Leg injury sidelines Sabres' Pominville for Game 6

As Jason Pominville hopped on one leg up the runway toward the Sabres' locker room Friday at the Wells Fargo Center, blood pouring down his other leg, he left his teammates several voids to fill as Buffalo tries to oust the Flyers from the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs on Sunday at HSBC Arena.

Sabres coach Lindy Ruff said Saturday that Pominville would not play in Game 6. Ruff would not disclose specifics of the injury, but it's believed Pominville suffered a severe cut from a skate. He didn't officially rule out his top all-around forward for a possible Game 7 on Tuesday. The Sabres lead the series, three games to two.

After Buffalo's 4-3 overtime win Friday, Pominville was seen leaving the Wells Fargo Center on crutches and wearing a protective boot that extended above his left knee.

"He just won't be available to play [Sunday]," Ruff said, declining further comment.

Pominville was injured with little more than three minutes remaining in the first period. A right winger on the Sabres' top line, Pominville is not only one of the club's most dangerous scorers, but he's also an excellent penalty killer and checker and a veteran team leader.

"Poms is a great player, a great leader, a good line mate and teammate," said left winger Tyler Ennis, who pounced on a rebound and fired the game-winning goal past goalie Michael Leighton 5 minutes, 31 seconds into overtime. "It's tough to lose him, but we've got to fight through it."

The Sabres called up center Matt Ellis from Portland for an extra forward.

The return of Derek Roy from a knee injury would soften the blow of Pominville's loss. It's possible the talented center may return for Game 6, but he's more likely to play in Game 7, if there is one. Roy was placed on injured reserve Dec. 28 and missed the last 47 games of the regular season. At the time of his injury, he led Buffalo with 35 points in 35 games, including 10 goals.

Asked how close Roy was to returning, Ruff was coy, as coaches typically are during the playoffs.

"Derek is very close, very close," he said. "I would put him in a category of within days. Jochen Hecht is also within days. Help is on its way."

Does that mean Roy will play Sunday? "I said days, not day," Ruff said.

Although the Flyers have outplayed the Sabres through most of the first five games, Buffalo has managed to push the Flyers to the brink of elimination because of its significant advantage in goaltending. Ryan Miller, the reigning Vezina Trophy winner and MVP of the 2010 Vancouver Olympics, has stolen two wins with 1-0 shutouts. Meantime, the Flyers have used three goalies, and each has stumbled.

Ruff, who is in his 13th season as the Sabres head coach and has coached 99 playoff games with Buffalo, said he couldn't recall a team using three goalies in a postseason series.

"I think last year they used a number of goalies, too," Ruff said. "I think it's something they're accustomed to doing."

Along with Miller's play, the Sabres have used shot-blocking and an effective penalty-killing unit to build the series lead. They blocked a remarkable 29 shots in Game 5 and killed off all five Flyers power plays. They have held the Flyers to two goals on 26 power plays. Their biggest penalty kill of the series occurred toward the end of the third period in Game 5.

As for the blocked shots, Ruff said, "It's a new level of desperation. It's realizing just one shot can make a difference. Shot-blocking is something that sends a message back to your goaltender and the rest of the team that they're willing to do what it takes."