The Buffalo Sabres have fired head coach Don Granato, making him the seventh coach to be ousted during what’s grown into an NHL-record 13-season playoff drought.

Sports took a backseat in Buffalo this week after the deadliest winter storm in decades devastated and paralyzed much of western New York.

Four people with direct knowledge of the player’s decision have told The Associated Press that Buffalo Sabres captain Jack Eichel is changing agents while in the midst of a long-standing dispute with the team over how to treat a neck injury.

The St. Louis Blues have signed forward Brandon Saad to a five-year, $22.5 million contract.

The Buffalo Sabres have the first pick in an NHL draft on Friday night.

The Buffalo Sabres have removed the interim tag from Don Granato and named him the team's full-time coach.

The Buffalo Sabres won the NHL draft lottery and the expansion Seattle Kraken jumped up the order to take the No. 2 pick Wednesday night.

Buffalo Sabres interim head coach Don Granato looks on during the third period of an NHL hockey game against the Boston Bruins, Thursday, March 18, 2021, in Buffalo, N.Y. (AP Photo/Jeffrey T. Barnes)The Latest on the effects of the coronavirus outbreak on sports around the world:___Buffalo Sabres interim coach Don Granato and assistant Matt Ellis are headed back to work after being cleared from the NHL’s COVID-19 protocol. The Sabres announced Granato and Ellis are traveling to join the team in Boston after spending a night in self-isolation in Pittsburgh. That led to general manager Kevyn Adams stepping in to coach the 4-0 loss, which extended the Sabres franchise-record winless skid to 0-14-2. 9 Minnesota Duluth, the two-time defending national champion, in a Midwest Regional semifinal. AdThe game will be ruled a no-contest and Minnesota Duluth will advance to the next round.

(AP Photo/Keith Srakocic)The Latest on the effects of the coronavirus outbreak on sports around the world:___Buffalo Sabres interim coach Don Granato and assistant Matt Ellis have been placed in the NHL’s COVID-19 protocol. The development leaves general manager Kevyn Adams taking over behind the bench for Buffalo’s game at Pittsburgh on Thursday night. This marks the second time the Sabres have been hit by COVID-19 in two months. Buffalo’s season was paused for two weeks in early February after nine players and then-coach Ralph Krueger were placed in the protocol. The university said the team went through seven rounds of testing in the seven days leading up to its departure for Albany on Wednesday.

The Sabres fired coach Ralph Krueger on Wednesday, March 17, 2021. (AP Photo/Jeffrey T. Barnes, File)BUFFALO, N.Y. – Firing Buffalo Sabres coach Ralph Krueger on Wednesday represents just the beginning of what could become Kevyn Adams’ major overhaul of an overpriced, underperforming team in the midst of a 12-game skid. The Sabres are starting fresh yet again with Krueger becoming Buffalo’s sixth coach fired in just over eight calendar years. AdKrueger is the third NHL coach fired this season, after Montreal dismissed Claude Julien and Calgary replaced Geoff Ward with two-time Stanley Cup-winning coach Darryl Sutter. “There has to be pride that goes with putting on a Buffalo Sabres’ jersey.”The Sabres have lurched from one crisis to another this season.

BUFFALO, N.Y. – The Buffalo Sabres are banking on Taylor Hall to turn what was a long and unsettled offseason into a far brighter immediate future. Buffalo became the surprise team to win the Hall free-agency sweepstakes by signing the 10th-year forward and six-time 20-goal-scorer to a one-year, $8 million contract Sunday night. The deal came together after the Sabres made landing Hall their top priority in free agency, with second-year coach Ralph Krueger playing an integral role. Krueger was an assistant in Edmonton during Hall's rookie season, and then spent the 2012-13 lockout shortened year as the Oilers coach. The Sabres entered free agency about $26 million under the NHL’s salary $81.5 million cap, and are currently projected to have about $14 million of space available following Hall’s addition.