The Sabres' late run toward a playoff spot has taken a serious blow. Defenseman Tyler Myers has earned a three-game suspension for boarding Montreal's Scott Gomez on Monday, the NHL announced this evening.
Myers will sit Wednesday's home game against Colorado, Saturday's matchup in Florida and Monday's game in Tampa Bay. He will forfeit $14,189.19 in salary, which goes to the players' emergency assist fund.
"It’s tough. There’s no doubt," coach Lindy Ruff said today. "He’s been a big part of our back end."
Myers went into today's phone call with Brendan Shanahan, the NHL's disciplinarian, with the feeling a punishment was coming.
"This morning it looked a lot worse than a lot of guys thought it did last night when it happened," Myers said. "Especially with 12 games left in this tight race, it’s not a good feeling to even be in this situation."
The Sabres will need to make a minor-league recall to fill Myers' spot. Brayden McNabb is the likely candidate.
---John Vogl
