Sabres draft defenseman in first round

Los Angeles, Ca. - The Sabres struck gold two years ago, when they used their first round draft pick on young defenseman Tyler Myers.  They'd settle for a similar result with Mark Pysyk.

Pysyk was chosen by the Sabres in the first round of the 2010 NHL Entry Draft in Los Angeles.  He was the 23rd overall selection.

Pysyk is a 6-1, 182-pound defenseman whom the scouts consider a "stay-at-home" defender.  He scored seven goals and had 17-assists for the Edmonton Oil Kings of the Western Hockey League last year.

Pysyk's season was cut short when he suffered a broken foot, after 48-games for Edmonton.  Even with the injury, he was still named the Oil Kings Most Valuable Player for the season, and their top defenseman.

Buffalo native E.J. McGuire, the Director of Central Scouting for the NHL, has this description of Pysyk:

"He finished the season with a broken foot and a lot of scouts werent able to get a good grip on how good this player's going to be in the NHL.  Smooth-skating, he has a neat knack for following up the play at the right time, leading the rush at the right time, and throwing a crisp pass to one of his forwards to break out of his zone."

The Sabres have eight picks left in the Entry Draft this weekend, eight of them tomorrow.