be where he is but he is trying to focus on each game as it comes.

Like any rookie, Myers makes mistakes but the impressive thing about him is that rarely does he make the same mistake twice.  “He’s a fast learner,” said Buffalo’s Craig Rivet.  “He’s picking this up quickly.”  Ryan Miller, Team USA goalie and the man counting on Myers defense to make his job easier said, “He picks things up quickly and he’s really eager to learn.”

Defense is a position that typically requires a lot of learning to play at the NHL level.  It’s not uncommon to see rookie phenoms at the forward position, Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin are a pair of recent examples, but rarely will you see a rookie defenseman make the impact that Myers is making.  His class of 2008 did produce another pair of young skilled blue liners in Los Angeles’ Drew Doughty and Atlanta’s Zach Bogosian, but as skilled as they are, they are nowhere near the level of Myers.

On a Buffalo team loaded with some very solid players—Rivet, Derek Roy, Jason Pominville, Steve Montador, Jochen Hecht and Tallinder—it is the rookie Myers that leads all Sabres in ice time, the only NHL rookie to lead his club in ice time.  Myers averages 23:27 per game and is a full three minutes ahead of the number two skater, Tallinder.  Ruff has a ton of confidence in the young Myers and he shows that night in and night out.

Entering training camp in September, Myers wasn’t expected to make the Sabres opening night roster.  When he did make it, many expected he would be returned to Kelowna before he hit the nine-game mark.  The Sabres knew he had a promising future and a lot of upside; they just didn’t know that Myers’ future was to be now.

Myers is a favorite by many to win the Calder Trophy as the NHL Rookie of the Year and although he has some strong competition in New York Islanders forward John Tavares, and Colorado Avalanche forward Matt Duchene, if he stays on his current pace he has as good a shot as anyone to take home the hardware in January.  There is even a 1,284-member Facebook fan page devoted to Myers winning the Calder, titled Tyler Myers for Rookie of the Year!

It’s not the Calder that Myers focuses on, though it would be nice to be honored as the best rookie in the league.  Myers is focusing one game at a time on making himself a better player and on making the Buffalo Sabres a better team.  

Steve Montador and Tony Lydman Take a Seat

Veteran defensemen and defensive partners Steve Montador and Toni Lydman were healthy scratches Wednesday night when the Atlantic Division leaders, the New Jersey Devils, visited HSBC Arena. They were replaced on the blue line by Nathan Paetsch and Andrej Sekera. Both Paetsch and Sekera did a solid job for coach Lindy Ruff. 

“I thought they did well,” Ruff said of Paetsch and Sekera.  “Nathan did a good job on the goal.  I thought Andrej was solid defensively; he made some nice plays up ice and it’s been a long time since he’s played.  I liked their effort.  They kept it smart and didn’t give up any big opportunities, which is real important.”

Montador had poor games in San Jose and Vancouver just prior to the Devils arrival in Buffalo and his scratch came as little shock to many.  Lydman’s was more surprising, but when you look at the pair’s numbers over the previous nine games, you may not be as surprised.  Lydman was a -5 while Montador was -4. 

Montador and Lydman were back in the lineup the next game as the Sabres hosted the slumping Boston Bruins.  Each skater averaged around 16 minutes of ice time and neither was on the ice for any of the games goals.

Asked about the benching, Sabres coach Lindy Ruff said, “It wasn’t easy taking out the couple guys we took out, but they’ve been struggling the last couple of games and I thought this was the right time to do it.”

Over the course of the season Montador has played in 52 games and is 3-11-14 with a -1.  Lydman has played in 38 and is 1-9-10 and is +5

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