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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Knightfall" data-source="post: 3072058" data-attributes="member: 2012">Novotny hopes to make mark with SabresCanadian Press9/18/2006 11:42:18 PMTORONTO (CP) - The Buffalo Sabres don't want to mess with a promising young lineup that came within one win of advancing to the Stanley Cup final last spring.But the Sabres lost a trio of key players in the off-season- forwards J.P. Dumont, Mike Grier and defenceman Jay McKee - and the team is hoping it can fill those holes from within.There's certainly no shortage of Sabre hopefuls, and one prospect who's hoping to remain in Buffalo at the start of October - rather than report to AHL Rochester - is 23-year-old centre Jiri Novotny.  "I feel so much better at this training camp than in past years, but I don't really know why," said Novotny, a native of the Czech Republic. "I feel lighter on my feet, faster on the ice. I don't know, I just feel better."Novotny looked pretty good in his first pre-season outing, scoring the first goal, which turned out to be the game-winner in a 4-0 victory against the host Maple Leafs last night.Novotny, drafted 22nd overall by Buffalo in 2001, skated with another hopeful in 22-year-old Daniel Paille, a banging left winger who adds a physical element that the undersized Sabres sorely need."It's great," Novotny said. "I played with Danny in Rochester last season in a lot of games. He knows how I play; he knows I'm going to pass it to him whenever I can. If he's open, I'll try to zip it over to him."He has great speed, he just flies down the ice. And he's working so hard on every shift. It's a lot of fun to play with Danny."The early success of the Sabres youngsters means the team's management will have some difficult choices to make."All the (forward prospects) played well tonight," said Sabres coach Lindy Ruff, specifically singling out Novotny and Paille, as well as Chris Thorburn and Michael Ryan. "I liked all of them. It's going to make for some tough decisions at the end of training camp."Ryan, 26, scored Buffalo's fourth goal against Toronto, while Thorburn, 23, dropped the gloves and fought Leafs winger Ben Ondrus.Still, Novotny might have the best chance to crack the Sabres roster at forward, given his combination of skill and size (6-foot-4, 207 pounds)."I have a good chance to make the team because of the three players who left (in the off-season)," Novotny said. "I know I have a good chance, so I'm trying to play my best in the exhibition games."Novotny made his NHL debut and played 14 games with Buffalo in 2005-06, scoring two goals and three points, while amassing 17 goals and 54 points in 66 AHL games. A playmaking centre, he said he'd play wherever Ruff puts him if that's what it takes to make the team."We have a lot of great centres, plus Tim Connolly who's hurt, too," Novotny said. "We have four regular centres."I feel the best when I'm playing centre, but I can play left or right wing too, it doesn't matter."</blockquote>

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