Puzzling demotion for Victor Olofsson ahead of game in Boston

This evening, the buffalo Sabres will be facing off against the Bruins in Boston. the Sabres will be looking to get back in the win column after losing their previous two games.

Coach Krueger iced a lineup featuring 11 forwards and 7 defensemen on Tuesday against the Minnesota Wild. Tonight, he will reportedly be opting for the more traditional 12 forwards and 6 defensemen, which means that he had to reorganize his line combinations.

The most notable change is the somewhat surprising demotion of Victor Olfosson. The 24 year old rookie has spent most of the season playing on the Sabres' top line alongside Jack Eichel and Sam Reinhart. Tonight however, Olofsson will play on the 4th line.

The young Swede is having a great rookie season. As a matter of fact, he is already in the converstion for the the Calder Trophy and has accumulated 7 goals, 8 assists and 15 points in 21 outings so far this season. His 7 goals currently lead all rookie players in the NHL. 

To be fair, Olofsson is a power play specialist and his presence on the 4th line by no means signifies that he won't feature on the Sabres' powerplay this evening. That being said, cutting his five-on-five ice time is at the very least a puzzling coaching decision considering his great offensive output this season.

Jimmy Vesey will step in on the first line to replace Olofsson. Another rookie is set to be demoted tonight. 2018 first overall pick, Rasmus Dahlin will play alongside Henri Jokiharju on the 3rd defensive pairing after a few questionnable performances.

Carter Hutton will get the start in front of the Buffalo net as Linus Ullmark was the one who faced defeat on Tuesday against the Wild.

Here is the Sabres' projected lineup for tonights' game against the Bruins according to NHL.com correspondent Matt Kalman:

Forwards:

Jimmy Vesey - Jack Eichel - Sam Reinhart

Jeff Skinner - Evan Rodrigues - Conor Sheary

Zemgus Girgensons - Johan Larsson - Curtis Lazar

Victor Olofsson - Casey Mittelstadt - Rasmus Asplund

Defensemen:

Jake McCabe - Rasmus Ristolainen

Colin Miller - Brandon Montour

Rasmus Dahlin - Henri Jokiharju

Goaltenders:

Carter Hutton

Linus Ullmark

Marco Scandella and John Gilmour are set to be healthy scratches this evening. Zach Bogosian (hip), Matt Hunwick (neck), Vladimir Sobotka (lower body), Marcus Johansson (upper body), Kyle Okposo (concussion) and Tage Thompson (upper body) are all out of the lineup with injuries.