The defenceman William Borgen of the Buffalo Sabres will be out for 6-8 weeks due to a fracture in his right forearm. The injury happened during the game against the New Jersey Devils on February 20, after Borgen blocked a shot in the first period. He underwent surgery on February 23.
After further evaluation, it was discovered that defenseman Will Borgen suffered a fracture in his right forearm during our game on Feb. 20 in New Jersey.⁰⁰Borgen underwent successful surgery to repair the fracture today and is expected to miss approximately 6-8 weeks. pic.twitter.com/zH8vI5EBXI
— Buffalo Sabres (@BuffaloSabres) February 23, 2021
Sabres’ Will Borgen Out With a Forearm Fracture
While some teams are having problems with underperformance and scandals, the Sabres seem to have gotten the feared injury-bug. After having a 14-day no-game stretch due to COVID complications, they are now without three of their defenceman.
Rasmus Ristolainen is out indefinitely due to complications caused by COVID. In an interview with a news website in his homeland, Ilta-Sanomat, Ristolainen said there were days he’d go to bed and not if he would wake up. He had chest pains and had trouble walking up the stairs. All due to COVID-19.
Without one of their top defenceman, Buffalo relied on the veteran Jake McCabe to hold the top pair. However, McCabe was injured on February 20, after he tried to throw a hit at Nico Hischier. He fell on the ice immediately and had to be helped off the ice by his teammates.
The 24-year-old Will Borgen was hurt in the same game. He kept playing and managed to finish the game. Even injured in the first period, Borgen had 27 shifts and 19:14 minutes on ice. It was his fourth game of the season.
The defenceman was a good addition to the much-needed Buffalo team. Will Borgen was paired with Rasmus Dahlin and the duo seemed to work. They were key players to their 3-2 win on Saturday.
What Comes Next
The odds are not the best for Buffalo. They are currently sitting in the last spot in the East Division. Their record is not looking pretty either, with a 5-8-2, 12 points, and a -9 goal differential.
Their forwards are struggling to find the back of the net. Jack Eichel has been collecting points but he does not look remarkable. Taylor Hall has only one goal – scored on their first game of the season. Losing their top d-pair and Borgen might seem bad – and it is. However, they’re not hopeless just yet.
They still have a solid blue line on the left side. Rasmus Dahlin, Matt Irwin, and Brandon Davidson are all healthy, and Jacob Bryson was set to play the game on February 23 against New Jersey. It could be a lot worse.
They still need to figure their offensive game out and be consistent. The team was struggling to get even-strength scoring before the pause and it continued as they came back. They looked good in their last two games against the Devils and the New York Islanders, having three 5-on-5 goals and two power-play goals.
Their defence was solid during the game on Monday, even with the tough 3-2 loss to the Islanders. If their blue line keeps doing their job and Linus Ullmark keeps his game at this high level, the Sabres might have a shot. The only problem they’ll have to solve is the offence – and with the number of shot attempts they’re averaging, that might not be as big of a problem as it seems to be.
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