Sabres recall AHL leading-scorer Lawrence Pilut

Lawrence Pilut is officially a member of the Buffalo Sabres. On Wednesday the team announced Pilut has been recalled from the Rochester Americans [AHL]. 

Pilut, 22, is tied for a league-leading 22 points in 15 games with the Americans this season. The rookie defenseman has tallied at least one point in seven straight games and has the second-best plus/minus rating in the AHL with a plus-16 rating. 

The Tingsryd, Sweden native signed with the Sabres in the offseason after he was named the 2017-2018 Swedish Hockey League defenseman of the year. 

In a corresponding move, Patrick Berglund has been placed on injured reserve with an upper-body injury. 

Berglund, who was evaluated today for an upper-body injury, has been placed on IR. No word on the extend of his injury or a potential timeline for his return.

— Matthew Bové (@Matt_Bove) November 21, 2018

Bove's Take:

It was only a matter of time. 

Pilut has lit up the AHL as a rookie and has fans clamoring for him to join the Sabres lineup. Injuries to Marco Scandella and Patrik Berglund made this move possible with the team needing to add a seventh defender. 

We had a quick chat with Lawrence Pilut after the first session of practice this morning. It's only a week into camp but he's been impressive thus far. He'll likely start in ROC but could find his way to BUF sooner than expected @WKBW #Sabres pic.twitter.com/cesCd4OhBl

— Matthew Bové (@Matt_Bove) September 20, 2018

Do I think Pilut will be thrown into the lineup right away? Probably not, but that would certainly be fun. At 5'11", Pilut isn't the biggest defenseman but he's a great skater who has a knack for creating offense. 

Depending on the severity of Scandella's injury [Housley said Wednesday morning he's day-to-day], Pilut should get a chance to make his NHL debut sometime in the foreseeable future. 

Put Pilut with Dahlin #Sabres pic.twitter.com/SgTCt9Nqi9

— Matthew Bové (@Matt_Bove) November 21, 2018

Have a news tip, question or comment?