The Buffalo Sabres’ Colten Ellis came out of hiding with his first shutout of the season.
The 25-year-old goaltender was drafted by the St. Louis Blues in the 2019 draft. Ellis was selected in the third round as the 93rd overall pick by the team. He was then claimed off waivers by the Sabres at the beginning of the 2025-26 season.
From there, he added to the Sabres’ three-goalie phenomenon. Ellis seemed to sneak onto the roster under the radar, without much notice from fans. During that time, the Sabres had Alex Lyon and Ukko-Pekka-Luukkonen alternating for starting positions.
Ellis played in a total of 16 games, whereas Lyon and Luukkonen have played a little over 30 games each. However, as a healthy scratch in most cases or sitting as a backup, Ellis’ work ethic only strengthened.
Head coach Lindy Ruff spoke to the media following the Sabres’ win against the Columbus Blue Jackets on April 9.
“First guy to the rink a lot of times, almost every day,” Ruff said. “I think that’s part of a routine that leads to a lot of great habits.” Ellis, throughout the season, continually played with the Sabres’ scratches, showing up and sharpening his skills.
Ellis hadn’t played as a starter for the Sabres in a game since February 4 against the Tampa Bay Lightning and lost. After a lengthy hiatus as a starter, Ellis was in between the pipes April 9 against the Blue Jackets. He made many noteworthy saves, which led to his shutout. Fans even started comparing those saves he made in the game to the work of former Sabre Dominik Hasek.
Throughout the game, Ellis’ body was glued to the ice with very few abrupt moves after the puck. He followed through when there was a Blue Jacket breakaway, staying with the puck. Not only that, but he also held that focus from the first period into the last two periods of the game. Ellis was completely unfazed.
With all that said, any goalie can do that. However, Ellis hasn’t played in two months! Sure, he has practiced and whatnot, but the point is his work ethic, and the notice he received from Ruff says a lot about Ellis. He truly is a secret that Buffalo might have been holding out on for the right moment. Granted it wasn’t ideal that Lyon got injured during practice, which led to Ellis’ activity. However, that might’ve been the perfect moment Ellis had to make himself known to fans and the league.
It was a really rewarding game to watch, and I was in awe of how Ellis stuck with the puck so well. I didn’t doubt him, but not having seen him play a lot this season, I was a little reserved about him being in the net. It will be interesting to see if he will make a playoff appearance with the Sabres after the regular season.
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