BUFFALO, N.Y. – After a slew of recent roster moves, the Wild will roll out a different lineup to face the Sabres Tuesday in Buffalo that could include defenseman Anthony Bitetto making his team debut.
Coach Bruce Boudreau told Bitetto to be ready to play since he'll draw in Tuesday or Thursday at home vs. the Oilers.
"I'm really excited," Bitetto said. "I haven't played in a little while here, so I'm looking forward to getting back out here. New team, fresh start and these are big games coming up and these are the fun times to play in. So I'm really excited."
Bitetto, who hasn't played since Jan.4, was claimed off waivers from the Predators Jan.25. His first appearance comes on the heels of the Wild assigning defenseman Nate Prosser to the minors, along with winger J.T. Brown. The Wild also recalled forwards Luke Kunin and Kyle Rau from Iowa of the American Hockey League.
"A guy that's going to create offense when it's there," Bitetto said when asked about his style on the blue line. "Be physical at all times and defend hard. I like to compete. I like to win, so whatever it takes to win."
When Bitetto slots in, he'll play on the left side – taking Nick Seeler's spot on the third pairing.
"He hasn't had a rest," Boudreau said of Seeler. "He plays awful hard. He hasn't played a lot of minutes lately, but sometimes we always tell the young guys that sometimes it doesn't hurt to watch a game."
This is the start of a four-game week, with three of those games on the road. After returning home to host Edmonton, the Wild will play a back-to-back against the New Jersey Devils and New York Islanders.
